I Never Promised You A Goodie Bag

I heard about this book on NPR (where I hear about most of my most interesting books).  I enjoyed it and would recommend it.  This book will be meaningful for those who have lived long enough to understand from personal experiences that life has its ups and downs.  So really, it is appropriate for everyone.

Here are a few quotes I want to remember:
"I saw the shadow side of having fixed expectations.  They are an awfully hard thing to live up to.  If you spend your time measuring your reality against your fantasy, you're inevitably going to lose the joy of just being in the moment.  This holds true for events, relationships, business, and life.  Bunny taught me that some people just don't know how to be happy, and they will never look at the bright side.  And that's not a person I want around me in any situation."

"It's amazing how disarming a simple aplogy can be, not an 'I'm sorry but' which feels conditional, but an honest 'I'm sorry,' which is limitless."

"It took me a long time to learn that sometimes in life things just happen, without our permission or planning.  Even the most beautiful things can happen that way.  Maybe the cake bride loved her wedding cake because it really was perfect -- but more likely, she loved her cake because she sincerely wanted to be happy.  Perception is reality.  She was in love and her life felt full; that was her perception, and that became her reality as well.  We all have the choice and the power to create the reality that we want.  That is a life lesson that I carry with me every day."

"You can't control what may happen to you in this life, but you can control who you want to be after it happens."