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Tuesday, January 12, 2016

A book review, a confession, and a letter to Ann Voskamp



I can't start today without giving a big shoutout to my Clemson Tigers for last night's National Championship game. We fought so hard and played so well, and in the end fell short of the victory by 5 points. Aghh it was so hard to watch it come down to those final seconds and realize there just wasn't enough time left to do what we needed to do. What a year- we fought to the end and will come out even stronger next season!

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Now, how's this for a confession?

I made it a goal this month to finish reading One Thousand Gifts, a book on gratitude, and I had to quit half way through because I just couldn't handle it.


Ahh! I'm so sorry, Ann. I'm just not catching what you're throwing. Maybe this letter will help explain.

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Dear Ann,

I'm thinking it's me and not you, because based on everything I heard about you and your book, you're like the Holy Grail of gratitude. And here I am just not appreciating what you're offering.

I'm a straight-forward kind of gal- don't tell me in 300 pages what you could tell me in a list.

Because of that straight-forward nature, I don't have an appreciation for fluff. I'd rather you tell me that you're grateful for the hug that your sweet son gave you than hear you say, "I will embrace the skin of a boy child that my body grew from a seed."

And I'm not sure that I would stop to appreciate "light reflecting off of soap suds" in my hands while my kids were arguing in the background. I might actually feel grateful instead that I had words to tell them to stop arguing so I could continue washing the dishes and they could continue playing and we could all go back to living in peace together. 

So maybe we view gratitude for the little things differently?

Or maybe we just have very different perspectives?

I just felt confused and kept hoping that the next chapter, or the next, or the next would include some normal talk about the beauty and simplicity of gratitude or the practical application of making a list of 1,000 things to be grateful for in a given week or month.

Maybe I'm not poetic enough. Maybe I'm not patient enough.

The great news for you, Ann, is there are 1,000 people on Amazon who disagree with me. So I really think it's more me than you.

But you do you, Ann, and I'll do me. You can keep finding sweetness in soap suds and I'll make a more conscience effort to pause and appreciate the super simple things in moments of chaos. 

After all, extra doses of gratitude never hurt anyone.

Sincerely,
A-Different-Kind-of-Grateful Reviewer

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Have any of y'all read this book?

I'm curious to hear if you had the same feelings I did or if you think I'm awful for writing a negative review about a book on gratitude.


Tomorrow I'll be sharing a recipe for brussel sprouts that will make you LOVE them! And on Thursday, I'll share the results from last week's reader survey. If you haven't had a chance to share your thoughts and enter the giveaway, you can do that here.

See you then!

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14 comments:

  1. I read the book several years ago and I really appreciated it. I believe it's written in a more poetic manner than most people would write but I appreciate poetry so that may be why I like it. I do think it spurred a movement to learn to find gratitude in the small things in life when life sometimes overwhelms us and that's a good thing. But you're absolutely right that we all find the way we express our thankfulness differently. And speaking of thankfulness, I've always wanted to like Brussel sprouts. I feel left out because all my best friends go on and on about it. I'm thankful you'll be posting a recipe tha will make me love them. 😊

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    1. You are so right about it starting a gratitude movement! That alone makes this book a great thing for sure- even if it was over my head, haha. And I'm so glad you're looking forward to tomorrow's post! You're gonna have to let me know if I was able to convert you to a Brussel sprout fan. ;)

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    2. The recipe looks delicious. I can't wait to try it. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Hey girl! Be sure to put this comment under the reader survey post so you can be eligible for the giveaway!

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  3. I LOOOOOVE your letter to Ann. Hilarious, and SPOT ON. :) I totally agree!!

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  4. Ahh!! I am so glad someone else feels that way about Ann. I have her blog in my reader, but I usually skip over it. Ain't nobody got time for all that fluff. I've got 85 high school freshmen that need my attention--I need funny and practical! Bless her, she's some kind of saint, but I am usually just grateful for the simple things like a rogue Reese Cup in the bottom of my desk drawer on a hard day!

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    1. A rogue Reese Cup! Hahah now THAT is definitely something to be grateful for!

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  5. Congrats on making it to the middle! I made it less than ten pages before I was like "what the what is she talking about?!" I'm so glad it's reached so many people. I'm just not one of them! ��

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    1. Haha well good- I'm glad I'm not the only one! But yes do love that it sparked a movement for gratitude as Deborah pointed out in the first comment!

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  6. I am so with you on One Thousand Gifts. I love everything about noticing what you are grateful for, but the writing style just didn't click for me. Poetry is not my jam (and I know it's me, not them), so like you, I like the fluffy language just wasn't my thing! To each their own, right?

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    1. I somehow missed your comment until now! I am so glad I was not the only one who felt this way!! I just reviewed Simply Tuesday- have you read it? I'd love to know what you thought of it!

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  7. Umm I am a year late to this post but I have to comment that while I think Ann is probably a lovely person who loves the Lord, her writing is not for me. The flowery prose isn't my speed and she loses me in the midst. I haven't read any of her books because it's a challenge to get through a blog post of hers.

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