5 books I read over and over

I was looking at all of the books in my bookcase the other day and I realized that there are five books that I always come back to. Books that I've read multiple times and will continue to read over and over again. Would you like to know what they are?

In no particular order, here they are:

{1} Jane Eyre: by Charlotte Bronte

The first time I read Jane Eyre I thought it was boring and couldn't read past her living at the school as an orphan. Which is ridiculous because that's the very beginning of the book and it's a short section. Eventually my younger sister read it all the way through and was in love with it. So of course, I had to try it out again.

I love this part... "Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless?... And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you."

(Also, just reading that has my mind singing the song from the broadway that uses that exact same line in the lyrics.)

{2} Life of Pi: by Yann Martel

When I was younger, the cousins would draw names for Christmas gifts. One year, the cousin whose name I had drawn had this book on her list. I bought it for her and was immediately curious about it. Eventually I read it and instantly fell in love.

The book has these little nuggets of goodness throughout the book.

"To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation."

That line! It gets me every time.

Some people have a hard time getting into this book. It's slow at first and they can never make it to the ship sinking. Which is a bummer because after that is where it really gets good!

People also have a problem with the ending of this book. I love the idea that it carries though. "The world isn't just the way it is... we bring something to it, no? Doesn't that make life a story?"

It's the idea of creating a story in order to live through or with a moment. To remember things just a little different so you can still enjoy the memory. 

If you've seen the movie, Big Fish, the dad does this same thing with elaborating the stories and weaving in all sorts of tall tales. It's his way of becoming immortal through his stories, even though his life was more plain and ordinary.

{3} Cyrano de Bergerac: by Edmond Rostand

I have a special place in my heart for this little play. The movers packed this book with the cover bent and I nearly had a fit when I unpacked it. 

I was introduced to this book in high school. It was one of the books we studied in class. It's a play about a man with an abnormally large nose who is very witty and eloquent with words and also handy with a sword. He's in love with Roxana but she sees him as just a good friend. Christian is a new soldier and is very handsome and has caught the attention of Roxana but he gets tongue tied very easily and Roxana wants poetry and eloquence. So Cyrano helps Christian win over Roxana by telling him what to say and writing the letters for him. "You plus I equals one hero of the storybooks,"

Now it doesn't end there of course, but this book has little lines sprinkled throughout that make me laugh out loud sometimes! Cyrano is so witty and clever. "Call it a sort of lie, if you like, but a lie is a sort of myth, and a myth is sort of truth. No reason why Roxana should be disillusioned. Let's start a fruitful collaboration."

{4} The Fountainhead: by Ayn Rand

My last year in junior high, my English teacher gave us a list of books to read for the college bound student. Well, I love reading and I was obviously college bound so I would thumb through the list and underline titles that sounded interesting. Most of the time I had no idea what the book was even about. That's how I discovered The Fountainhead. It's kind of a catchy title and when I found out it was about an architect, I was sold. (I was interested in architecture at the time as well.)

Roark is an architect who battles conventional standards. He is a modern architect and in my mind I envision his style to be similar to Frank Lloyd Wright.

This paragraph defines Roarks ideas about architecture.

 The book is all about individualism instead of collectivism. Which is everything Ayn Rand is about. The book is a little bit of a hefty read as far as length goes. But I love her development of characters and her writing. 

{5} The Screwtape Letters: by C.S. Lewis

I can't rave enough about this book. I don't even remember how I came across it, but it's high up there on my list. And C.S. Lewis is pure genius.

It's about a devil named Screwtape who writes letters to his nephew devil, Wormwood, about how to go about tempting the human he's been assigned. He gives his nephew advice about how the humans work, what areas they are weak in and how to use that to an advantage. 

As you read, you have to flip things around a little to gain the full perspective. When he says, "the Enemy" he's referring to "God."

This is a hefty book, not in length but in quality. You almost have to read one letter a day and just soak it in until you can move on.

Really, the book is amazing and well worth anyone's time. I think I end up relating every church lesson back to this book. 

