Open Boxes by Christine Organ Book Review
I received this book for free from Publicist for review consideration, opinions expressed are 100% my own. This post contains affiliate links as indicated by an asterisk. Purchases from these links provides a small commission to me at no extra cost to you.
Open Boxes by Christine OrganPublished by 220 Communications
Publication Date: Nov. 24, 2014
Genres: Inspiration, Nonfiction, Personal Productivity, Women's
Pages: 244
Format: eARC
Source: Publicist
Goodreads
Synopsis from Goodreads:
“A celebration of the human spirit, Open Boxes is a collection of stories that doesn’t just tell readers – but shows readers – how to live fully and connect deeply by reveling in the sacred within our everyday lives. Through stories about everything from spirituality and parenting, self-acceptance and friendship, shopping at Old Navy and bowling with preschoolers, readers will be inspired to gently lift the lids off of their compartmentalized lives and tie together the torn and tattered pieces that lie inside in order to live more fully and connect more deeply with the people and world around them. Open Boxes is filled with stories of comfort, struggle, heartache, joy, insight, compassion, resilience, and redemption. Like a cup of coffee with a good friend, the stories will soothe and inspire, uplift and motivate, entertain and encourage.”
My Thoughts:
On God
Faith has always been a big question mark for me, a place where I did a lot of pretending and role-filling and believing by osmosis.
Raised a cradle Catholic, Christine tells us her own struggles with her faith and the Spiritual Breakdown she had during one Christmas Eve when her son was a newborn. For those like me who struggle with blindly following the “rules” of religion, Christine gives us a look at her spiritual journey to pull the meaning of God from different religions to come to peace with what God means to her. We don’t have to be defined by the religion on our church, temple or mosque door but Christine encourages us to find, and more importantly, accept what God means to us.
On Miracles
There are two ways to wash dishes. One way is to wash dishes to get clean dishes. The other way is to wash dishes to wash dishes.
I’m a Type A (and probably a bit OCD and ADD) former accountant and by no means a philosopher so when I read this I seriously went “huh?” Christine goes on to explain what she means about being mindful and finding the miracles in the simplest and most mundane of tasks. Perfect for someone like me who’s constantly looking for the small victories in my life. Great for the stay at home moms like me who think their days are filled with tedious tasks.
Christine encourages us to look beyond the task itself and into what the task brings you: the grace of caring for your family and even “love at the bottom of the pile of laundry.” Anyone else feel like they are constantly conquering a Mt. Everest of laundry? I know I do, but Christine is right, the stinky but sweet boys I call my family are my biggest joy and treasure. If I didn’t have them in my life, sure I’d have less laundry, but I’d be missing a whole lot of love and joy we bring each other.
On Changing the World
“If ‘changing the world’ means finding a cure for cancer and ending apartheid and leading nationwide protests, then I suppose only a handful of people do actually change the world. But me? I think we all change the world.
We change the world by raising kind, gentle, and confident children. We change the world by bringing in homeless dogs and cats. By befriending the snot-nosed kid who sits in the back of class and smells a little like onions. By writing and painting and taking pictures. By laughing and hugging and listening. We change the world by writing letters to loved ones just because. By saying “thank you” and by holding hands more often than we need to. By
struggling to find our calling and then struggling to fulfill that calling. The great civil rights leader Howard Thurman said, “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come
alive.”We change the world by coming alive. And by struggling to come alive.
I loved this section and it made me think about how each of us changes the world and how I can make the world a better place. I always enjoy being inspired by random acts of kindness or stories that help me realize the joy in the small moments.
What makes you come alive? Wanna know what makes me come alive? Sharing my love of reading and encouraging others to read wherever I go. I think books open the doors to your imagination and a love for learning. I see it in my children’s eyes every time we read a book together or I just sit and watch them read. I love seeing the marvel in their eyes and imagining where their stories are taking them.
Overall, Open Boxes is a feel-good book that made me reflect on my faith, the joy, grace and passion in my life and how I can use it to change my world. If you like touchy, feely books, then you’ll like Open Boxes.
This post linked up with SITS Sharefest.
I really like story collections and this book seems to have a lot of great takeaways.
Seems like a great book. Changing the world is a great title for a section (or even for a book). Thanks for sharing your review!