To Read & To Write

"I have touched on this already in the book; however, let me say it again: self-development, self-care and kindness is the number one most important job we have throughout our lives. However or whomever you are inside manifests itself in absolutely every aspect of your life, from how you think and how you behave to how you contribute to the world. I have heard it said so many times that living in service to others is the most fulfilling life there is and I wholeheartedly agree with this. But the only way to do that effectively and long term is to first nurture yourself to be the best you can." (p. 147) Emma WhispersRed provides us with an art, or if you prefer, an artistic tool, for self-care and self-help. Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, now commonly known as ASMR, is a relatively new phenomenon in dominant culture; people who have experienced the ASMR sensation in their childhoods or even before this generation didn't have a name and description for a tingly ...

Marianne Williamson's “Everyday Grace: Having Hope, Finding Forgiveness, and Making Miracles” is a magical book on how we can live life better and more fully, every moment of our lives. This book is addressed to everyone, and starts off with a wonderful interpretation of the Harry Potter world, in which we all start off as plain Muggles and find the magic within our lives with a little help. Further on, there are deeply moving interpretations of fairy tales, such as Cinderella: “When Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother waved her wand… a shimmering energy of golden light surrounded the object of her attention… mice turned into horses, a pumpkin turned into a carriage, and rags turned into a beautiful ball gown. Translated: People around us, once we have shown more faith in them, show up for us more powerfully than we had thought them capable; a job we had thought beneath us, once we throw our creativity into it, becomes the vehicle for great success, our lack in some area, once changed...

The title of Lorrie Moore’s book of short stories, Self-Help, is especially striking today when being happy and carefree is pretty much “advertised” to us, not only by self-help books but by a constant flow of signage posted on social media (particularly motivational quotes), also as images of normalcy are shown to us as those being full of smiles and radiating positivity (shown especially by magazines and on television). There is also the influx of artwork with inspirational sayings on them plastered all over our walls. Restaurants and dance clubs have wanted us to “drink and be merry” for ages. Though I’m pointing this out, I’m not saying I’m exempt from this at all; I post “motivational” quotes on my Facebook page all the time and have a piece of fake ancient stone nailed to my bathroom wall that reads: “Faith is the essence of all things, Hope reflects our inner courage, Love conquers all”. (But does this ever turn you off? Don’t you sometimes want to be OK with being sad or a...