So there you have it, five more books to potentially add to your reading list!

Enjoy.

Learning from Hinckley

I'm still reading the biography of President Gordon B. Hinckley. It's a big book if you've never picked it up before. I've come to find that I hardly knew anything about Gordon B. Hinckley's life and his time serving the church. One thing that I've loved though is the details that have been given. President Monson's biography never quite delved into the hardships that the brethren go through when serving in high positions of the church but President Hinckley gives it straight and true. It's something that I've really appreciated as I've been stumbling around trying to figure out how to fulfill my calling in the way it needs to be. I know that I'll never have the amount or type of stress that this man went through every day but it's comforting to know the human side of him. The side that felt lonely and weighed down. President Hinckley gave a BYU devotional address in 1969 title The Loneliness of Leadership. He talked about the Savior and how he was a man who walked in loneliness. He talked about Joseph Smith. He talked about missionaries and converts, the loneliness that they each go through. He talked about the loneliness of testimony. It seems like such a downer talk but I think just the fact that one of the leaders of the Church addressed this and put it into perspective makes it easier to carry on and keep going.
"And when the declaration was made concerning the only true and living Church upon the face of the earth, we were immediately put in a position of loneliness, the loneliness of leadership from which we cannot shrink nor run away and which we must face up to with boldness and courage and ability."

President Hinckley is amazing. He is such an example to me and I've loved reading about his life. He is so human but yet so incredible in all of his many talents. I can't even begin to try and spill some sort of summary of his talents but this next quote from him helps give a small understanding. 

"None of us... knows enough. The learning process is an endless process. We must read, we must observe, we must assimilate, and we must ponder that to which we expose our minds. I believe... in the evolution of the mind, the heart, and the soul of man. I believe in improvement. I believe in growth." -President Hinckley

Obviously the learning process is going to be uncomfortable as well. It's going to pull us and push us till we feel we're being ripped apart. But all I want to say is I am so extremely happy with my life right now. I love where I am at. I'm almost done with my program. I have a fantastic ward where I'm surrounded with friends who I always have a good time with. The group is always extending out and making new friends and I love it. I love living at home where I'm surrounded by family. Life is good. I'm happy.

A Biography

A few things from the book I'm reading right now, Go Forward With Faith: The Biography of Gordon B. Hinckley.

Some quotes about Gordon B. Hinckley's father...

"Father was not interested in the mysteries of the Kingdom. The thing that characterized his religion was its application to everyday life. He had little use for religion that did not register in one's life, that did not manifest itself in his behavior. He never regarded religion as a cloak that could be laid off and put on at one's convenience..."

"I think I have never seen as good a man as he was. He preached the loudest by practice and the least by noise or talk of any man I ever knew."

.......

Gordon's childhood...

"All of the pruning, year after year, yielded an important lesson that embedded itself in Gordon's subconscious: the quality of fruit picked in September is determined by the way the trees are shaped and trimmed in February."

"Over time, Gordon developed a familiarity with good books and came to appreciate what his parents valued - literature and history, learning and education. Years later he concurred with Emerson, who, when asked which of all the books he had read had most affected his life, said that he could no more remember the books he had read than the meals he had eaten, but that they had made him."

.......

"There is nothing that dulls a personality so much as a negative outlook."

Life of Pi

In theaters November 21st.

I honestly love this book. I know some people find the book questionable but I love to idea of using your imagination to help you overcome a problem, a tragedy, a loss. It's the same in the movie The Fall, where they tell a story and in the story they find their way to overcoming their problems. It's the same in Chocolat, where the little girl has an imaginary pet kangaroo with a bad leg that keeps her company as she moves constantly with her mom. Only when they finally settle and put down roots does her pet kangaroo recover and hop away. 

I'm not sure how the movie will turn out. It looks promising so far. I'm definitely going to see it. 

