Local author finds solace in the wilderness

His childhood was wrought with cruelty and hardship and after a lifetime of living with a broken spirit, Robertson county native, Ricky Wilson took to the wilderness in search of spiritual healing.

In his book, Eagles and Outliers, Wilson tells the story of his soul-searching journey in hopes that his story will help others that have endured a life of abuse.

“Life changing spiritual enlightenment is discovered inadvertently in the solitude of a wilderness area,” Wilson said. “Eagles and Outliers is about the transformation that my wife, Tonna, of 43 years and I have gone through in the past 17 years, while living in this wonderful wilderness on the Licking River in central Kentucky. The road to finding such enlightenment is revealed among the pages of my book and takes the reader along with me on my journey that extends back to my childhood. Not only do I share my experiences with being bullied and alcoholism, I reveal my deepest, darkest secret of being molested by the Catholic priest where I went to grade school,” Wilson said.

The decision to live life as a virtual hermit is one Wilson said he has never regretted.

“The decisions we’ve made along the way have put us on this metaphoric path, where mother nature’s plan has become a guiding force in our very happy lives on this beautiful river on which we have lived for the last 18 years. Interestingly while writing this synopsis, my wife hollered to me, on this extremely frigid morning, from our all glass front great-room ‘I just saw an eagle fly down the river’ Coincidence ... I think not!”

Wilson, a Vietnam and Cold War Veteran, worked for the nuclear industry for 23 years and is currently promoting his latest book.

“When at last I received my first shipment of books from Create Space just before the new year, I made a commitment to make the marketing of this book my full-time job. Starting on the second day of January, I went to the three local libraries, where I live, and after meeting with each one’s managing librarian the book was accepted with zeal at each. Along with it, scheduled book signings at each and promises that it would be shared with their respective corresponding network of fellow librarians. I had also posted just before Christmas on Facebook that the book was then available. I also have had it accepted at our local, Claysville General Store, where the store’s owner bought several copies and put them right on the counter, face high, in a display I had neatly crafted for them. I am just getting started and plan to go all over this part of the state and beyond, knowing with much certainty that from a local stand point it will sell, but from a broader sense this book is not bound by borders and precincts. It is an adventure and inspiration to all regardless of where you live.

Initially, my plan is to promote my book locally, this great state will love this book, however, it’s appeal is far more reaching than that. Book stores from Lexington, Louisville and Cincinnati will all be hearing from me shortly,” Wilson said.

To help explain the life he and his wife now live as a virtual hermits, Wilson said in one of his chapters, “the evolution has most definitely been like a slow-moving train. When we think of how, as we both continue to get older the number of friends, acquaintances and even loved ones seem to get smaller and smaller, goes a long way to explain the reasoning of how long-distance relationships can be very difficult to maintain. Larger percentages of our time in this place we have chosen as our permanent residence are spent with less human visitors but are replaced by a much closer relationship with the wild animals all around us, who come with far fewer expectations, who bring with them the promise of putting food on our table and are elegant company as we watch their melodramatic lives unfold before us, from our dock, window blind or on the river itself. And when we are in tranquility mode, when rising water isolates us, there seems to be a palpable calm in knowing the road will not cause a disturbance.”

Copies can be purchased at amazon.com, Allison’s Concrete, Mt. Olivet Grocery and Claysville General Store.