IT’S AN EASTER PROPHECY

Calling my principal 45 minutes before school starts because my car was repossessed was not on my bingo card for 2026, but that’s what happened on Good Friday. But after all the emotions had run their course and I was able to secure a time to retrieve my car, a word was given to me.

You see, it didn’t take long to get things worked out. In fact, by Saturday afternoon, I was scheduled to pick up on the Monday after Easter; however, I got a phone call on Sunday morning while I was brushing my teeth from the towing company that had my car. They said that they were trying to get some of their appointments done early because they had a lot of them and was trying to avoid getting backed up on appointments, so by 11AM on Easter Sunday, my Jetta was back in my possession.

Now, here’s the prophecy part…

Life without a doubt has been consistent struggle for me for the past three to six years. But just like Good Friday was the day Christ died to change the world for the better, the repossession happening on Good Friday was the cross that I died on. And just like Easter was the visible proclamation that the grave could hold Jesus and the old world was done, I took this situation as a symbol that life is about to get a whole lot better for me.

MICHAEL

THAT WAS MICHAEL ON THAT SCREEN!!! I know that since it was his nephew playing him, it’s easy to blur the lines between appearance and personality. However, there were many times while watching the movie that I thought I was seeing Michael, himself, and not Jaafar… which better supports my theory that Michael isn’t actually dead and that he’s living off the grid on an island somewhere.

Now, let’s walk it back a bit. I’m a huge MJ fan… in elementary school, I used to try to dress just like him, but I didn’t have Michael Jackson money. I even built a small Michael Jackson shrine on a shelf in my bedroom growing up.

So, I felt the movie Michael was a nice aerial view of his major early career highlights. Personally, I felt like they could have given us some street views of Michael’s life. I, specially, would have liked to see more about the Jackson 5 years and, subsequently, the transition from Gary, Indiana to Los Angeles.

I did appreciate how they made the immediate connection on why Michael chose the name Neverland for his estate… that was nice touch of emotional healing through the eyes of young Michael.

I definitely did not like the abrupt ending. Although, I can see and understand why it was so abrupt. But I believe they could have ended the movie better than just a hard cut to black.

SAVED BY THE BELL

Oh my! We had quite the hail storm in Springfield last week—millions dollar worth of damage throughout the city. Some places were hit harder than others, specifically, the north side of Springfield. A whole new fleet of rental cars had to brought to the airport because all the rental cars were damaged or totaled. Nearly almost all teachers and students at Hillcrest High School experienced damage to their car.

In my apartment complex alone, I counted eleven cars with significant damage when I got home from work, which makes me glad that I teach in central Springfield. I wouldn’t classify it as schadenfreude, but it’s real close, because I’m glad that I was not at home during the hail storm because I would have definitely had damage done to my car—luckily, my apartment windows were still intact.

MSU INTERIOR DESIGN’S SENIOR SHOWCASE

So, technically, Missouri State’s Interior Design Senior Showcase did not happen in April; it happened in March. However, I have just been so ecstatic about getting to sponsor an event for the first time that I just had to write about my excitement.

“As a newer business and solo entrepreneur, it brings my heart joy to see my logo on a board next to some bigger companies.” (@braylon.williams, Instagram)

Honestly, when I look back at that picture of the board with all the sponsors’ logos, I can’t describe what I feel; there’s just so many positive emotions that flow through my body when I look at that picture that it’s too hard to pick just one to describe everything. It kind of feels like the beginning of a new chapter.

[As a fan of Dante’s Inferno from The Divine Comedy, when I discovered that Dante may have had knowledge of the Enneagram when he wrote The Divine Comedy, it all made sense. It made sense that I’m deeply drawn to the meaning and the different artistic expressions of Inferno. And it made sense that I have developed an affection for the Enneagram and taken up the torch as an Enneagram Educator.]

REVIEW

Before we dive in the modern Enneagram, I want to take a moment to do a quick review of the classical Enneagram for those who may have not read the previous entry—I highly encourage that you stop right here and the entry about The Classical Enneagram first.

The history of the Enneagram is richer than some might realize. The development of the Enneagram began with Pythagoras; however, it was Ramon Llull who introduced the earliest visual representation of the nine-pointed diagram that we associate with the Enneagram. However, the Enneagram didn’t begin as a personality typology. In fact, the earliest contributors to the Enneagram were not attempting to make a personality typology… they were attempting to connect the spiritual to the mathematical.

Ramon Llull’s work with the Enneagram is where the Enneagram began to lose its mathematical roots and transition to wholly spiritual self-assessment. Llull introduced the nine-pointed diagram, “He created a diagram of nine sets of aspects in concentric circles, one of which maps to the Vices of the Enneagram.” (Integrative Enneagram Systems, “A Short and Comprehensive History of the Enneagram’s Origins”)

Although Llull introduced the nine-pointed diagram, Athanasius Kirchner’s cover of Magnum opus Arithmologia (1655) is accredited to being the first illustration that closely matches the Enneagram diagram today.

Because a 600-year gap of undocumented use of the Enneagram symbol in its modern form, George Gurdjieff is noted as the definite start of the 20^th century Enneagram. George Gurdjieff (1866-1949) and P.D. Ouspensky (1878-1947) is where the transition between the Classical Enneagram and the Modern Enneagram begins.

ÓSCAR ICHAZO (1931-2020)

Óscar Ichazo is known as the father of The Enneagram of Personality. After inheriting his grandfather’s library from his uncle Julio, Ichazo started to read the work of Ouspensky.

In 1949, I started reading the work of Ouspensky, and in 1950 in Buenos Aires, I was invited to a closed study group… where I participated in long discussions about the work of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky. Here is where I first pointed out to this group that all the ideas proposed by Gurdjieff and Ouspensky could be traced to certain forms of Gnosticism and to specific doctrines of the Stoics, the Epicurians, and the Manichaeans. I also pointed out that we could not find any instructions in their books on how to apply the Chaldean Seal (enneagram) and that there were only vague references to music, the days of the week, etc.”

— Óscar Ichazo, “Setting the Record Straight,” Enneagram Monthly, Issue 21, November 1996.

Shortly after participating in that study group in Buenos Aires, in 1968, Ichazo began lecturing on protoanalysis(personality insights overlaid on the Enneagram symbol) under the supervision of the Chilean Psychological Association.