Book List Extended

I know I already have a nice long lists of books to read but I can't help myself when I find an idea for a new reading list. I found this list online today... Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge. There's no way that I can't not work on this now. I'm in the process of reading the Count of Monte Cristo right now so there's one for her list. I think next I'll delve into Alice in Wonderland. I got that book for Natalie for her birthday and I've been dying to read it. Don't you love birthday gifts that you can use too. So great.
Happy Reading!

Some Happenings

Here's a song for you.

On some other notes:
I'm reading The Princess Bride.
I'm stuck between two music genres of soundtrack goodness (aka Finding Neverland and The Kings Speech), and classic music from the 40's. (aka The Andrew's Sisters, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra... the works.)
I've decided to listen to a conference talk while getting ready in the morning first before I turn on my music.
I have one test left before the end of the semester.
I received a scholarship for about half of my tuition for summer semester!! (Major major blessing)
I'm still waiting to get my LPT license but things have been made more clear about the working at the hospital and the guaranteed 8 hours a week I thought I would have, is no longer guaranteed. Which means the mall job will be held onto a little longer then planned.
I saw someone die for the first time over general conference weekend while working at the hospital. It was incredibly sad and definitely shook me up. It was one of those moments that brings  to a greater light what is truly important in life. Again, what would I do without the knowledge that I have of the gospel?

Another Quote

"To measure the goodness of life by its delights and pleasures and safety is to apply a false standard. The abundant life does not consist of a glut of luxury. It does not make itself content with commercially produced pleasure, the nightclub idea of what is a good time, mistaking it for joy and happiness." He measures the abundant life by the capacity "to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and triumph with humility."  - President Thomas S. Monson

I finished Thomas S. Monsons biography earlier last week. I sincerely recommend this book. He is an amazing man and I'm grateful for his leadership.
Cannot wait to hear from him this weekend.

The Book of Mormon

I have this lifetime goal of reading the Book of Mormon every year and I can honestly say that it's one of the best decisions I've ever made for my life. I love this book. I love reading it. I love the familiar pages that have picture stickers and colored pencil markings. I love its truth. I love the influence it has had on my life. It truly is the word of God.


"I testify that one cannot come to full faith in this latter-day work - and thereby find the fullest measure of peace and comfort in these, our times - until he or she embraces the divinity of the Book of Mormon and the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it testifies."   -Jeffrey R. Holland

"The Book of Mormon will change your life. It will fortify you against the evils of our day. It will bring a spirituality into your life that no other book will. It will be the most important book you will read in preparation for a mission and for life. A young [person] who knows and loves the Book of Mormon, who has read it several times, who has an abiding testimony of its truthfulness, and who applies its teachings will be able to stand against the wiles of the devil and will be a mighty tool in the hands of the Lord."   -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson

"There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path."   -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson

"Let us continually reread the Book of Mormon so that we might more fully come to Christ, be committed to Him, centered in Him, and consumed in Him."   -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson

Family

"When we have sampled much and have wandered far and have seen how fleeting and sometimes superficial a lot of the world is, our gratitude grows for the privilege of being part of something we can count on - home and family and the loyalty of loved ones. We come to know what it means to be bound together by duty, by respect, by belonging. We learn that nothing can fully take the place of the blessed relationship of family life." - Thomas S. Monson

I started reading his biography. Good stuff. I love biographies.

Seven Miracles

I just finished reading a book called Seven Miracles that Saved America: Why They Matter and Why We Should Have Hope, by Christ Stewart and Ted Stewart. At times I get so frustrated with our country, our education system compared with other countries, some of the people leading our government, the debt that we are in... it's hard to appreciate the greatness of this land. This book helped me gain more of an insight and a better appreciation for the things that have happened here. It showed without a doubt God's hand in preserving this nation. In every single miracle, men were guided by a divine intervention. It's clearly seen. Our nation truly is blessed. The author made an interesting note at the end of the book. He said, "A person  might ask, by what right do any people claim that God would select a particular people or country for special blessing? It is important to understand that He accomplishes this not by diminishing other nations, but by lifting a nation up. And if He raises up a nation, it is with the expectation that that nation will then lift up others."
The seven miracles they talk about are these:
-The Miracle of Christopher Columbus and the Discovery of the New World
-The Miracle at Jamestown
-The Miracle of a Summer Fog
-The Miracle of Our Constitution
-The Miracle of Abraham Lincoln and the Battle of Gettysburg
-The Miracle at Midway
-The Miracle of a Fraction of an Inch

You'll have to read to the book to find out what these all mean, but here are a couple quotes from great leaders in our country.

