November 17th--Bed and a book

Tonight I am thankful for my bed. I am thankful to lie down in it, go to sleep, and wake up to a new day tomorrow.

And because that is all I feel like writing right now, I will share a draft I typed up a few days ago . . .


Last month I read this book, with stories from the StoryCorps Project, Listening is an Act of Love. It was such a perfect book for me because the stories are short and totally interesting.

Before I send it back to the library I wanted to document a few passages that really caught my attention.

pg. 108-109 A woman talking about her experience in a plane crash: "If you go with the statement, 'Well, God has more work for you to do,' then the flip side is 'God didn't have any more work for all those other people.' I don't believe that. I don't believe in a God that is arbitrary like that and intervenes in our lives in that 'destiny' kind of way. What I came to was that there is randomness. There is chance in our world. It impacts all of us in big ways and small ways. And on that day chance impacted me and all the other people on that plane by where you were sitting."

This brought on a debate in my head. It took me awhile to go to sleep that night. What do you think?



pg. 153-158 An interview between daughter and father, the mother and brother had both passed away from cancer. The father says: " I don't think anyone can go through those kinds of experiences and not be changed by them. You get an appreciation for life that strengthens you. And if it doesn't strengthen you, it weakens you. Really, you come to that fork in the road, and it's either A or B. Either you move through it and come out on the other side stronger, or you don't move through it."

I sobbed and sobbed after reading this story. Not only because of what this family has gone through, and the chord it touched with me in relation to Paige, but the quote above made me realize I'm still standing at that fork in the road. I haven't moved through.



pg. 269 Summary by the founder of StoryCorps: "These interviews remind us that, contrary to what we might infer from the media, we are not just a nation of celebrity worship and consumption but, rather, a people defined by our character, courage, and heart. These stories are a record of our shared humanity. Hearing them, it becomes clear that no matter who we are or where we come from, there is much more in common that we share than that divides us. These stories are a reminder that if we spent a little less time listening to the racket of divisive radio and TV talk shows and a little more time listening to each other, we would be a better, more thoughtful, and more compassionate nation."

Love this book and it's message.