That Got Me Thinking

“Bringing home the bacon, frying it up in a pan and never, never letting him forget he’s a man,” is a drag. Ain’t nobody got time for that! Especially, a truly superb woman – she’s got better, more important things to do. She’s got BEING on her agenda.

Janet Neal’s, part parable, part manifesto, The Superb Woman: It’s All About the Be, leads us from an unsustainable, unfulfilled Superwoman status to a happy and powerful Superb Woman existence. We learn to drop the people pleasing, good girl behaviors to uncover our true, innately powerful, superb self.

Neal tells us, “It’s not always a seamless journey…The realization of who you are and tapping into the innate power, gets you through the difficult times.” We just need to believe that it’s truly better on the other side and be willing to take the leap.

This leap starts with believing you have the right to feel happy, to BE happy, to make choices that may be difficult for others, and learn to stop giving away your power. We’ve got to face our overriding fears of change, the unknown and being held responsible for events gone badly.

When we make the shift to personal power, gratitude, self-forgiveness and a sense of truly deserving, we can retire our often unconscious  need to be accepted and liked over being respected and heard – thus making the trade from constriction to expansion.

http://thesuperbwoman.com/

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Asked and answered in Johann Hari’s Lost Connections.

Johann Hari, the New York Times Bestselling author of Chasing The Scream,  has a new book out, Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression-And The Unexpected Solutions. And here’s what Brian Eno has to say about it:

“This is one of those extraordinary books that you want all your friends to read immediately- because the shift in worldview is so compelling and dramatic that you wonder how you’ll be able to have conversations with them otherwise. A highly personal book, written with humility, humor, and candor, it nonetheless heralds a crucial new discussion about our mental health – and health of the world we’ve created for ourselves. I haven’t been so gripped for ages…I honestly couldn’t put it down. What a stunning piece of work.”  – Brian Eno

“Ditto.” for me. Enough said. Get listening…Get reading!

https://thelostconnections.com/

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What is it like to grow up in a world where truth is the most dangerous enemy? How would you perform in the moments just before your execution? What would you risk for a reminder of love?

Simon Sebag Montefiore is the New York Times bestselling author of The Romanovs and Jerusalem: The Biography. His most recent novel is Red Sky at Noon– the completion of his acclaimed “Moscow Trilogy.” This stunning new novel is set during an epic cavalry ride across the hot Grasslands outside Stalingrad during one of the most merciless battles of WWII.

The scene is 1942 and the forgotten aspects of the war – cavalries, Cossacks, a million horses. Russia during one of the most brutal times in history. A contradictory world where the guilty are promoted and the innocent executed  -traitors, defectors, Fascists and Jews. 350,000 Italians sent by Mussolini to fight the Russians. Decimation the unifying factor.

And then there is Stalin -remorseless, merciless, yet often subtle and surprising. Pig headed and delusional, a master of espionage.

Montefiore’s focus in this terrifying, diabolical world is the essential relationships formed –’So much is happening, life is so intense – entire relationships can happen in a day. We can hardly imagine living in a totalitarian state – finding moments of intimacy and ways to feel alive in the midst of this darkness. Only love and human kindness bring redemption in the middle of the horror.’

The key to survival is having no past, having no present.

“For a novelist there are two great subjects to write about, one is war, which is the grit in all of us, where everything is distilled down to its essentials. And the other is love, in all its different faces- family, wife, secret love, passion – all in conflict with each other.” In all its darkness, Montefiore relishes the challenge.

Throughout the trilogy one truth rings clear: “In war and terror, love is redemption, love is freedom, however short and however desperate it is.”

http://www.simonsebagmontefiore.com/

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“Metaphysics has been screaming at us.” And Dr. Eben Alexander is listening. While teaching at Harvard University, Dr. Alexander was struck with a severe case of bacterial meningitis, lapsing into a week long coma….He woke up with no memory, language or recognition of loved ones, but he remembered experiencing a journey far more real than anything he’d ever experienced in his prior life. This profound and robust conscious experience took place while his neocortex was virtually disabled. And based on all that he knew, that was impossible.

This miracle set him on a search to understand the nature of consciousness. He was forced to question the fundamental assumptions at the basis of science, religion and our shared physical experience. The result of that search is his new book, with Karen Newell, Living in a Mindful Universe: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Heart of Consciousness.

Dr. Eben Alexander, the New York Times best selling author of Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Near Death Experience and Journey, provides evidence that consciousness must be fundamental and the brain is its creator.  Thousands of examples of terminal lucidity, acquired savant syndrome – the development of a super human ability in the setting of brain damage – and the placebo effect, prove that our minds influence the personal unfolding of reality and can expand to every aspect of our lives. Expanding our notions of free will and modern quantum physics to develop a richer relationship with the power of the Universe.

We are spiritual beings in a spiritual Universe, and we are never alone. Living in a Mindful Universe shows us the path to greater health, an expanded sense of wholeness, purpose and the great comfort of connectedness.

http://ebenalexander.com/

https://www.sacredacoustics.com/

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In conventional terms, Shawn Vij was a huge success. He’d acquired all the sign posts of a wonderful life – higher education, stunning career, beautiful home, family and friends. His moto was solid, “It’s not personal, it’s just business.” But business as usual had not led him where he’d expected to go, happiness was nowhere in sight.

Suffering from ethical fading and psychic numbing, he’d lost touch with his core values and inner voice. The toxic business world had taken him down with its four diseases: Deception, Detraction, Discrimination, Doubt

Then, in a moment of despair, he determined to change his life, meet the Dalai Lama and find his true voice – to lead an authentic life in line with his core values and desires. And he’s done just that. Lucky for us, Shawn Vij describes his journey to find his right path and the steps to success in his new book: Moral Fiber: Awakening Corporate Consciousness.