He taught a system he called Protoanalysis, which connected the nine points to Vices (Passions), Virtues, and ego-fixations. Central to his work was the idea that each person’s innate ‘Essence’ is obscured by an ‘Ego’ fixation developed in childhood. Ichazo provided the essential spiritual and psychological “skeleton” of the nine types, creating a powerful framework for self-realization.

— Integrative Enneagram Systems, “A Short and Comprehensive History of the Enneagram’s Origins”

Within his lectures, Ichazo taught a system of 108 Enneagrams—what he called Enneagons. Although he taught on 108, the Enneagram movement in America is based only on the first few:

1. Fixations — Underlying mental preoccupation for each.

2. Passions — The emotional energy in support of the fixation.

3. Virtues — What’s lacking when the passion gets in the way.

4. Holy Ideas — True remedy for the fixation.

5. Traps — The trap you fall into in seeking to overcome the fixation.

CLAUDIO NARANJO (1932-2019)

Óscar Ichazo is the father of the modern Enneagram, but Claudio Naranjo is the refiner of the Modern Enneagram (Naranjo often referred to himself as the mother of the Enneagram). Naranjo was a Chilean psychiatrist who was regarded as a pioneer of the Human Potential Movement and an innovator of the Enneagram of Personality, also known as EnneaTypes.

Naranjo took the foundation of the 27 subtype keys developed by Ichazo and made them into the 27 Subtype Character profiles that we use today.

The rich personality descriptions we use today were then developed by the Chilean psychiatrist Claudio Naranjo. After studying with Ichazo, Naranjo took this psychological ‘skeleton’ and began a monumental synthesis. He integrated Ichazo’s framework with his own extensive background in Gestalt therapy, psychoanalysis, and academic psychology to create the detailed portraits of the nine personality types. Building on the 27 subtype keys originally mapped by Ichazo, Naranjo was the one who developed them into the rich psychological 27 Subtype Character profiles we use today.

— Integrative Enneagram Systems, “A Short and Comprehensive History of the Enneagram’s Origins”

On July 1, 1970, Naranjo took fifty-four Americans (many of whom were from the Esalen Institute) to Arica, Chile to study with Ichazo. It was this group of Americans who made the Enneagram public and are the reason we know about today.

DON RISO AND RUSS HUDSON

In the late 1990s, Don Riso and Russ Hudson further developed Ichazo’s and Naranjo’s work surrounding the Enneagram to give us the Enneagram that we use today.

As you can see, the Enneagram isn’t new—despite popular belief. At its origin, in c. 570 BC, it began as a way to bridge the spiritual with the mathematical. Through time it evolved from having mathematical roots to having religious roots, and then to what we know it as today and having personality/psychology roots.

And although many individuals have contributed to the making of the Enneagram, Óscar Ichazo, Claudio Naranjo, Don Riso, and Russ Hudson are arguably the most notable contributors of the Modern Enneagram. Never the less, without the work of Ichazo and Naranjo, we wouldn’t have a solid framework to understand it in modern times. And without the work of Don Riso and Russ Hudson, it may have never escalated into modern popularity.

When we, the Central Springfield Community Choir (CSCC), first began rehearsing for our 2025 Carols & Communion Concert, the director made it known from the beginning that this concert was going to include more than music… it was going to include poems as well. And about a month-and-a-half before the concert, a document with all the poems to be read was sent out to the choir and we had the opportunity to audition to read a poem during the concert.

As someone who loves poems and is a firm believer that most people read poems wrong, I—in the heat of the moment—knew that I had to audition. However, a few days later, I had convinced myself that it was an unnecessary responsibility during a time where I was already overwhelmed. But there were two poems that stood out to me as I did a first read of the included poems. One of those poems was “The Morning Poem” by Mary Oliver—this poem grabbed my attention so much that when I went to record for my audition, I couldn’t remember what the other poem was that I wanted to audition for.

So, after giving myself a pep talk multiple times, I decided that I was going to record and audition to read a poem. So, a week before the concert, I recorded and sent in my audition hoping that someone else hadn’t taken it already. Unfortunately, I was just a little too late.

But even though I wasn’t the person to read Oliver’s poem during the concert, it stuck with me. In fact, I don’t think that a day has gone by since that I haven’t thought about this poem. And the more that I think about it, I think I wasn’t meant to find this poem to merely recite it during a concert, but rather, I was meant to find it so it could anchor me during this season of my life.

###

THE MORNING POEM

Every morning
the world
is created.
Under the orange

sticks of the sun
the heaped
ashes of the night
turn into leaves again

and fasten themselves to the high branches–
and the ponds appear
like black cloth
on which are painted islands

of summer lilies.
If it is your nature
to be happy
you will swim away along the soft trails

for hours, your imagination
alighting everywhere.
And if your spirit
carries within it

the thorn
that is heavier than lead–
if it’s all you can do
to keep on trudging–

there is still
somewhere deep within you
a beast shouting that the earth
is exactly what it wanted–

each pond with its blazing lilies
is a prayer heard and answered
lavishly,
every morning,

whether or not
you have ever dared to be happy,
whether or not
you have ever dared to pray.

###

If you rather listen to my audition tape or if you just want to hear how I read the poem, here it is…

MY SURFACE LEVEL REFLECTION

To me, this poem is about the soul’s desire to continue beyond the troubles of life because the soul knows that with a new day comes new opportunities to offset the misfortune of life. And it also knows that with a new day, there are more opportunities to enhance your happiness. And it doesn’t matter if your tried to be happy or if you ever prayed for better things; the soul knows that better things will come. Essentially, the soul doesn’t need permission to want to be here because it’s written in its nature that everything will be alright.

I wish that I could offer a deeper reflection, but honestly, I think that part of the beauty of Oliver’s “The Morning Poem” is that it’s a poem that continues to unravel itself to you the longer you sit with it. So, maybe… I’ll revisit my reflection one day and write a longer one.

But I would like to invite you share your reflection with me and other Friends of The Press…

AN INVITATION TO SIT WITH THE MEANING OF MORNING

If this is your first time reading “The Morning Poem” by Mary Oliver, I want to invite you to sit with it for a few days and come back to this post to let me know how it has internalized for you.