John Adams observed, "I must study politics and war, that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture, in or to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain."

In a speech to congress in 1862, Lincoln encouraged his colleagues not to become discouraged: "We know how to save the Union. The world knows we know how to save it. We - even we here - hold the power, and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free... We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last, best hope of earth."

They Never Wavered

Do you remember this book I was reading? Well I finally finished it today. It's taken me well over a year to read (mostly because I only read a few pages every Sunday) but I'm grateful for this book. I'm grateful for the lives that my ancestors have lead. I'm grateful for their examples. Let me share with you some excerpts from the book.

While a POW, Forrest Packard kept track of the days of the month and on the first Sunday of each month he would fast. He would give his allotted portion of food to another POW whom he felt needed the food for then he did.

Esther Packard had 11 children to support alone. Ward and stake priesthood leaders came to exempt her from paying tithing during the time her husband was a POW. Her answer was, "You wouldn't deprive me of that?" She then pointed to her eight boys, "with eight strong boys like these? And you want to deny me the blessings of tithing?" During all the rough times, she always paid her tithing.

Esther Packard also said, "I am even thankful I have two babies dead, that I may have the privilege of raising in a time when sin and temptation will have no place."

Forrest was given a blessing May 8, 1941 in the Hawaiian Temple before leaving to Wake Island. "Brother Packard, I bless you that you will return to your loved ones unharmed and in happiness after much trial and hardship. Your family will be in good condition and their number increased. You will be blessed on land and sea. Eventually you will return and find your family chain unbroken."
Forrest was also told in his blessing to obey his temple covenants. Many on the other men worked in shorts with no shirt. Forrest wore bib-overalls, a shirt and his metal hat. It was said that Forrest would hook his thumbs in the straps of his overalls and smile at you as he talked. On a side note, there was a heat wave in Wake Island soon after Forrest arrived, and no wind to cool them down. But he never strayed from obeying his temple covenants.

Forrest was caught between some of the buildings when the bombs started to fall in Wake Island. He heard a small voice tell him to lie down. At first he hesitated but the voice said as clear as day, "Fall on your face." So he fell down on his face until the bombing was over. In one direction 60 ft. away a bomb had dropped, in another direction 90, in another 120 ft. He was surrounded by bomb craters. A coworker did not lie down and was mowed down by shrapnel. If he would've remained standing, he would have been killed.

Esther wanted to continue carrying out the traditions she and Forrest had started. She prayed for guidance and help. The answer she received was to play games with her children. As a result she had two purposes; first, to improve herself and her own skills so that she could earn a livelihood, and second, to spend every possible moment "living it up" with her family.

Esther would play games with them every night, often until 1:00 AM or later. While they were playing, she would teach the principles of the gospel in an atmosphere that was easy to accept. There wasn't much arguing - if there was, Esther would stop the game. One time when they continued to bicker, Esther threw the game into the fire and burned it.
Bill Packard said, "A team of horses couldn't have pulled up away from home. If there was a choice of playing with mom or our friends, we always chose mom."

Forrest never did any wheeling and dealing when it came to the Red Cross boxes and trading. He just exchanged with the fellows the things he did not use for useful food. He did not take advantage of the others.

Esther would encourage her children when they had the hard farm work. "She would keep encouraging us to do it, so we developed the attitude that we could." Someone would have to ride the cultivator in the raspberry patch so it would get down in the ground. They would get all scratched up from the vines. Floyd said it was a "miserable, miserable job, but we did everything we could to make things work, because our mother convinced us we could."

