I’m reading the “ish” out of 2017. You Should Too…

I’d like to think of myself as a keen reader. I search the internet far and wide for articles, blog, posts, tweets, etc worth a read, share or mention. I love being informed.

I love books especially.

I’m not anywhere near the amount of books the averag CEO reads per month- which is 4–5 per month, probably because they all wake up at 4AM, have 130-hour work weeks, and spend a lot of time in private jets. For us foot soldiers and average Joes, who makes our own coffee, fix the office printer, and doubles up as the I.T. guy (“have you try switching it off and on ma’am”), how is it even possible to read that much in a month’s time?

It’s impossible!

But I’m trying, and I’m giving it everything I got.

I really am.

And I’m tasting the results.

Apart from the fact that it widens my vocabulary, and gives me something worth talking about in an awkward situation, I can feel my consciousness being expanded as well.

The books pictured above I’ve read- and listened to- over December and January. The only thing they had in common is that they’re all non-fiction. But I’ve immersed myself in them, quoted from them, reread some parts of them, and had parts of them linger with me longer than it should.

In our world of quick access, trending hashtags, and news apps, it’s easy for us to get sucked into sound bites, click baits, half-truths, without doing the hard work of digging deeper for the story behind the sory.

Because there’s always a story behind the one you’re reading.

From Rob Bell I’m still learning “how to be here”, and what it means to bring your fully present presence to every conversation. In true Rob Bell style, you are getting a tour of his life, which is essentially a tour of your own life, when you realize you are in the world to do work that matter. You owe it to your life.

Bob Dylan showed me that it’s possible to push through time and critics and self-realization- constantly one step away from re-inventing yourself to stay with the times, and yet becoming more and more comfortable in your own skin.

Surely, “the times they are a changing’”, and it’s our acute awareness of that reality that will lend to our names a sense of timelessness.

Trevor Noah, “Born A Crime”, funny, honest, and raw as it was, was not written with the South African reader in mind- or shall I rather say it wasn’t written for those who’ve had first-hand experience of what he went through. It’s still an extremely hilarious read, but it could’ve been a whole lot shorter. It felt like yet another, “this was how bad Apartheid was; this is how I suffered, and look at me now”.

To Write Love On Her Arms, is a movement that has been close to my heart since 2009, when I first heard of them. They reach out with messages of hope to millions of people trsuggling with depression, addiction, and suicude.

I’ve been following Jamie Tworkowski- the founder- on all the various platforms ever since, and have always felt connected to his writing style. His book, “If You Feel Too Much”, is almost a permission slip to those who’ve always felt awkward and shameful about the weights they carry. His honesty and vulnerability truly lets you know that it’s OK to feel heavy sometimes; that you’re not an excuse; you’re not made to live in hiding, simply because you are depressed, and think of suicide, and others don’t know how to handle you. Of the four of these, this is the book to read, or listen to.

• At the moment I’m busy with Chuck Klosterman’s, “But What If We’re Wrong”, exploring the possibility that in any given argument, debate, discussion, the likelihood that you might be completely wrong.
• I’m reading Open, by Craig Gross- a book that explores what it could look like if we begin to live more open and accountable lives; when we intentionally let others into the parts of ourselves we are afriad to share with those close to us. it’s a message I desperately need, and have to implement in my life. And so should you.
• I’m also listening to Blake Mycoski’s, “Start Something That Matters”- a book about finding a for-profit with a one-for-one give back policy deeply embedded in its DNA, since day one. It gives language to some of the ways we’ve thought about changing the world, or at least a small part of it, and how to possibly go about it.

I’m intentional about the books I choose to read, but I’m limit my reading to only my specific area of interest. The wider we read, the better our understanding of other people and what they do.

So go, read the ish out of this year, and change a life- even if it’s only yours- while you are at it.

grace & peace