For those who have read this poem before, I want to invite you to share an immediate reflection below. It can be a reflection you’ve already had on this poem, or it can be a gut reflection that you come up with right here on the spot.

New files will become available once Refiners have been hired and data has been refined.

Until then, please remain patient and trust the process.

All hail Kier.

This notice has been approved by Lumon Industries.
Praise Kier.

What is real? Is the essential question of The Velveteen Rabbit. And although this question is being asked by a toy in relation to its existence, the answer to the question, spoken by the Skin Horse, is a truth that will carry through every other facet of a child’s life until death…

“… Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

This answer tells a toy what makes it real, but to me it also tells what makes a dream—the thing that you longed for your entire life—real. Most lifelong dreams take a lot of work to make happen and often you might feel like giving up on your dream along the way. People might question why you don’t give it up, but when it finally happens, you might feel like you’ve been through the fire and traversed the entire world, but the dream is has finally come true… to others who also didn’t give up on their dream, you’re not “crazy” but to those who gave up, they simply just don’t understand why you continued.

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NO. 9: THE WITCHES — RONALD DAHL

First, I got to say thank you to, my 5^th grade teacher, Mrs. Tidwell for having us read The Witches as a class. I remember how skeptical I was about reading Witches because I, honestly, didn’t like the cover artwork. However, my skepticism quickly diminished as we started reading this book.

Witches is a quintessential horror book for kids. It’s got just enough mystery and comedy to allow kids to experience the horror genre without the fear of nightmares.

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NO. 8: DAYS WITH FROG AND TOAD — ARNOLD LOBEL

Days With Frog and Toad is all about friendship and life, and for kids just learning to read, this book will quickly become one of their favorites—just as it was for me. In addition to teaching me the differences of physical appearance between a frog and toad, this book taught me about resilience and perseverance through the small story “Kite.”

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NO. 7: JUNIE B. JONES #16: JUNIE B. JONES IS CAPTAIN FIELD DAY — BARBARA PARK

Out of all the amazing Junie B. Jones books, why is Junie B. Jones is Captain Field Day the only one to make the cut? The answer is simple… it holds an emotional tie. I think that I was in 1^st grade when I first read Junie B. Jones is Captain Field Day, and I eagerly awaited the day that I could participate in field day. Plus, I always loved being the top dog, the boss, so the title alone just spoke to my little kid heart.

But much deeper than the surface level emotional tie that I hold to this book, is the life lesson that leaders don’t just boss others around… they lead by example and encourage others to do their best.

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NO. 6: MAGIC TREE HOUSE #35: NIGHT OF THE NEW MAGICIANS — MARY POPE OSBURNE

Part of the reason that I like this book so much is that I discovered it at a time where I really wanted to visit Paris and the Eiffel Tower. The other part is because this book is how I first learned about Alexander Graham Bell and some other important inventors… “They’re like magicians in disguise.”

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NO. 5: HATCHET — GARY PAULSEN

I must admit that in elementary school when we read this book class I found it interesting, but I would have never considered it a favorite then. Somehow over time after we had long finished reading Hatchet, it slowly started to creep its way onto my favorites list (sometime during late middle school).

I didn’t realize it at the time, but reading a book about a young boy who is trying to survive in the wilderness after a plane crash, was the foundation for my adaptability and resilience traits.

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NO. 4: OLD YELLER — FRED GIPSON

The only reason that Old Yeller is not in my top three is because of what happens to Old Yeller in the ending… and if you read this before, then you know exactly what I’m talking about.

These next two books actually tied for second place, but there can’t be tie in a favorites list, right?

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NO. 3: HERO — MIKE LUPICA

Honestly, it’s kind of hard to remember the specifics of why Hero made the list because I’ve only read it once in seventh grade—a long time ago—and I don’t own my own copy; I checked it out from the school library. But I will say that the cover is pretty cool, which probably part of the reason.

However, it my memory serves me right, then Hero is about stepping up to the plate and overcoming unexpected challenges.

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NO. 2: THE MOUSE AND THE MOTORCYCLE — BEVERLY CLEARY

How can you not like a book about a mouse riding a toy motorcycle?

But much deeper than that… this book is a book about chasing your dreams and looking for opportunities. It wasn’t some type electricity that made the motorcycle move, it was Ralph’s belief that it could move that made the motorcycle drive… it was just a toy, but to Ralph… it was an escape from reality.

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NO. 1: THE LAST OF THE REALLY GREAT WHANGDOODLES — JULIE ANDREWS EDWARDS

The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles is the only book that will never be tough for me to rank; it has been my #1 favorite book ever since we read it in my 1^st grade excel class—and it will remain my #1 book long after death.

Sidenote, I know that I’m recommending children’s books; however, if you’re an adult and you’ve never read The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, then I highly recommend that you read it… I promise you won’t be disappointed, and you will wonder why you never read before now.

So, why is The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles my all-time favorite book?

One reason is because this was the first book that I saw come alive in my mind. I first read this book in 1^st grade, but there’s no telling how many books I read before this book because as a kid I was an avid reader—I do think this was the first chapter book I read though, but I’m not completely sure about that. And honestly, even now as an adult, whenever I need to escape to a magical world, I pull this book and start reading; yet the images are still just as alive and bright as they were when I was in 1^st grade.

In fact, one of things that my 1^st grade excel teacher had us do is make our own bookmarks by drawing what we imagined a Whangdoodle to look like.

To avoid spoiling the book for anyone who hasn’t read it yet, I won’t go into grave detail about the second reason The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles is my favorite book. But I will say that the second reason has to do with a tall, thin house with shuttered windows that’s half obscured by trees.

One last reason that this is my favorite book is because this book is where I discovered one of my favorite words… fiddlesticks.

So, just as Edwards hoped readers would discover Whangdoodles for themselves so do I. From kids to adults, this book will sure be one that you will remember forever because of where it takes you… adventure awaits!

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Now, looking back over my top 10 list, I can see how these books are attached to me being an Enneagram Three and an ENTP on Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). This list also fuels some of my top five strengths, specifically, adaptability and responsibility.

My personality and internal make-up aside, I think that not only are these books great reads for children, but that they can even be enjoyed by adults… especially, The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles.