"Probably the only time Forrest was beaten was when he was defending another, or when he would be working and the workload was such that he couldn't carry his load." - Lloyd Nelson

Even with all the abuse, Forrest did not have ill feelings about the Japanese people as a whole - "just certain individuals were bad." He never said anything bitter about them. He never called them Japs, but Japanese. He tried not to turn against them even though he was certainly hit and abused during his internment. A common sentiment by the former POWs was that Forrest did not become hateful or hostile; he didn't become bitter or antagonistic toward the Japanese. We learn a great lesson from Forrest: It is possible to overcome obstacles harassment, and abuse we may face without losing our dignity and goodness. And we can face prejudice without becoming prejudiced in return.

Forrest's personality was tempered by his experiences as a prisoner. His faith was strong. Every survivor who knew him said he was a good man; a spiritual man; a peacemaker; a man of sterling character; a man who lived his religion; a man who helped many others survive their prison ordeal; a truly great man; a man who quietly relied upon his Heavenly Father for the strength to endure those terrible indignities.

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life

Remember how Borders was having their 90% off sale and I bought that ridiculous CD? Well, I also bought a couple of books and so far they have been a complete success! The best $1.50 I have ever spent. Let me introduce you to Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. "I was not abused, abandoned, or locked up as a child. My parents were not alcoholics, nor were they ever divorced or dead. We did not live in poverty, or in misery, or in an exotic country. I am not a misunderstood genius, a former child celebrity, or the child of a celebrity. I am not a drug addict, sex addict, food addict, or recovered anything. If I indeed had a past life, I have no recollection of who I was. I have not survived against all odds. I have not lived to tell. I have not witnessed the extraordinary. This is my story."

I think that's what I love the most about this book. The way that she's completely ordinary. And also the fact that she has a fantastic writing style. Here are some posts that I connected to...

TAKING UP SOMETHING NEW
"When I take up something new - say knitting, or the Nordic-Track - there's a period of time where I think, Who knows, this may be just the thing for me. From this point on it will be part of the way people define me. As in: Oh yeah, Amy, I know her; she's the one who kits those hats. It's galvanizing, this new thing, partially because it is fun and interesting, partly because it is simply new, and largely because of the prospect of it becoming an integral part of my life and identity. I will always have knitting needles with me. I will know all the good knitting stores. I will become an expert on yarn. While there are things that have stuck since I fell into them (I dye my hair red; I like yoga; I am known for concocting salads and dressings), it seems, in many cases, the new things slip right off me. It's as if their sticking were nearly impossible, that to try to adopt them would put me head to head with my destiny."

STUPID SLOW DRIVER
"When I see a really slow driver, I have to pull up alongside him to see what this person looks like, to confirm my suspicions. I am certain I will find a distinctly stupid-looking person. Ah, yes, he looks totally stupid. Stupid slow driver."

DISHWASHER
"It is very difficult to try to load someone else's dishwasher; everyone has their own method. Glasses stacked in this row, bowls this way, silverware facing up, down - it's a highly personal thing. The few time someone outside the family has loaded ours, I open it up and am disoriented, dismayed even, to find plates in the wrong slots, bowls on the top (the top?!), and even a skillet crammed in there. It's just too counterproductive and unsettling, even though it is nice of them to try to help."

ANSWERING MACHINE
"In most cases, it is more satisfying to get a friend's answering machine and leave a cheery, tangible trace of your sincere commitment to the friendship than it is to engage in actual conversation."

AYN RAND
"Ayn Rand seems so mysterious, privy, snobby - in a cool way. I'm pretty sure it's the y."

CONVERSATION
"Standing in a doorway and chatting is safe; one has, literally and figuratively, an easy out. But the slightest gesture - taking a step in, glancing at a chair in the corner, unraveling a scarf - signals a commitment to a full-blown conversation. Similarly, if one is interrupted while reading a book, a thumb in the book signals an allegiance to the book, and the interrupter should expect only the most cursory reply. But if the book gets shut with a bookmark, or placed down open-faced,, a full conversation will most likely follow."

