Life is an amazing and wonderful adventure, filled with richness and endless possibilities. In my time here on this planet earth, I have experienced so much of life. The good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful, truly a wide variety of experiences. I have been poor, rich, sick, well, and both good and bad. Builder, developer, artist, writer and entrepreneur. My fundamental belief has developed into the concept that, it’s all God, which is also the title of a book, “It’s All God”, written by one of my personal mentors, Walter Starcke.
Growing up in a family dynamic where two polar opposites served as role models for how to live your life, things were interesting to say the least. My father was an extreme rule breaker, and my mother was an extreme rule keeper. Both provided valuable lessons on how to live life, through examples to follow and examples to avoid.
Both of my grandfathers were powerful role models that greatly influenced my life.
My maternal grandfather, grandpa Black, was a blacksmith and builder born in the late 1800’s, who raised a family of 11 children. His craft allowed him to always provide the basic needs for his family. My contact with him was brief, and at a very young and impressionable age. He was already in his 80’s and I was around 9 years old when he came to stay with us. He introduced me to the worlds of craft and construction. We built a rabbit gum from scraps, by hand, that yielded a catch and release rabbit the next day!
My paternal grandfather, grandpa Bowling, was a baker and business owner. Family was everything he worked for. He was a giver, everything he earned in his life, he gave away to others. Born in 1902, he also grew up in the depression era, but more importantly to him, the prohibition era. You see my great grandfather, Richard Bowling, was a tobacco farmer and bootlegger, in a small town named Rolesville, just outside Raleigh NC.
When prohibition was enacted one of the methods the Feds used to try to control moonshine production was the restrictive rationing of sugar. My grandfather was sent to work at a bakery in order to have access to the sugar supply needed for moonshine production. He decided he liked that life a lot better than the life back on the farm. Over the years he refined his craft and opened his own shop, Bowling’s Pastry Shop, and grew the business to three locations. I spent most every summer, and as many holidays as I could with him. Working in the family bakery. A fierce work ethic was instilled in me as a young man. Grandpa Bowling was up at 2:30 every morning and worked seven days a week. The broad impact this work ethic had on so many lives, is worthy of it’s own story.
I was the first born of three sons very close in age, (1957 in High Point, North Carolina.) Darryl was 1 and I was about to turn 3 when my youngest brother Alan was born. Mom was born during the depression and had 9 older brothers and 1 younger sister. My dad had 1 older sister and 2 younger twin sisters. Married twice and divorced twice, I have reunited with my childhood sweetheart. Father to two biological children, I consider myself a father to seven more, and see myself as a richly blessed man.
Both astutely academic and extremely rebellious, lead me to an off and on relationship with higher education. Choosing the wild and free lifestyle in the 1970’s construction industry, I worked as a carpenter for 10 years. Though I dropped out of college, my thirst for knowledge and an early passion for reading has made for lifelong, continuous learning. I am self-taught in many subjects - art, construction, design, and development, aided by many profound and intelligent mentors.
Along with maturity, a change in consciousness occurred at the age of 28 ½ years old, completely revolutionizing my life. Since that moment I have avidly pursued the answer to the questions of life, as well as the expression of many creative endeavors. It is my desire to share this broad and ever deepening knowledge with any who are interested.
As an avid reader and dreamer from early on, the fire to create things has continued to burn in me. I designed my first house in 1971 in my 8th grade wood shop/ drafting class. It was a passive solar design, and I amazed the shop teachers receiving an A on the project. My dream then (as it is now) was to live off grid and be self-sustainable. Today those thoughts and ideas are more important than ever.
I’m here to share, build, design and create. Come and join me!
Terry Wray Bowling