The first general session featured a very sensitive and amusing author by the name of Patti Digh. She introduced herself (and members of her family who were present only virtually) through a series of slides (pages in her new book) accompanied by very entertaining remarks that left the entire group giggling throughout the session. She spoke of how the illustrations of her book came to be which entailed reaching out to some of the most important readers of her blog. Although she only needed a few dozen illustrations, over 120 illustrations were sent in and much to her surprise (also due to her gentle persistence), all were included in her book, some of which were designed by young people in their teens.
Patti spoke of the death of her stepfather who learned of his failing disease only thirty-seven days before he passed. She wanted to share how much that touched her. She put forth six practices that one might consider if one only had thirty-seven days to live:
1. Say yes! (If you say, “yes, but…”, there is a cost; if you say, “yes, and….”, everyone wins!);
2. Be generous! (There is a quality of engagement with one another. How does that “relatedness” hold a presence for me?);
3. Love more! (Err on the side of the hug!);
4. Trust yourself! (Burn those jeans that you have been holding on to for years!);
5. Speak up! (Your grasp at being “right” may fail you – index finger turning in what direction as it goes from up to down?);
6. Slow down!
She finished her remarks by giving us a challenge to mark our calendars thirty-seven days from that day and reflect on how well we have been able to abide by these practices. Her final quote to us is as follows:
“If we are without peace in the world, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other”. -Mother Teresa
I encourage you to go here to lift your spirits.
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