Disclosure: The BW Printing Press Bookshop is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. It also serves as the companion shelf to the Substack publication, The BW Printing Press. Thank you for supporting independent bookstores and the work of The BW Printing Press!

And that’s what this column is meant to do… inspire you to write in the margins of life so that it becomes meaningful and not just another piece of text.

To that end, lately I’ve been writing in the margins of situation that I held on to hope for so long… reconnecting with a special someone. However, because we both have made different choices which led to a to timeline that, honestly, I’m not too happy with, I have been questioning and reflection on the truth and validity of a quote from the television series Scandal.

Now, sharing my reflection on this quote was not my first choice, but the longer have sat thinking what margin notes I would share from October, the idea that I’m supposed to share this reflection lingers and will not dissipate.

And the quote that is the catalyst for this reflection comes from Cyrus Beene who states, “Some men aren’t meant to be happy. They’re meant to be great.”

Before I go into the deep end of my reflection, allow me to give some more context behind that situation that caused me to think about this quote again. Like I said earlier, for so long, I help on to the hope that I would someday get another chance to reconnect with a special someone romantically—of course, it’s always about a girl. However, recent events and autonomous choices, have shifted the timeline and caused that hope to die.

Now, I used to be very skeptical of this quote when I first heard it on Scandal, but now… with every passing moment of life… and with everything that’s being going wrong. And when I see others enjoying the type of life I thought I would have right now. And when I examine historical figures who have accomplished great feats, I become more and more confident in the truth and the validity of this quote.

I have long believed that I was destined for greatness and that I was imbued with this timeline where one day my name would be mentioned in history books for centuries—I mean, I do plan on running for President of the United States. However, in my 25, almost 26, years of living, I’ve never been truly happy. And I think the reason that I’ve never been truly happy has all to do with the meaning of this quote.

But here’s the thing… no matter how much greatness I’ve been destined for, I was also birthed with an innate wisdom beyond my years that only grows as I learn and study more things.

Because what I know to be true is that some of the great individuals of history did finally find happiness, but it was only after they stopped striving and were closer to death than youth—they found happiness after they accomplished many great things.

And here’s what I mean by my wisdom that keeps growing… I recognize that I live in a dangerous situation—due to my Enneagram and emotions work. Lately, I’ve been asking myself the typical why did it matter? questions. Most people ask these questions later in life, but because of my wisdom and my work, here I am asking these questions at the ripe, ol’ age of 25. But here’s the part that makes asking those questions so dangerous this soon in life… my youth and my Enneagram Threeness are still focused on becoming which keeps me caught in this tension of expectation and reality. A tension that grows tighter each day because the plan that I had originally written for becoming is being re-written daily now.

And it’s this tension that causes even greater pain, especially for someone who used to be so anchored in religion; someone who believed he was co-authoring his story with God. Living in this tension, challenges every aspect of a person’s belief system. But then when this tension also changes the thing you searched for as a sign, it’s kind of like you’re Dorothy caught in the tornado. I mean, used to love change. To me, change was a sign that I was on the right path; however, lately, i just wish change would slow down. Change went from being a sign of my becoming to being the thing that never allowed me to become.

In the end it feels like that mentally, I’m stuck at the doorway of Paradiso. Physically, I’m still journeying towards Paradiso. But my soul lags far behind as it remains in Purgatorio.

It finally happened! I finally bought a camera—it’s not a borrowed one… it’s ours. We’ve tried many times since middle school to get our hands on our own DSLR, and it has finally happened.

Although, I must admit that I never quite figured out why we’ve had such an affinity for cameras. But I do remember when we were little and how we always had to be the one holding the disposable camera… I guess… we just had a different way of the seeing the world and wanted to capture what our eyes saw. But honestly, I actually think our desire to hold a camera is attached the moment in time when creativity ruled our life and we didn’t feel burdened by the responsibility of competency—the feeling of always having to achieve something.

I do think that the thousands of photos and videos that we’ve taken throughout the years has helped make taking photographs with a DSLR easier to understand. I mean, we’ve only learned a few new things so far from YouTube videos, but some our first photographs are stunning.

This photograph of the parking garage sign in downtown Springfield was one of the very first photos that we took with our new camera, and I think this one has to be my favorite one so far—it feels very noir and almost Gotham like…

Oh, I want to show you these photos too that we took walking around Historic C-Street. They really capture that vintage feel that we adore so much…

We took a lot of photographs that night, and we probably would have taken more had it not started to rain. But out of all those photos from that night of walking around Historic C-Street, I think the photograph of the firehouse door has to be my number two favorite photo that we’ve taken so far—I really love how we thought to capture it from a bug’s eye view.

Now B, I must apologize because I know when I decided to buy the camera I said that I would fight against my Enneagram Three and ENTP tendencies and wait at least year before I even thought about letting this new camera benefit others—I bought it as a hobby and to help create content for my business—not to build another “business venture.” However, when the opportunity to volunteer as the lead for the photo booth during Greene County’s Out of the Darkness Walk presented itself, I just couldn’t resist. You know, I don’t get nervous much, but pretty nervouse and kind of scared that the photos wouldn’t turn out great since this was my first time photographing an event, but I think we did a pretty good job.

This purchase was definitely delayed gratification, but I think that in this case the delay was worth the wait because during a time where we don’t find much joy in life right now, pickup up our new camera to photograph what we see allows us to experience a sense of relief.

It’s not over yet,

Braylon

And there are two quotes from Maya Angelou’s books I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now that have done just that… they have formed my life philosophy.

BIOGRAPHY

Poet, dancer, singer, activist, scholar, and author, Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri as Marguerite Ann Johnson. Her childhood was not an easy childhood. Due to her parent’s volatile marriage and their later divorce, Angelou lived with her paternal grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas at an early age.

At the age of seven, Angelou went back into her mother’s care for a brief time. It was during this time that Angelou was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. Her mother’s boyfriend was jailed for and later released; however, upon his release from jail he was killed. Angelou believed that it was her testimony that led to his death, so she became mute for six years. Angelou’s mutism lasted through her teen years while she again lived with her grandmother in Arkansas.

Despite the challenges of her early years, Angelou developed a deep interest in written word which was evident from an early age. Upon her return to Arkansas during her teen years, Angelou took an interest in poetry and memorized works by both Shakespeare and Poe.