POTATO CHIPS
"When I eat potato chips, particularly the crunchy kettle kind, I find myself looking through the bag for the good chips. Somehow a good chip is one that is extra thick looking, and curled onto itself or folded, as opposed to straight and flat. It is a treat, a victory, to find a really good chip and pluck it from the bag. The thinner, straight, or broken ones aren't nearly as pleasing.

Benjamin Franklin

So I've been reading the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin and I am so impressed by this man. Firstly he was raised by a wise father who "liked to have, as often as he could, some sensible friend or neighbor to converse with, and always took care to start some ingenious or useful topic for discourse, which might tend to improve the minds of his children. By this means he turned our attention to what was good, just, and prudent in the conduct of life." I can only imagine what a huge impact this had on Franklin for he seemed on improving himself for the rest of his life. There was no petty gossip in his teenage life. He made friends with those who among himself, loved reading. They would go into the woods and read aloud to each other and discuss ideas, themes, poetry... I can't even imagine a group of boys in high school reading to each other like that. Too bad though, Franklin makes a good point later saying, "Influence upon the private character, late in life, is not only an influence late in life, but a weak influence. It is in youth that we plant our chief habits and prejudices; it is in youth that we take our party as to profession, pursuits and matrimony."

Another quote from him that I thought was very interesting about the religions of that time, "These I esteem'd the essentials of every religion; and, being to be found in all the religions we had in our country, I respected them all, tho' with different degrees of respect, as I found them more or less mix'd with other articles, which, without any tendency to inspire, promote or confirm morality, serv'd principally to divide us and make us unfriendly to one another."

A few years later Franklin tells about 13 virtues which at that time were necessary and desirable to him. He gives his own definition of what they mean and puts them in a specific order at which to work at attaining them.
1. TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
2. SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
3. ORDER. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
4. RESOLUTION. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
5. FRUGALITY. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
6. INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ'd in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
7. SINCERITY. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
8. JUSTICE. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
9. MODERATION. Avoid extreams; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
10. CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
11. TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
12. CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dulness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.
13. HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
"Temperance first, as it tends to procure that coolness and clearness of head, which is so necessary where constant vigilance was to be kept up... This being acquir'd and establish'd, Silence would be more easy. This and the next Order, I expected would allow me more time for attending to my project and my studies. Resolution once become habitual, would keep me firm in my endeavors to obtain all the subsequent virtues; Frugality and Industry freeing me from my remaining debt and producing affluence and independence, would make more easy the practice of Sincerity and Justice, ect., ect."
Franklin goes on to say, "I was supris'd to find myself so much fuller of faults than I had imagined; but I had the satisfaction of seeing them diminish."

Now can you imagine any leader of this nation right now having this on their mind? I would be shocked and surprised if any of them were striving like this to better themselves.

Anyways, one last quote.
"In truth, I found myself incorrigible with respect to Order; and now I am grown old, and my memory bad, I feel very sensibly the want of it. But, on the whole, tho' I never arrived at the perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the endeavour, a better and a happier man than I otherwise should have been if I had not attempted it."

Better

So the full title of this book is Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande. I've never understood it, but I get a lot of questioning looks when I pull out one of my medical books to read. My grandma asked if it was a textbook that I was reading for school the other week. No. Just a book, for fun. I love a good medical book. They are some of the most interesting books I've read. (Especially as far as learning new things goes.) I have another book by this same author, Atul Gawande, and I love it just as much. He writes in a fantastic way that brings things to a lower level (so you can actually understand what he's talking about), but you don't feel like he's dumbing it down. He just makes it much easier to understand.

In the book, Better, he talks about the struggle in medicine to perform well in circumstances that aren't always under your control. Gawande divides the book into three sections, talking about diligence, the challenge to do right, and ingenuity. I loved his examples in the book, the cases that he talked about and what worked and what didn't.

Here's a quote from the book.
"Better is possible. It does not take genius. It takes diligence. It takes moral clarity. It takes ingenuity. And above all, it takes a willingness to try."

