Diana's Blog: Quirky Words and Book Reviews

December 15th, 2008
There is a great burst of light in my heart when I feel Thank You! inside.
More like fireworks than sunshine.
More like a blazing sunset than a cool full moon.
More like an explosion of laughter than a sneeze.
And now I know why. There is scientific evidence backing the value of gratitude. Robert A. Emmons' book is simply called THANKS! He adds a subtitle How Practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier. Happy individuals live on average nine years longer. Happy college students graduate and make on average $25-thousand dollars more annually than unhappy grads. And it turns out that the winning lottery ticket, the lucky business deal, the perfect date or wedding day has only a minor chance at changing our happiness set point. About half is genetic. Only ten-percent is that lucky break. And forty-percent is of our own making.
The author is an empirically-minded scientist. So he ran a test. Three groups. One group wrote a list of five things for which they are grateful every night. The second group wrote a list of five things that vexed them. And a third group wrote a neutral list. Ten weeks later, the gratitude group was measured to be 25-percent happier than the vexed group, and the neutrals fell in between. The gratitude group reported less physical illness and they slept easier. Lastly, they exercised more frequently -- one-and-a-half hours more each week than the others.
I selected the book for today, and then was struck by a coincidence. This would be an anniversary for me of a very happy day. My younger son, Justin, was born December 15th, ten days late, after 28-hours of labor. My older son had been born after 42-hours of labor, then, with a mirror rigged over the hospital bed so I could watch, he was sliced out of my belly. That was cool! I wanted a natural birth the second time around -- VBAC, they call it. Vaginal Birth After C-Section. For the second time, I was doing everything my birth nurse -- from Portland's Birth Home -- could conceive of -- hot baths, walking up steep hills in the brisk winter nights, having sex -- and, in answer to the activity, I dilated a centimeter or two. Not nearly enough. Finally, more than a day later, my patient doctor walked into the room, dressed in his scrubs, with a gurney being wheeled in behind him.
I knew.
Time was up.
And the doctor said to me, "I need to take the baby." I hadn't asked the sex of the baby, but I sensed it was not a girl, although the baby's energy was finer and more sensitive than his brother's.
It was time.
I asked if I could try one more time. The doctor nodded.
I sent my mind inside to that mysterious place where I was connected with the baby -- it was wordless. I sent symbols, pictures of flow. The birth nurse propped my feet on her chest, and she leaned hard into me, and I pushed.
Squish.
The doctor caught my slippery son: Ah! His head was hung up on your pelvic bone! He shifted! He's here. It's a boy!
We named him Justin. He was born Just in time.
This birth day memory goes on my list of five moments of gratitude.
Yes, this is a gift, and I am forever grateful.

Labels: birth, birthday, gratitude, happiness. book review, Robert A.Emmons, sons., THANKS HOW PRACTICING GRATITUDE CAN MAKE YOU HAPPIER, VBAC

My birthday week was phenomenal -- here are pictures of the Sunrise Yoga with Steff, breakfast with my son,lunch at Meriweather's with Karen, and in a new dress after seeing A CHORUS LINE with Andrew (wish I'd remembered to bring my camera to the show to capture a picture of us together.) Book blog at the bottom!






It occurred to me as I was blogging last week that what I am attempting to do was sparked by an interview I had with Lynda Barry, the cartoonist, about her book 100 DEMONS. Lynda has the coolest technique. She writes words on cards -- one word on every card. Words like Tooth and Door. Then she picks a card at random, and then just draws what leaps out at her. She bets -- and I up the ante -- that at least three or four stories from your life will pop to mind on any Word Cue. Her enthusiasm is infectious -- and accurate.
You should see the stack of new books next to me -- I won't riff on them now because I have yards of words to pull out for most of them. The topics range from Broadway to Tarot, from authors Asner to VanPraagh. This is so much fun! Lynda says No limits! Write -- or in her case -- draw -- anything that shows up in your head. I was thinking OMG I've promised to blog about books every day for a year. So brave when you're on day two or three -- not. And then I hear Lynda's voice in my head, slightly nasal, quirky like a cartoon character, "Yeah, yeah that's it. That's it!!!" And off she goes...

Labels: 100 Demons, A CHORUS LINE, birthday, Lynda Barry, yoga

It's my birthday today....the waning hours...and birthdays are perfect days to begin anew. So. Today, I pledge to blog every day, with the intention of focusing on one of the many books that cross my path as an author interviewer and book reviewer. Put through my personal filter -- not my intellectual one. I recognized early in my life that books saved me. Later I "happened" into interviewing authors. As you know, there are no accidents. I consider these experiences rich gifts that I am fortunate enough to share. To make this promise of a daily blog requires a great deal of courage on my part. Vulnerability. I begin with a book tomorrow. For now, I want to reflect on the difference a day makes.
This birthday morning, I decided to accept Steff's invitation to join her in her yoga class outdoors on Bull Mt at six o'clock. I journaled for about ten-minutes -- I journal every morning no matter what time I get up. Then I drove toward the rising sun, and unexpected blue skies -- cloudy skies had been forecast -- the thumbnail of the moon still apparent amidst thin white clouds. And Steff and her husband Tony were the only ones there. It was a beautiful experience. While my favorite movement is dance -- hiphop, step, Groove, anything! -- and I lift weights -- this was a delightful departure from my routine. Sunrise yoga -- I was actually flexible, and I liked it! Then I picked up my son and he made me birthday breakfast at home -- omelette with broccoli and cheese. Victoria's Secret and Black and White had gifted me big coupons, so I dashed to the mall for 45-minutes, buying a couple of bras, got a free string-thong at VS, then at B&W bought a killer dress, sweater, earrings for $101. Time for a nearly three-hour lunch at Meriweather's on Vaughn with Karen -- we've been doing birthday lunches for nineteen years now -- her birthday is in January; mine is in July. A perfect way to ensure we stay connected. Off to drinks with another friend -- sparkling water for me (since I don't drink.) Then to a networking party at Heartspark -- responsible this past year for emphasizing the positive patterns in my life. And finally dinner at McCormick's with my buddy and boss Bob -- crab legs, the best! Thank you, my friends -- and all you who wrote on my wall, posted messages and emailed Happy Birthday greetings. I am SO blessed! That is what life is, after all -- sharing our open hearts with the people we know, and risking vulnerability to be as close as we can bear. Loss is a certainty, so is change. But guaranteed, new friends wash in on the next tide, sunnier than the last.
I almost don't want to go to bed...but I'm going to tease this fabulous birthday out until the clock strikes midnight and a new day dawns. I've spent the year, not just emphasizing positive patterns, but also excavating old limiting patterns. I feel free. Joyous. Natural. And I dance and write and sing the magic!
See you tomorrow -- thanks for a magnificent day!

Labels: birthday, friendship, Heartspark, joyous, yoga