Angelou later graduated from Mission High School in the summer of 1944 and soon after gave birth to her only child, Clyde Bailey (Guy) Johnson. In 1949, Angelou married Tosh Angelos, an US Navy electrician; however, their marriage ended in divorce in 1952. Although the marriage did not last, their connection remained through her name as Maya adopted a form his surname which she kept throughout her life.

Some of Angelou’s most famous poems include “Phenomenal Woman,” “Still I Rise,” and “On the Pulse of Morning” (recited by Angelou during President Bill Clinton’s 1993 inauguration).

In 1969, Angelou published her book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings which went to become the first nonfiction bestseller by a Black woman.

I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS

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When I first read Angelou’s book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, I was in sixth grade. And I, for the life, cannot explain why “The caged bird sings with a fearful trill, of things unknown, but longed for still, and his tune is heard on the distant hill, for the caged bird sings of freedom” was something so poignant to my sixth-grade self, but this quote has lived on in my head ever since—not a day has passed when I haven’t thought about this quote.

But the thing that I find most interesting about my time reading I Know Why the Caged Bird sings, is that it has built some strong mental imagery in my head. This imagery is so strong that to this day when I think about this quote, I’m literally transported back to sixth grade—I feel and smell the things that I felt every morning as I stepped off the school bus and walked down the hall to take this book out of backpack and start reading.

Now, here I am thirteen years later and I’m still trying to figure the deep soul connection that I hold with Angelou’s book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

Well, that was until now…

As I’m writing this article, I’ve finally found the connection between this book and me—I finally understand why this specific quote has been so poignant to my life. Unbeknownst to me, my sixth grade soul was acting as Virgil and guiding me to a revelation that I just now come to notice at 25 years old.

You see, although sixth grade me didn’t realize it, I was in a cage—the illusion of calling.

But now that I think about, I kind of did know that I was in a cage—I just didn’t know it was cage language—because for years I’ve always said that I didn’t want to be a pastor, but I was called to be a pastor from the age of five.

And the reason why I connected so deeply with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is because my, even then, my soul knew that the pastoral work that I was called to was deeper than the pulpit.

And although even in sixth grade I knew I was called to being a pastor but didn’t want to be a pastor, it wasn’t until high school that I began to feel unsafe in my calling and started to wrestle with what my actual calling was. And despite this wrestling, I still went to college in pursuit of becoming a pastor; however, by the time I had the courage to admit that I probably got my calling wrong, I was already a sophomore in college and thought I was too far into my educational journey to make a switch without starting back at zero.

It may have taken thirteen years, and the epiphany may have happened unexpectedly, but I have finally figured out the soul connection that I hold to this book, and to that end, I would like to adapt the quote a little bit… The called kid sings with a fearful trill, of things unknown, but longed for still, and his tune is heard on the distant hill, for the called kid sings of authenticity, belonging, and freedom.

WOULDN’T TAKE NOTHING FOR MY JOURNEY NOW

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The second quote Angelou that has shaped my morals and thinking is from her book Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now.

‘I looked up the road I was going and back the way I come, and since I wasn’t satisfied, I decided to step off the road and cut me a new path.’

…

Each of us has the right and the responsibility to assess the roads which lie ahead, and those over which we have traveled, and if the future road looms ominous or unpromising, and the roads back uninviting, then we need to gather our resolve and, carrying only the necessary baggage, step off that road into another direction. If the new choice is also unpalatable, without embarrassment, we must be ready to change that as well.

I think that the reason that I love this quote so much is the same reason why I love the Enneagram… it speaks to the power that we each hold within ourselves to be dynamic beings and to not be defined by our past, but to write the story for the ending that we want.

You know… with all things considered, it’s kind of funny how unaware yet aware my middle school self was. I think that had my middle school self truly understood the fundamental truth of these two quotes, especially the caged bird quote, I would be in a similar but different station of life right now. Maybe, just maybe, had I truly understood their fundamental truths, I would have been awakened to my true pastoral work much earlier in life and I wouldn’t have developed a slight disdain for the work of ministry. To that end, I want to challenge you to grab a copy of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now to reflect on where you might have been if you would have discovered the fundamentals truths of these books sooner.

Disclosure: The BW Printing Press Bookshop is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. It also serves as the companion shelf to the Substack publication, The BW Printing Press. Thank you for supporting independent bookstores and the work of The BW Printing Press!

So… now… instead… I must search for Autumn to see my renewal.

And for over a year now, I have been thinking of ways to make the connection between all my brands (Morningstar Interiors, Enneagram Restored Podcast, The BW Printing Press, and The BW Printing Press Bookshop) and the Braylon Williams brand seem apparent and for there to be no need to investigate their connection in order to understand how they’re related. And although I’ve struggled for months to find the answer, the answer came to me while I was focusing on something else.

You see… the glow-up for the Braylon Williams brand began when I got the idea to start an Instagram Broadcast channel to stay more connected to my audience and to post direct announcements. However, because social media is a cesspool of ingenuine connections, I didn’t meet the requirements to create a broadcast channel. So, since I couldn’t create an Instagram broadcast channel due to not having enough followers, I decided to follow KevOnStage’s example and create a Discord Server.

What started out as plan b soon became plan a, and creating the Discord server was just the unexpected demo day.

Soon after I started working on the Discord server, it felt like the right move was to cosmetically renovate the entire Braylon Williams brand ecosystem… the Braylon Williams brand color palette was refreshed, the Morningstar Interiors brand color palette was reimagined, The BW Printing Press brand color palette was reinvented, and the Enneagram Restored Podcast brand color palette was reprised, and the new logo set for Braylon Williams was renovated to now include a house in the primary logo.

Why is there a house in my new logo?

The idea for the house actually came from creating the Discord server because, as you may know, I always have to have some clever name for things. So, once I got the idea to name the Discord Server The House of Braylon, I knew each channel would be like each room in the White House—uniquely decorated but connected to the entire story of the White House. As I added more and more channels to the newly created Discord Server, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this new turn of phrase—The House of Braylon—was meant to be more than just a name for the server. Thus, I decided that I would reframe [rephrase] my full creative ecosystem. No longer would it be Braylon Williams split into its children brands, but now The House of Braylon is home to all my brands with each brand having their room to live and breathe in.