At the end he gives five suggestions to make a worthy difference, or to be a  positive deviant. Now he's aiming these all towards the medical field but I think they're completely applicable in any other field of life.
1. Ask an unscripted question. "Ours is a job of talking to strangers. Why not learn something about them?"
2. Don't complain. "Nothing in medicine is more dispiriting than hearing doctors complain... Resist it. It's boring, it doesn't solve anything, and it will get you down. You don't have to be sunny about everything. Just be prepared with something else to discuss."
3. Count something. "Regardless of what one ultimately does in medicine - or outside medicine, for that matter - one should be a scientist in this world. If you count something you find interesting, you will learn something interesting."
4. Write something. "Writing lets you step back and think through a problem. Even the angriest rant forces the writer to achieve a degree of thoughtfulness."
5. Change. "Be willing to recognize the inadequacies in what you do and to seek out solutions."

"So find something new to try, something to change. Count how often you succeed and how often you fail. Write about it. Ask people what they think. See if you can keep the conversation going."

Jane Eyre

I tried reading this book a long time ago when I was younger, and I was just so bored and couldn't get through it in the least, so I left it untouched after that. Well, I have trained Natalie in my good taste of books and for her to be so in love with this book, was questionable to me. And I couldn't allow my younger sister to surpass me with reading and loving classics that I haven't read all the way through so... I of course had to attempt the book again. Plus there's a Jane Eyre frenzy going on right now with the new movie released so I jumped on the bandwagon. And I love the broadway music for Jane Eyre, so why not read the book and get a much clearer understanding of the storyline?
I don't know where I got stuck in the book when I was younger, because I did not think any of it was too slow, or dragging. I love that language. I wish we still spoke like that. I love the conversations they have, Mr. Rochester's personality is completely bewitching and I love it. Jane is fantastic, she is a perfect mix of independence, womanhood, strength, values, intelligence etc...
Also, what a great love story! And it has substance and depth to it. I love how they study each other out in silent ways for months, learning character by actions done. Neither Jane nor Edward are extremely attractive and gorgeous, (except in my mind, Edward is completely handsome) so it's not just vain, superficial love. They do think each other is attractive, but they are in love with the person itself and not appearance, because appearance was not what first attracted them.
Anyways, I'm just in love with this story. And side note, the broadway music is fantastic and guess what else? They use direct lines from the book in the lyrics. Basically I was hearing Jane/Edwards voice in my head (from the soundtrack) while I read the book. Completely fantastic.

Color

I love color. I love organizing color, seeing color, using color. 

So of course, organize clothes by color order with matching hangers. 

Who wouldn't?

I've seen bookshelves that are organized by color and so I decided to give it a go. 

Pretty awesome right?

Too bad not all my books can fit when organized in this fashion.

 I had to throw the color idea and go with keeping the series together. 

Don't ask how I managed to fit everything in...

Oh that's right, I hid the unimportant books behind. 

The Screwtape Letters

Have any of you read this book yet? Because if you haven't...you should really get on that. It's completely life changing, eye-opening. And the fact that it's written by C.S. Lewis just adds to it's greatness. A friend of mine posted on her blog about the book and after reading it I knew that I needed to read the book again. (I think I read it for the first time maybe a year ago.) But here's the problem. You cannot read this book fast. Which is what I tried to do the first time I read it, and... it was not the greatest idea. The ideas and intellect behind this book are so deep, that you really can only read one letter a day. (The book is written in letters that are from Screwtape, an advanced devil, to his nephew Wormtail who is a beginner devil.)
But here is my idea for the next time I read it!
I am going to make a huge gospel study out of it. Because this book is loaded with gospel jewels, gleaming and shining, waiting for you to see them and  understand. So my idea is to take each letter and study it out as if I were doing one of my scripture studies. The letters are written in how to best tempt the human, so I would twist that and write up notes on how best to avoid that type of temptation in my life. I don't know if you understand how epic this study is going to be, but if you've read the book...oh, you know.

But as I always do, I will leave you with some quotes from this beloved book. (Mal has some great quotes on her blog so I'll post some different ones for you.)

