Henry Bemis just wanted to be free.
On November 20, 1959 an episode of The Twilight Zone titled “Time Enough At Last” introduced the world to Henry Bemis, “a bookish little man whose passion is the printed page.” He only wanted time to read. But at his job as a bank teller, the president wanted him focused on bank work. At home, his wife wanted him to focus on other things. There was no “free time” for Mr. Bemis.
One day, while in the basement stealing away some time to read, he was knocked unconscious by a shock wave. When he woke up, he discovered that the world around him had been destroyed by a nuclear war. Everyone else had perished. Henry was the lone survivor.
Suddenly, Henry found himself with all of the time in the world. No one would ever tell him what to do again. He was free! He discovered the remains of a library nearby. He quickly began to organize all the books he wanted to read over the next several years.
Just as he sat down to read the first book, his glasses fell to the ground and shattered.
Henry Bemis had all the books he could read for years, and time enough at last to read. He was free to read, but he couldn’t clearly see the words on the page.
Do you want to be free? What does that mean to you?
If you are not careful, you may provide a knee-jerk, surface level response to that question. Some people, like Henry Bemis, get what they want but end up not wanting what they got. What he thought he wanted was only external, a change in his circumstances. True freedom is both external and internal. It is both a state of mind and a state of being.
Imagine the world though the unfocused eyes of Henry Bemis. He had it all, but he couldn’t do anything with it. One of the most important things you can do is to clearly define what true freedom means to you.
In keeping with the title of this blog series — Free, Full, and Fearless — you will never be completely Full or Fearless until you are completely Free. That’s why it comes first.
Choose one area in life or business where you would like to experience greater freedom, and carefully consider these questions:
- What does it mean to you to be truly free? Consider external as well as internal.
– Why do you want to be free in this area?
– What is it going to take for you to be truly free?
– Are you willing to “pay the price”? How committed to Freedom are you?
– What is your plan?
– What is your timeline?
– Who will hold you accountable?
These questions represent a great place to start on your quest toward FREEDOM. Taking action is all up to you.
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I love this post, Tim! I have always loved “The Twilight Zone” and years ago couldn’t wait for the next episode each week (ok, ok, I just told my age!) — but there was always a deeper truth than what appeared at first glance!
Your question “Are you willing to PAY THE PRICE?” strikes at my heart. On finances, we all say we want to be “financially free” but do we “pay the price” by saving, investing, making right choices of how we spend our money? My friend and husband always says “its not how much money you make, its how much you keep” that determines your “wealth”!
On health, we want to be “free” from disease and sickness, but will we PAY THE PRICE? Exercise and eating healthy?
The truth is for Mr. Bemis — if he had wanted to read all those years, he could have! It was a matter of CHOICES! But it was easier to blame someone else (his boss, his wife) why he couldn’t do what he wanted to do.
The questin is — Do I do the same thing?
Thanks for your kind words Louise. Like you, I was a Twilight Zone fan because of the deeper truths that could be found in the episodes. You are absolutely right in your thinking… and we do need to all ask ourselves the same questions.
Rod Serling was a master at using Twilight Zone, to show that you get what you give. The message in those shows is ageless!
I agree Joe. It seems there is something in every episode.