Simply by creating a Discord server and reframing how I speak about my brand, the thing that I had always strived for—all my brands to sing in harmony and their relation be apparent—has now finally come true.

Now that you know the new nickname for my brand is The House of Braylon, allow me to tell you this full, official story of the unfolding… from an idea to a living being.

It wasn’t long after I decided to reframe my creative ecosystem that I felt like just rephrasing the brand wasn’t going to be enough; I needed to redesign my brand’s color palette. Now, redesigning the Braylon Williams brand color palette was not on my 2025 bingo card, but it just felt like the right thing to do. Unbeknownst to me at the time, the Braylon Williams brand was going to be elevated even more—but I should have known it would be… I can never do anything just half-way. As I was redesigning the Braylon Williams brand color palette, I thought it would be best to also redesign my logo and fonts. And before I knew it, the Braylon Williams brand was elevated to a new luxury, art deco, boutique styled brand with a vintage feel.

But it just wasn’t the Braylon Williams brand color palette that got a redesign, the Morningstar Interiors and The BW Printing Press brand color palettes were also reimagined and reinvented.

Although three out of my four brands got an updated brand color palette, Enneagram Restored Podcast’s brand color palette was the only palette that was reprised—well, I guess you can say it was updated too because although the colors are the same, they each now have a new name.

As you can see, what started out as some cosmetic updates turned into a full on renovation that will usher in a new beginning for not only the Braylon Williams brand as a whole, but also will be a new beginning for Morningstar Interiors, Enneagram Restored Podcast, The BW Printing Press, The BW Printing Press Bookshop, and any future brands that will call The House of Braylon home.

Now that you know the story of how The House of Braylon came into existence and how the Braylon Williams brand(s) have evolved over the past few months, it’s time to take a house tour.

The House of Braylon Discord Server hasn’t officially been opened to guests yet, but I’m going to give you a private, first-access house tour. So, let’s head inside…

Before we start the tour, I want to say that this isn’t just a server… it’s a home… some might even say that it’s a legacy. This is a space with many rooms, and each room was designed with intention. Now, I didn’t point this out before we stepped inside, but you may have noticed on your way in… The House of Braylon Visitor Center is located just across the front lawn. The visitor center is the place [forum] to ask questions, get oriented, or drop a note for the staff who will respond soon.

Now, we are currently standing in the Entrance Hall. This is the place where every guest is welcomed, and it is also the perfect place to get acquainted with the House. Here you can find the house rules, see a map of the house, sign the guest book, and get off the record updates.

As we continue down the Entrance Hall, you will see that the house splits into two wings. To my right—your left—is the West Wing. We won’t walk down the West Wing today, but it is home to the press room and the cabinet members’ offices. And, to my left, you will see the East Wing.

The East Wing is where all the fun happens—it’s the place where community, connection, and celebration live. Let’s take a step into the East Wing… I’ll explain each room and then you will have the opportunity to explore each room a little bit before we continue our tour. At the end of the hall just past the French glass doors is the Ballroom [stage] where live conversations, performances, celebrations, and special talks happen. To my left—your right—there is the East Room and the Toast Room. The East Room is essentially where all event details live, and the Toast Room, which leads into the Ballroom, is where everyone is welcomed to celebrate each other. Now, to my right, you can see on the wall that there is an electronic house calendar and the Blue Room. The Blue Room is the place to hang out and just socialize.

Alright, now that you know about each room, take a few moments to explore them for yourselves. Once everyone has had the opportunity to explore the rooms, we will regroup at the end of the hall to continue the tour.

…

Okay, everybody, let’s regroup at the end of the wing.

Now, that we’re all back together, let’s continue the tour. Follow me so you can see just past the stairs just a little… as you can see just past the staircase, is the lower-level entry to The House of Braylon Library. We will step into the library, but we’re going to take the more scenic route and take the stairs and enter through the second level entryway so you can experience the grandeur of the staircase.

As you step inside, you can see the Library is very expansive—I’m a huge fan of books.

Here, in the library, you will find a small section of my recommended reads and there is even a quote wall for anyone to drop some moving and inspirational words of wisdom.

Alright, now follow me, and we will end our tour in the Lilac Garden. The name Lilac Garden hails from the fact that lilacs are my favorite flower. As you can see, there are many great places in this house, and it’s hard to pick a favorite. However, if I absolutely had to pick a favorite the Library would be my first favorite, and this garden would be a close second. As someone who is always ready for the next thing, sitting in nature helps me slow down and refocus. And this garden does just that because it’s the perfect place to slow down, reflect, and grow—it’s a place for gratitude and soul work. Here in the Garden, there’s a smaller garden called the Gratitude Garden which is the perfect place to share what you’re thankful for, big or small. There’s also a decent-sized garden shed for you to step into and write a growth note—personal breakthroughs and lessons. And my favorite spot in the Garden are the Morning Mindset benches. These benches are situated just right… in the morning time, if you sit on one of these benches you will experience nature at its finest—it’s almost like you’re sitting in the epicenter of nature… the smell of the dew, the sunlight, the birds singing, the little critters coming out for breakfast… it’s truly the best thing.

Well… that concludes the tour. Feel free to stay in the Garden for a while or if you must go, just follow the stone path to your right out to the parking lot.

The thing that I find the most interesting about the beginning of Enneagram history is that there was no intent to make a personality indicator—most of the early contributors were solely connect the spiritual to the mathematical. It wasn’t until Ramond Llull introduced the nine-pointed diagram (c. 1232–1316) that the Enneagram starts to emerge as defined system.

PYTHAGORUS (570–490 BC)

Although Beatrice Chestnut recognizes connections between the Enneagram and Homer’s Odyssey, Pythagorus is likely the best origin of the Enneagram’s formation. It was Pythagorus who created the math that led to the creation of the nine-pointed star which later became the symbol for the Enneagram.

Pythagorus believed that all truth is mathematical. And, unbeknownst to him, he believed in the Law of Three. The Law of Three is the belief that things come into being through a triadic pattern.

EVAGRIUS PONTICUS (345–399 BC)

Evagrius had a deep fascination with Pythagorus’s number theory—early Christians thought there were correlations between Biblical numbers and Pythagorus’s number theory.

