gal pal post vol 3 edition 5

Gal Pal Post Volume 3 Edition 5
Attitude part II
Quips and Quotes:
“What happened to me is that I suddenly started to live my life for other people, and I became happy.”
-Angelina Jolie, commenting on moving away from being a selfish person now she is a mom and an ambassador.In an article where the actress is interviewed, she relates the she never felt more whole until she realized that life was more than about her and that greatest thing about life is serving others.

Inner Diva Speak
“The most powerful agent of growth and transformation is something much more basic than any technique: a change of heart.” John Welwood
I know it may seem like a cop out that I am double quoting, but if someone said it better, just let them say it. Having the disposition of gratitude begins with examining how to operate out of such sensibility. LIFE IS A MIRACLE is the realization that our existence is enough to look at the world as half full versus half empty. Life is a process. It’s not about changing what you see it, our attitude should be “in the full response of the human heart to the gratuitousness of all that is.”
Don’t force being grateful, LET ATTITUDE FLOW NATURALLY. Guilt should never be the motivator. I think that older people or our elders are culprit to trying to guilt us into being grateful versus demonstrating that in their own lives. I think that I would have learned to be more grateful sooner if I was taught that people were not entitled to things and all should be counted as a blessing. The other part is that our loved ones fail to help us understand how to respond, they force us too. Politeness is a mask for bitterness sometimes. Remember to practice making the conscious decision. It is not that you should be grateful, it’s that one “should” feel encouraged to open their hearts and experience gratitude as it comes.
Creating a HABIT OF THE HEART means “in relation to others, gratitude is good manners; in relations to ourselves, its is a habit of the heart and a spiritual discipline.” The beauty of an attitude of gratitude is that it connects us to everything else.
Attitude IS THE ONLY DISABILITY meaning that what we think about our lives, our attitude has the ability to enable or disable us. “As we cultivate a true and deep appreciation for what we do have, we realize that our sense of lack for the most part, is an illusion. No matter our material circumstances, the richness of our soul is ultimately what brings up happiness, not another martini, bigger breasts, or the latest video game.” Albert Einstein says that there are two ways to live your life. One as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
The time is now! Carpe diem! Seize the day, regret is the poison that keeps us in the past. Learn from the past but do not dwell on it. START WHERE YOU ARE. Don’t dwell in the negative state by counting all the bad things that are not happening to us. Using negativity to connect to a sense of gratefulness is not the way to go. Count your blessings every day.

Summer Reading Fare
"Big Girls Don't Cry"
Review By Gal Pal Alexandra Treff

Patty asked me to read this book as something that could be recommended to the Gal Pals as a lighter tome, simplistic in its message and delivery. I don't think she could have chosen a better set of novellas than the four-part "Big Girls Don't Cry". Don't let the title scare you we're not talking about an autobiography of the Four Seasons. Rather, the compilation addresses the lives and loves of four independent women, all of whom happen to be larger-than-life characters themselves: Tricia Spencer, the advertising guru; college professor and overachiever Megan James; narcissistic salon entrepreneur Cherise Givens; and designer Cara Scott, also known as the "Domestic Diva". Fate offers each woman a face-to-face meeting with the potential men of their dreams, although not every one realizes the opportunity at first.

Through a series of encounters and sometimes a true comedy of errors, relationships are forged and lifelong decisions made, albeit oftentimes to the chagrin of the reader. Don't get me wrong, "Big Girls Don't Cry" is entertaining, sometimes downright hilarious (my personal favorite was Brenda Jackson's tale of childhood love reemerging while down on the farm), and also occasionally disappointing. The writing, though clever, is formulaic and familiar, and the editing leaves something to be desired. Poor transitions, misplaced grammatical punctuation, and an apparent unfamiliar knowledge of vocabulary ("jettisoned" and "veracity" come to mind as being used completely out of context) can be irritating even to an amateur reader.

All in all, I didn't necessarily mind poring over the lives of these four women, but I feel the entire work lacks a certain spark and I am disappointed that authors of this caliber took such recognizable courses through the exploration of romantic relationships and the stigmas which can surround both parties. Light reading for a breezy day while relaxing on the front porch -- 2 ½ stars (out of 4)