Statements That Lead to Wisdom

I was wrong. I'm sorry. I don't know. I need help.
-- Armand Gamache
 
Several years ago my sister-in-law and I swapped favorite book titles--
hers was a mystery series by Louise Penny.
I added Still Life to my Goodreads to-read list and then for multiple years after, 
when I asked for favorite books again, I discovered we'd already had that conversation 
because the books were still on my list. Un-read.
(Hey Goodreads, how about adding a place to include who recommended the book to you!
I always find that when searching for a good book, who recommended it matters.) 

A year ago at Christmas, when we did a sibling gift exchange, we chose to give gifts without spending much money. I gave Erin the first book in my favorite mystery series
(Case Histories, The Jackson Brodie series, by Kate Atkinson)
and I bought Still Life so we could finally talk about it.
When I started, I couldn't put it down. I was up all night for two nights in a row.
The first night reading Still Life, and the second night, reading #2 in the series, A Fatal Grace.

Yesterday, on the six hour flight to Hawaii, I just finished #15 in the series.
In each book Gamache shares his four statements that lead to wisdom:
I was wrong. I'm sorry. I don't know. I need help.


Also three questions to ask yourself before speaking:
Is it true? Is it kind? Does it need to be said?


I'm trying to commit them to memory.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

June 12

Image
Thirty-six years ago today, when we were just eighteen, Dan and I had our first date. It was the summer after our freshman year of college. Campus was relatively quiet, our class schedules were relatively easy.  Long days eased into perfect Utah nights. We met in Geology 101.  I was smitten with his confidence even though it bordered on cocky. One day he passed me a note that read: Make me dinner tonight. With no hesitation I dashed off a response: You make me dinner. He agreed. He made me dinner, which was the plan all along--his roommates and neighbors and Dan all grilled steaks on a balcony hibachi. And they made side dishes. I remember peas. One of his roommates played the record Another One Bites the Dust backwards and we laughed and laughed. Later that night we went swimming and I dove into the pool, which clinched it for Dan. It was many nights of him making dinners that did it for me. Love at second sight , as the song goes. (The Gambler. by fun. Love it so much.) His...
Read more

Journaling

Image
My first journal entry was written a few days after my eight-year-old birthday. My second was a year later when I rewrote that first entry in my much more impressive nine-year-old handwriting. From the beginning, even at eight years old, writing was how I got to know myself better.  When my oldest children were teens, I thought it would be fun to share with them parts of my journal so they could see what was on my mind at their age. They were lazing in our family room when I brought out the letter-sized white binder with a worn leather cover that I'd written sporadic entries from ages eight to eighteen. I read to them my eight year old birthday entry and then a rushed but enthusiastic paragraph I'd written just after doing a a double-flip on the trampoline at age ten. (We were trampoline pros!) Then we turned page after page of entries that were either angry, angsty or a long list of childhood crushes. My children were as embarrassed for me as I was. Clearly, not everything is ...
Read more

Book Tour Begins Today!

Image
The ireads virtual book tour for The Things They Didn't See begins today and runs through July 18.  Click here for details and the daily schedule for forty bloggers, instagrammers, and TikTokkers  who will be reviewing my book, with links to author interviews and a signed book giveaway!  
Read more