Here's an update on the book about Rich Mullins I'm currently writing, Let the Mountains Sing. . . 

This is the second in a series about the upcoming book, Let the Mountains Sing.  Click here for Part Two.  
For Part Three, Forty Years Have Passed, click here.
For Part Four, Classical Mullins, click here
For Part Five, Here be Dragons, click here
For Part Six, Hearing God's Voice, Doing His Work, click here
For Part Seven, Rich Mullins Between the Lines and Beyond the Footlights, click here
For Part Eight, Ragamuffin Legacy Part Four:  Both are Bards, click here
For Part Nine, Bringing Stained Glass to Life, click here
For Part One, A Song, a Dance. . . and a Mask, click here

Here are a few excerpts from a handwriting analysis by Sandra Fisher of Graphic Insight. His handwriting reveals that Richard could be quite private, even to those who were supposed to know him best.  A longer version of this professional analysis is posted here:

". . . It seems as if he had his antennae out in all directions. He had insight into many things that gave him an almost uncanny perception and understanding of the world around him but it also made him vulnerable. . . "

". . .In Richard’s case, he put up an effective barrier around himself that may have been difficult to penetrate.  This was not a noticeable barrier but it was there nevertheless and he must have thought that it shielded him from the arrows of life which he perceived to be a threat to his equilibrium. . ." 

" . . . He coped with some of his anxieties by keeping an emotional distance from people.  It made him feel safer to feel that he was not allowing them to encroach on his inner world. . . " 

". . . Richard was no weakling. He was self-reliant and independent. There was even something slightly rebellious about him. He did his own thing regardless of any criticism. . . "

". . . As someone who felt he had a mission to fulfill he found it easier to open himself up to the world at large rather than to his family and friends. And so he gave much of himself to the world but kept his closer relationships at arm’s length. . . "

Handwriting analysis can be so accurate, it's almost frightening.  But it is able to show only our natural inclinations, strengths, and challenges--not the astonishing things God is able to accomplish when he shines through our weaknesses.  I find it interesting to use handwriting analysis as a filter to show the contrast between Richard's natural human personality and what he let God do with his servant's heart, which is usually most apparent in the videos of his performances.  Yes, Jason Boyett, his handwriting suggests he did dislike the limelight.   But his sense of responsibility to use his gifts was greater than his retiring nature.

You can probably detect that this analysis was done by someone who knew Richard pretty well.  For instance, someone who knew Richard's favorite poet at the time, and his interest in the Grail legends.  The analyst is me--I began studying handwriting analysis as a child.  The upshot of this particular analysis is--Richard's major means of revealing his personal feelings was through his songs.  They were perhaps the only outlet he had for his deepest emotions.  If you wanted to know how or what Richard was feeling, you let him take you to the nearest piano.  The heart he showed in his songs was the true one: he was no hypocrite, no superficial manipulator of emotions just because he could.  The things he couldn't say to your face were the things he would sing.  He was nineteen years old when he wrote this sample, and younger when he wrote the song.  His search for the love of God had begun in earnest long before he ever heard of Brennan Manning. 

Of course, an analysis is only as good as the analyst.  I submitted this sample and the analysis I produced to a professional, Sandra Fisher, and her remarks follow: 

"I found your analysis of the situation very detailed and  insightful. How very complex it is. And what a very complex man he must have been."

I will be posting excerpts from Sandra's own analysis here on my blog in the near future.