This year I read more non-fiction than ever before in my life. It was fantastic. It was exhausting. All that thinking. All that highlighting. All that thinking. (Have I mentioned the thinking?)
If it was a particularly amazing book I bought many copies and gave them away.
The library frowns on you highlighting THEIR copy and giving that away. Go figure...
I have included some of the most profound passages to me, trust me, there are MANY. Clicking on the cover will bring you right to Amazon where you can order with wild abandon.
Enjoy!
If it was a particularly amazing book I bought many copies and gave them away.
The library frowns on you highlighting THEIR copy and giving that away. Go figure...
I have included some of the most profound passages to me, trust me, there are MANY. Clicking on the cover will bring you right to Amazon where you can order with wild abandon.
Enjoy!
Tiny Beautiful Things
by Cheryl Strayed
This was an accidental purchase that turned out to be 100% fantastic. While at a book signing in East Hampton with my friend, Cathi, I happened upon this and it opened my eyes to this talented writer I couldn't put down. Of course, this past fall she released, Wild, and yes, I highly suggest that book too. But this one, OH, this one tugs on every corner of your heart and soul.
“It is not so incomprehensible as you pretend, sweet pea. Love is the feeling we have for those we care deeply about and hold in high regard. It can be light as the hug we give a friend or heavy as the sacrifices we make for our children. It can be romantic, platonic, familial, fleeting, everlasting, conditional, unconditional, imbued with sorrow, stoked by sex, sullied by abuse, amplified by kindness, twisted by betrayal, deepened by time, darkened by difficulty, leavened by generosity, nourished by humor and “loaded with promises and commitments” that we may or may not want or keep.
The best thing you can possibly do with your life is to tackle the motherfucking shit out of it.”
by Cheryl Strayed
This was an accidental purchase that turned out to be 100% fantastic. While at a book signing in East Hampton with my friend, Cathi, I happened upon this and it opened my eyes to this talented writer I couldn't put down. Of course, this past fall she released, Wild, and yes, I highly suggest that book too. But this one, OH, this one tugs on every corner of your heart and soul.
“It is not so incomprehensible as you pretend, sweet pea. Love is the feeling we have for those we care deeply about and hold in high regard. It can be light as the hug we give a friend or heavy as the sacrifices we make for our children. It can be romantic, platonic, familial, fleeting, everlasting, conditional, unconditional, imbued with sorrow, stoked by sex, sullied by abuse, amplified by kindness, twisted by betrayal, deepened by time, darkened by difficulty, leavened by generosity, nourished by humor and “loaded with promises and commitments” that we may or may not want or keep.
The best thing you can possibly do with your life is to tackle the motherfucking shit out of it.”
Learning to Breathe
by Priscilla Warner
My therapist is renowned for telling us all to just breathe. And so, I figured lessons couldn't hurt. This is the story of woman who frankly, is fortunate enough to be able to up and leave her life for a year in order to find herself. Kind of like "Eat, Love, Pray," but not really.
"I sat up, filled my lungs with air, and sighed.
It felt fantastic.
'Do you know what sigh stands for?' Gina has asked me once.
I'd shaken my head, no.
'Sitting in God's hands,' Gina had said.
I took another deep, glorious breath and let it go, sighing. Sitting in God's hands."
by Priscilla Warner
My therapist is renowned for telling us all to just breathe. And so, I figured lessons couldn't hurt. This is the story of woman who frankly, is fortunate enough to be able to up and leave her life for a year in order to find herself. Kind of like "Eat, Love, Pray," but not really.
"I sat up, filled my lungs with air, and sighed.
It felt fantastic.
'Do you know what sigh stands for?' Gina has asked me once.
I'd shaken my head, no.
'Sitting in God's hands,' Gina had said.
I took another deep, glorious breath and let it go, sighing. Sitting in God's hands."
Broken Open
by Elizabeth Lesser
Bar none, THIS is the book that tore me apart. That I have read sections of over and over and over. This book has both highlighter and Post-It flags throughout it. I believe I have given this book to more than a dozen people. I keep one in my car, new, JUST IN CASE someone needs it. It is good for any of us who have gone through difficult times, and who hasn't gone through difficult times?
"After all these years of being broken open by loss and love and life itself, I still resist the river of change. Whether it is something going on in my personal life, or at work, or in the world, I still instinctively tighten my grip when things feel out of control. But that's okay. I'm used to the drill: Something I didn't want to happen, happens. I feel the resistance build within. I feel the pressure to control what is obviously out of my control. I become aware of what I'm doing - I become aware of the choice either to break down or to break open. I take a deep breath, uncoil my body, stretch out on the river of change. Once again, I accept that life is uncertain - that the goal is not to become more certain about anything but to relax more into the mystery of not knowing what will come next. And then, miracle of miracles, out there in the deep and uncertain water, I come into a peaceful knowing - a faithful wisdom that surpasses control and certainty."
by Elizabeth Lesser
Bar none, THIS is the book that tore me apart. That I have read sections of over and over and over. This book has both highlighter and Post-It flags throughout it. I believe I have given this book to more than a dozen people. I keep one in my car, new, JUST IN CASE someone needs it. It is good for any of us who have gone through difficult times, and who hasn't gone through difficult times?
"After all these years of being broken open by loss and love and life itself, I still resist the river of change. Whether it is something going on in my personal life, or at work, or in the world, I still instinctively tighten my grip when things feel out of control. But that's okay. I'm used to the drill: Something I didn't want to happen, happens. I feel the resistance build within. I feel the pressure to control what is obviously out of my control. I become aware of what I'm doing - I become aware of the choice either to break down or to break open. I take a deep breath, uncoil my body, stretch out on the river of change. Once again, I accept that life is uncertain - that the goal is not to become more certain about anything but to relax more into the mystery of not knowing what will come next. And then, miracle of miracles, out there in the deep and uncertain water, I come into a peaceful knowing - a faithful wisdom that surpasses control and certainty."
