Review by: Coach Dana Bosley
Personal Development Coach I recently had the unexpected opportunity to read Allen Klein’s new book Learning to Laugh When You Feel like Crying. It is a short book about overcoming grief with humor. He specifically talks about the loss of his young wife, but his insights could be applied to all aspects of life. I was very impressed and inspired by it. It is an easy read. I very much enjoyed his gentle approach. He tenderly takes your hand and walks with you through the pain and sorrow, sharing touching antidotes, many from his own life, all the while encouraging you to come out and live again. Although Allen is a former director of The Life-Death Transitions Institute in San Francisco, and recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor, you don’t feel like he is talking down at you. His tone is not condemning, and he does not attempt to explain all the reasons why you have grief and the different steps you go through. Allen is simple and straight forward. He conveys unconditional love—there are no rights or wrongs in how you process your grief, he just shares what helped him. I found this book very helpful and I highly recommend it. It is not only a wonderful guide to help you recover from the sorrow of losing a loved one, but it’s a wonderful tool for healing the wounds of life in general. The thing I found most useful in the book was his approach to living life to the full. Being a self-care/lifestyle coach, this topic is very dear to my heart and something I encourage my clients to embrace. He gives invaluable guidance and his perspectives may well change your life. We have all suffered loss at some time in our lives. His insights on overcoming and living life even after having suffered great loss are refreshing. I particularly like how he shows that you can go on happily living even after the loss of a loved one, loss of a job, or after any other type of event that constitutes a big change in your life—you can move on and enjoy life to the full. If you are interested in obtaining a copy of Learning to Laugh When You Feel like Crying by Allen Klein, click here or go to tbe grief drop down page under the books tab.
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Quote of the day:
“Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” — Warren Buffet Reflection: This quote jogged my memory about a story that always encourages me about how even one person can do a lot to change the world no matter how bad things look at the time. In 1923, a young man was on a walking tour in France. The area was barren and desolate of trees. There was little farming being done because of the lands poor condition. The villages were rundown and many of the people had deserted the countryside because of the situation. The young traveler ended up staying at the cottage of an old shepherd. He observed that the shepherd was spending his evening hours sorting nuts. Once sorted, the shepherd would put them in a knapsack, and as he led his sheep to graze the next day he would plant the nuts along the way. The young visitor said to the shepherd, "It will be years before these trees ever get to where they could do you any good! You might not even live long enough to see them grow!" But the shepherd replied, "Yes, but some day they'll do somebody some good and they'll help to restore this dry land." Twenty years later when the young hiker returned to the area he was astounded at the change. It was now covered with a beautiful natural forest of all kinds of trees! Grass, shrubbery, bushes and berries were flourishing, and the wildlife had returned. The soil was moist and the farmers were cultivating the land once more. The efforts of one man brought an entire region back to life again, restoring its economy, its wildlife, its agriculture, its water, its soil, and even its population--all because of the foresight, diligence, patience, sacrifice, and faithfulness just to do what one man could do, day by day. So if sometimes you're discouraged with the way the world is, don't give up! Reflect on this lesson from the shepherd. One man made a big difference, and so can you. |
AuthorThe goal of the blog is to provide interesting, motivational, soul feeding material. All to help remind us that God loves us all and wants a personal relationship with each of us and will take care of us in times of trouble. I aspire to be a force for good by providing you with positive input. I encourage you to share the blog with others. Archives
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