"If you can once get him to the point of thinking that 'religion is all very well up to a point,' you can feel quite happy about his soul. A moderated religion is as good for us as no religion at all."

"Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts."

"The Enemy wants him, in the end, to be so free from any bias in his own favor that he can rejoice in his own talents as frankly and gratefully as in his neighbor's talents."

"Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point."

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

This book is different. It is about a boy named Christopher who is autistic. The book is told through his view point which makes it completely interesting. You are just so intrigued by the way Christopher thinks, the way he reasons. He's insanely brilliant. The huge downer to this book though was the swearing. Why oh why do books have to do that? It was such a perfectly good book until it started swearing.

But here is my favorite part of the book.

pg. 24
Mr. Jeavons, the psychologist at the school, once asked me why 4 red cars in a row made it a Good Day, and 3 red cars in a row made it a Quite Good Day, and 5 red cars in a row made it a Super Good Day, and why 4 yellow cars in a row made it a Black Day, which is a day when I don't speak to anyone and sit on my own reading books and don't eat my lunch and Take No Risks. He said that I was clearly a very logical person, so he was surprised that I should think like this because it wasn't very logical.

I said that I liked things to be in a nice order. And one way of things being in a nice order was to be logical. Especially if those things were numbers or an argument. But there were other ways of putting things in a nice order. And that was why I had Good Days and Black Days. And I said that some people who worked in an office came out of their house in the morning and saw that the sun was shining and it made them feel happy, or they saw that it was raining and it made them feel sad, but the only difference was the weather and if they worked in an office the weather didn't have anything to do with whether they had a good day or a bad day.

I said that when Father got up in the morning he always put his trousers on before he put his socks on and it wasn't logical but he always did it that way, because he liked things in a nice order, too. Also whenever he went upstairs he went up two at a time, always starting with his right foot.

Mr. Jeavons said that I was a very clever boy.

Fahrenheit 451

It's been a long time since I last read this book. Can I just say that I love Ray Bradbury's way of writing? Well, I do. And I'm right along with him in believing that burning a book is like burning a soul. Should never ever be done. Let's just remember how much I adore and worship my books...
It's interesting how my views on technology have changed as I've gotten older. I do like it, and I use it everyday of my life, but sometimes I wish things were simpler. I worry about how the world is going to end up like. Fahrenheit 451 shows a world in which technology is absolutely everything. It's your friend, family, get away and every waking/sleeping moment of your day.
Very interesting to read.

Letter 7

Have you heard of the book, The Screwtape Letters? Well I got it for my birthday. I read it a couple of years ago and really like it, but here's the problem. I read it like a normal book. One where you read it all day and finish it as fast as you can. You absolutely CANNOT do that with this book. It won't work. If you know of this book then you know that it is about a senior devil instructing his nephew devil on how to tempt his victim in the form of letters. You have to flip your thinking around to that of a devil tempting a human. You have to think, "Yes, this is what I would do if I wanted them to fall away." But then you come in from another angle, the angle of application. You see in your life how you are letting yourself slip in certain areas. In which case leads you to read only one letter at a time. Because that's all you can really handle. Not only handle, but that's all you want to mull around in your mind. You have to give yourself time to absorb, reflect and compare.

Letter 7.
"I wonder you should ask me whether it is essential to keep the patient in ignorance of your own existence. Our policy, for the moment, is to conceal ourselves. When the humans disbelieve in our existence we lose all the pleasing results of direct terrorism and we make no magicians. On the other hand, when they believe in us, we cannot make them materialists and skeptics.
-2 Nephi 28:22 "And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none- and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance."

"Some ages are lukewarm and complacent, and then it is our business to soothe them yet faster asleep."
-2 Nephi 28:21 "And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say; All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well- and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell."
-2 Nephi 38:24-25 "Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion! Wo be unto him that crieth: All is well!"

"Other ages, of which the present is one, are unbalanced and prone to faction, and it is our business to inflame them.
-2 Nephi 28:20 "For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good."