Inspiration | Book Chatter

Rethink

It’s taken me such a long time to come up with my “one word” for 2015. For me, choosing one area of focus tends to work much better than say going with the average resolutions.

Last year, I chose “Simplicity” which worked pretty well. All of 2014 was dedicated to making things a little easier both around the house and at work. I feel as if I learned a thing or two about my busy life. One, it’s not fun to be busy all the time and no one wins any Brownie points for the glorification of busy. Two, a lot of it I put upon myself. My drummed-up expectation of my working mom self, is what’s messed with me in previous years. But hey, I never said I was perfect! That said, things are slightly better in that area.

This year, I’ve chosen “Rethink” which sounds like a non-word but it was handed to me during a church service. Seriously, I was sitting there pondering my word and Pastor Rusty George handed it to me on a silver platter during the series titled Fresh Start. If you care to actually listen to the service, you can find it here. He zeroes in on Rethink at 8:48. Technically, he uses the term “Rethink It” but you get the idea.

This word appeals to me on many levels. I am a quick thinker, and in turn, quick to react. This works great for me only half of the time. Often, I will make an immediate decision, and then the weight of that decision will stay with me for days. Not saying it’s always the wrong decision, but my confidence over the decision is sometimes not there after I’ve made it.

Or, something will fly out of my mouth only for me to regret it later. I have trigger mouth. I can control it at work, but not so much at home.

Sadly, this trigger way of thinking also affects my health. Yep, I have Lupus and there are times when I decide to skip my meds for awhile just to see if they are doing anything. Sometimes it takes months for me to feel lousy but I almost always do.

I seem to enjoy tempting fate.

So, although I am still focusing on simplifying my life, I am adding Rethink to the mix. I’ve technically been doing this since the beginning of the year without me noticing it and it’s added a calmness to my otherwise chaotic life. Taking an extra moment to respond or act can sometimes turn a negative into a positive. It comes down to perspective and sometimes to get a clear handle on it, you have to take the time to rethink it.

That’s my plan. To rethink everything before acting. This will apply to me saying “yes” all the time when volunteer opportunities come up. It will apply to my food choices. It will apply to decisions made at work. Basically, to everything. It sounds a little daunting and exhausting but really, it’s a brief moment of reflection and with January almost behind me, I can honestly say that it’s not tough to do.

Hopefully this little bit of mindfulness will help with my simplicity kick too.

The Longest Way Home: One Man’s Quest for the Courage to Settle Down
By Andrew McCarthy (Yes! THAT Andrew McCarthy!)
(Free Press, Hardcover, 9781451667486, September 18, 2012, 288pp.)

The Short of It:

One man’s attempt to figure it all out. Except, this guy was an 80’s heartthrob which makes it all the more interesting.

The Rest of It:

Everyone remembers Andrew McCarthy, right? THE 80’s heartthrob we all got to know from such movies as Pretty in Pink, St. Elmo’s Fire and one of the silliest, yet most entertaining movies ever…Mannequin.

I’ve always like his work. He has an easy way about him and a likable face. What I didn’t know, is that in addition to acting and directing, he’s also added travel writer to his list of accomplishments. As an editor-at-large for National Geographic Traveler, You’d think I would have noticed his writing since I’ve read the magazine for years, but maybe I just didn’t realize it was the same guy. Needless to say, when this book came up for review, I jumped at the chance to read it.

McCarthy’s inability to commit to his long time partner, known as “D” in the book is what sends him into a tailspin. The wedding date has been set, but the details as far as when & where cause him anxiety that can only be controlled by hitting the road. So, that is what he does. He climbs Kilimanjaro, spends some time in Costa Rica, Patagonia and Spain and all the while, D is waiting at home, touching base with him when she can.

As much as I adore McCarthy, I was frustrated with his tendency to flee every time decisions needed to be made. It’s a classic case of cold feet but the book promises a “quest” and to me, that means that at some point, you put the hiking boots away and come back as a complete person. I’m not sure that happened here. He does a lot of soul-searching, but I don’t feel that he understood himself any better at the end of this adventure, than he did at the beginning.

As for the adventure, McCarthy is kind of a loner so there aren’t too many meaningful interactions with the people he encounters. It’s mostly him, and what he was thinking at the time. The armchair traveler in me wanted more description, more humor and some meaningful moments so when those were few and far between, I’d gaze at the cover and then watch Pretty in Pink.

As a Brat Pack fan, my favorite parts of the book had to do with his movie career and how he came to play such iconic roles. These parts are interspersed throughout the book and then of course he touches on alcoholism and how it nearly got the best of him. Even here though, he only skims the surface.

Overall, I’d have to say that if his intent was to dig deep, he wasn’t successful. He only took things so far, and then just sort of gave in to them. BUT, for some reason, I still enjoyed the book. It was refreshing for a man to discuss his weakness and I appreciated the honesty in his writing.

Source: Sent to me by the publisher via Edelweiss.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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