Nien-he Hsieh, of Harvard business school says “Being true to ourselves can be hard because many of us are afraid to learn what we find when we look deep inside ourselves.”

Vij Learns to be conscious and manage the “poisons” in the business world. He is not advocating against striving for more or giving up nice things. He advocates for awareness and personal responsibility. And he provides us with a five step method to act on our values, so we can do the same.

moralfiber.world

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Marta McDowell’s The World of Laura Ingalls Wilder: The Frontier Landscapes that inspired The Little House Books is her latest in a line of work that explores the links between planting and putting pen to paper. She is the author of All the Presidents’ Gardens, Beatrix Potter’s Gardening Life and Emily Dickinson’s Garden.

Uncanny as it seems,  there are a number of books out this year digging deeper into the history and the legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder, than ever before. Fact of Fiction, her story has inspired so many and created visions of the time, for better or for worse. In her life, and in regard to the history of the pioneering days, Laura focused on the positive and left out the unpleasant details. She was the Martha Stewart of her day. She reinvented herself again and again. She was bright, optimistic and resilient. She pushed forward and pushed on. She had the dreamer side of Pa and the stoicism of Ma.

The life and times of Laura Ingalls Wilder were more demanding and exciting than even the most ardent fans of the Little House on the Prairie books may have ever imagined. Author Marta McDowell deftly unearths the landscapes and the adventures in a way that is more intimate than a fireside seat in the Little House in the Big Woods. Crossing rivers, farming trees and apples, Homesteading, Indian Territory, blizzards, droughts, pests and laying claims. We may never know the entire truth, but we can certainly appreciate the stories.

http://www.martamcdowell.com/

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Eric O’Grey is the author of Walking with Peety: The Dog Who Saved My Life. After a tough haul, Eric found his much deserved “normal.” And his journey there is a heartwarming and uplifting story of how transformation can come from the most surprising places and lead to unbelievable outcomes.

Eric was 150 pounds overweight. He felt completely alone and empty. He’d been living a life without purpose and meaning and was pretty convinced it wasn’t worth going on. He was suffering from type 2 diabetes and taking so many meds that he had to take meds for the affects of the meds. And then, everything changed. Eric asked God to take his life and God agreed. He took the life that Eric had known for so long and gave him a new one. One that included purpose, love, joy, great food, meaning and a dog named Peety.

Eric shares his and Peety’s epic journey and the path to feeling full and fulfilled. He generously shines a spotlight on his path, so that we may all find ours.

https://ericandpeety.com/

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What are the signs that suggest my memory problems are not normal? What’s normal, what’s not and what can we do about it? Over 45 million Americans are now over the age of 65. How much memory loss is to be expected, and what can we do about improving our memory as we age? Andrew E. Budson, MD, and Maureen K. O’Connor, PSYD, answer these questions and more in their new book, Seven Steps to Managing Your Memory: What’s Normal, What’s Not, and What to Do About It.

Our memories were never meant to be perfect. They are actually constructed so we can creatively manage our future. Our memory management system is meant to flexibly manage and imagine future events; it’s the purpose of memory. To imagine a new scenario we need plasticity in the ways we remember, store and retrieve our pasts. You can update memories and when you retrieve the you will be storing them anew.

So, if you are experiencing search and retrieval issues, for example: “What the heck is that guy’s name, who I’ve know for years?” Relax and stop trying to remember their name, think about other things about the person and let you memory do its work unimpeded. Budson and O’Connor set our minds at ease and provide essential information for assessment and treatment when needed. Turns out all these times we find ourselves forgetting may really be an issue of not paying enough attention in the first place.

https://www.andrewbudsonmd.com/

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Maryn McKenna is an award-winning journalist who specializes in public health and food policy. Which turns out to be a heck of a lot sexier than you may have thought- filled with mystery, subterfuge, conflict and intrigue. Her new book, Big Chicken: The Incredible Story of How Antibiotics Created Modern Agriculture and Change the Way the World Eats, tells the incredible story of how so much chicken ended up on our plates, and what it’s doing to our bodies, our food chain and the health of the world.

Big Chicken is about unintended consequences and good ideas gone bad. Her research adds another dimension to the old chicken and the egg question, and it’s antibiotics! But not in the traditional sense. She looks at the development of medicine, economics, integrity and honesty all in relation to this magnificent bird. Poultry has gone from an ignored walk on, to the star of the stage. And greed, lack of personal responsibility and putting profits above all else, have all played leading and supporting roles.

http://marynmckenna.com/

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Utah Poet Laureate, Paisley Rekdal’s most recent work, The Broken Country: On Trauma, Crime and the Continuing Legacy of Vietnam, is an ethical remembering in the sense of French Philosopher, Paul Ricouer. Rekdal explores the limits of the written word and story, and its power to create and affect the future.

In 2012 a violent incident took place in the Smith’s parking lot in Salt Lake City, just blocks from Rekdal’s home. And she was motivated to explore the longterm cultural and generational effects of the Vietnam War and similar incidences of trauma.

The Las Vegas Mass shooting, the Boston Bombing and violent acts that dramatically impact our communities, motivate us to search for understanding, justification and rational explanations. The randomness of a violent crime leaves us vulnerable and at risk. Motive and reason provide a sense of potential protection; we can categorize, isolate and reason away the event.

Rekdal discovers when we dig a bit deeper to understand, place, identity and those who have become disenfranchised by actions or memories, we can begin to heal the broken individual, community and country. With a focus on catharsis and conclusion through an ordering of memory, we can imagine a final resting place for the trauma and its legacy.

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