I have divided this discourse on prayer into one hundred and fifty-three texts. In this way I send you an evangelical feast, so that you may delight in a symbolical number that combines triangular and hexagonal figure. The triangle indicates spiritual knowledge of the Trinity, the hexagon indicates the ordered creation of the world in six days…

— Evagrius Ponticus, Introduction to Chapter on Prayer

It was Ponticus who developed the Eight Patterns of Evil Thought, which are now known as the vices and virtues. Here’s a list of Ponticus’s Eight Patterns of Evil Thoughts [which were later] paired with each Enneagram type:

1. Gluttony and Abstinence (Type Seven).

2. Fornication and Chasity (Type Eight).

3. Avarice and Freedom from possessions (Type Five).

4. Sadness and Patience (Type Four).

5. Anger and Patience (Type One).

6. Acedia and Perseverance (Type Nine).

7. Vainglory and Freedom from vainglory (Type Three).

8. Pride and Humility (Type Two).

ST. GREGORY (590)

St. Gregory later revised Ponticus’s Eight Patterns to form the Seven Deadly Sins.

1. Lust (Type Eight).

2. Gluttony (Type Seven).

3. Sadness (Type Nine). (Later replaced with Sloth.)

4. Avarice (Type Five).

5. Anger (Type One).

6. Envy (Type Four)

7. Pride (Type Two).

RAMON LLULL (1232–1316)

Ramon Llull gives us the earliest visual representation of a nine-pointed diagram that can be found in history. Llull also developed the Nine Vices, which are now represented as Passions in the Enneagram.

1. Anger – ire (Type One).

2. Envy (Type Four).

3. Pride (Type Two).

4. Lust (Type Eight).

5. Avarice (Type Five).

6. Gluttony (Type Seven).

7. Sloth – acedia, accidie (Type Nine).

8. Lying – deceit (Type Three).

9. Inconstancy – faithlessness, lack of loyalty (Type Six).

DANTE ALIGHIERI (1265–1321)

It is believed that since both Dante and Llull were alive during the same time, Dante was aware of Llull’s work with the Seven Deadly Sins. And it’s from this awareness that Dante was inspired to write his famous Divine Comedy (1308–1320). The Divine Comedy is an allegorical representation of the soul’s journey towards God. And in this work, the Seven Deadly Sins can be found—each person must spend more time on one of the terraces (deadly sins) before moving on.

ATHANASIUS KIRCHNER (1602–1680)

The cover of Kirchner’s Magnum opus Arithmologia (1655) includes an illustration that looks very similar to the symbol for the modern Enneagram.

GEORGE GURDJIEFF (1866–1949)

Everything preceding George Gurdjieff holds loose relation to the Enneagram—it’s more theory than concrete evidence of the Enneagram’s history—Gurdjieff is where Enneagram history concretely begins.

Why does Enneagram concretely begin with Gurdjieff?

George Gurdjieff is credited with being the definite start of the Enneagram’s history because the exact symbol that is used for the Enneagram today made its first appearance through Gurdjieff and his students.

It was also Gurdjieff who gave the Enneagram more religious roots when he introduced the model as a spiritual symbol in the 1930s. Gurdjieff is directly attributed with developing the Enneagram diagram and the Centers of Intelligence (triads).

P.D. OUSPENSKY (1878–1947)

P.D. Ouspensky was a distinguished Russian student of Gurdjieff, and he wrote In Search of Miraculous: Fragments of an Unknown Teaching (a book about Gurdjieff’s beliefs). In his book, Ouspensky outlines Gurdjieff’s teachings into four core beliefs: waking up, three-brained beings, chief features, and the Enneagram symbol.

Arguably, had Ouspensky not written this book about Gurdjieff’s beliefs, then we may not know about the Enneagram. So, while Gurdjieff is the start of the modern Enneagram, thanks is due to Ouspenksy for making Gurdjieff’s work publicly known.

ST. IGNATIUS (1491–1556)

The last contribution toward the Classical Enneagram comes from St. Ignatius.

By teaching us to awaken our soul to the Spirit’s movement in our head, heart, and gut, St. Ignatius inspired the creation of the Harmony Triads (the Harmony Triads show how each Enneagram type relates to the world) of the Enneagram.

Now, that you have learned about the history of the Classical Enneagram, you might have also gained a better sense of understanding of why I—along with Suzanne Stabile and many others—believe that the “trendy” Enneagram is doing more harm than good. I can almost guarantee that by the time you finish learning the history of the Modern Enneagram you will join us in this believe… you will see the value of the Enneagram beyond what you see on Instagram and other social media.

And that value is something that is truly transformational.

Primary Source: Tyler Zach, The Real History of the Enneagram online course.

It is no doubt that there are so many great characters from Martin. And, honestly, I have many favorites, but Jerome is definitely my #1 favorite character from Martin. I mean… how can you not like the original playa from the Himalayas.

The reason Jerome will always be my number one favorite Martin character is because he’s literally the version of myself that only lives in my head. He’s always hustlin’ and mackin’. As little kid, I had always imagined I would grow up to be someone like Jerome… someone who is always hustlin’ and always mackin’—which the hustlin’ part I got, but the mackin’ part I lack.

You can’t call nobody?

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In April, I applied to be a summer school teacher; it wasn’t until the second to last week of school in May that I found out they weren’t going to hire me as a summer school teacher—and that’s only because I reached out through email. Here’s the thing… I had already built my summer work schedule with SPARC through the assumption that I was going to be a summer school teacher. But then things got even more chaotic during the last week of school.

During the last week of school, we found out that SPARC program that I was supposed to be site director for didn’t have enough students enrolled for the after-school program, so now both of my summer work plans have been upended. And, I just want to pause for a moment, to thank my bosses at SPARC; they have always been my savior when my work plans fall through.

To make a long story short, I ended up floating around different camps and after-school programs during June and in July I became a one-on-one inclusion counselor with one of my students from Delaware Elementary who was attending Summer Adventure Camp at Wilder Elementary.

So, what exactly is the blessing that came from the chaos? The blessing is that other than to the two days where I subbed during summer school, my summer work schedule has been in half-day format which has allowed me to get some much-needed rest and get caught back up with my businesses’ needs.

— Week Two: TN&RP August 2025 Edition

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And I could go into detail about what caused me to go ghost mode and render season 4 incomplete for almost a year, but I won’t do that here because I talk about it in the episode. But what I will say is that since I had to put producing new episodes on the back burner, season 4 never really ended, so that's the main topic of this update episode.

In this episode...

I talk through the logistics of the final 5 episodes of season 4, specifically when they will start to release. When the final 5 start to air, the first episode will be a conversation that I had with Dayo Ajanaku, the founder of The Black Enneagram.

Secondly, I explain how the production and roll out for season 5 will happen. I will know more specifics about start dates and things once the final 5 episodes from season 4 have been completed.

And the final part of this special update is about how you can get a $10 Amazon Gift Card. In the near future, there will be a selected window of dates where I will be soliciting for reviews for the podcast (I will send out emails and post on social media what the dates will be later).

But before I tell you more about this special review process, let me just say that you can rate the podcast at any time.

However, during the selected dates (TBD), if you rate the podcast and submit your review for verification, then you will receive a $10 Amazon Gift Card—this is not a drawing... this is a for sure thing you will receive—once it has been verified that your review is from a legit human being.

If you want to know more about all the updates happening soon at Enneagram Restored Podcast, then just click the button below to watch the full episode on YouTube.

Watch 2025 Podcast Update on YouTube

HAIRSPRAY AUDITION WORKSHOP

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If I had a DeLorean that was time machine, I would go back to October 2, 2019. So, we could start over again and I could be more up front about my feelings. Because maybe… just maybe… had I not ran from my feelings and instead acknowledged that I was experiencing love at first sight that night, then we would still be friends… better yet, we might even be a couple.

And I wouldn’t be struggling to get over you six years later. I wouldn’t live in a love-torture chamber of my own making.

— Week One: TN&RP August 2025 Edition

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This edition is purely reflective prompts—just felt best this way. This isn’t an opportunity to for you to feel embarrassed, but rather, an opportunity for you to share your version of the human experience—which we all share in common.

THE NARRATIVE & REFLECTION PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

The only guardrail that I’m establishing is that your stories cannot exceed five paragraphs (3-5 sentences per paragraph). You don’t have to strive for five paragraphs; you just can’t do more than five paragraphs.

That is the only requirement, but I do hope that you will take time throughout the week to think about the weekly prompt. And I do hope that you will share your story with us each Friday night.

REFLECTION PROMPTS

1. If you could re-live any day, what day would it be and why?

2. What’s been your favorite thing about summer 2025?

3. With the fall season on the horizon, what’s one word that will be your north star for the season?

4. What are your top five songs from 2025 and why?

5. Who’s your favorite character from the tv show Martin? Why is this character your favorite and how does it connect your current personality?

I will be posting my responses each week on Friday at 7:30PM, Central. I really do hope that you join in on the project because I’m excited to see inside of your mind. But also, don’t feel pressured to share each week—post when it is best for you.

Submit Your Project

What’s the difference between my previous definition and my current definition? My previous definition didn’t include love. Previously, a lot of the things that I was labeling as heartbreak should have been labeled as disappointment instead because I didn’t lose love for that thing or that person—I just wasn’t able to show my love in the way that I was hoping or imagining to show my love.

Allow me to put this change into perspective a little bit.

I’ve been very open about my relationship record, and how all but one of the girls who I have asked out have said no. In my 25 years of living, there has only been one girl to say yes to a first date, but that was two days before a global pandemic was announced. This one girl made me feel a way that I’ve never felt—just her presence only made me feel so good that it I was uncomfortable because it was unusual to me… so… I ran. To make a long story short, I’d eventually convinced myself that she only said yes because I caught her off guard which led to me ghosting her during the following summer. When I got back to Springfield that following fall semester, I told myself that I wasn’t going to bring it up and I was going to act like it never, but one of my friends convinced me to see where she stood on possibly going out to coffee still… let’s just say that this time her response was different. That’s when the heartbreak set in… that’s the moment the chance to love was lost. That heartbreak was compounded by self-disappointment because I started to think how things would have been different if I hadn’t ghosted her during the summer—I’m not proud of it but at that time, ghosting her felt like the best way not to lose her completely… I wanted to at least keep her as a friend.

The brokenhearted are the bravest among us—they dared to love.

— Brené Brown, Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience

— Week Four: TN&RP June/July 2025 Edition

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Now, to me, jealousy is an interference of your relationship with someone. For instance, Sally and Lucy are best friends, but they’ve met someone new… Erin. Erin and Sally start to develop a close relationship, and Lucy begins to feel excluded from the circle and she fears that she will soon lose Sally as a best friend. Lucy’s fear that she will lose Sally as a best friend is jealousy—someone came into her relationship with Lucy and threatened [unknowingly] to take away Sally and Lucy’s relationship.

That’s how I define jealousy. Not something to be wanted, but a fear of losing your relationship with someone because they found someone else.

And that’s why I have no relation to jealousy. Because you can’t relate to something that you don’t have, which for me is solely my fault for not being able to relate to jealousy.

— Week Three: TN&RP June/July 2025 Edition

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If you read the previous edition of The Margin Notes, then you know all the changes that happened to my summer work schedule for June. But in short, within three days, my work schedule for June underwent at least twelve changes—honestly, there were so many changes that I lost count. But the good news is that one of my bosses with SPARC was able to get me some working hours throughout the month.

19 HOURS DESIGN CONFERENCE

19 Hours is hosted by Mydoma Studio, and it is a conference that I look foward to every year—I always try to make sure that I don’t schedule anything over it, so I can watch the sessions live. I have attended this conference ever since the second year it was held, in 2021. The biggest reason that I love attending this conference is because it is completely virtual. Since I’m not able to make a trip to things like High Point Market and KBIS, through 19 Hours, I’m able to be a part of the world-wide design community from my home!

HAMILTEN

I have been a fan of the Broadway show Hamilton since the beginning. I think that when I discovered Hamilton, it had only been on Broadway for a few months, and the original cast recording had only been on YouTube for two weeks—that was the time it seemed financially plausible to go to New York and see the original cast perform live. But I knew before the show won any awards during the 70^th Annual Tony Awards that their performance alone during the award show that night would make the ticket prices skyrocket and my chance of ever seeing the original cast perform would be thrown out the window.

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