Anne Lamott is a revered and favorite writer for many. I picked up this book because I loved the title, as I thought it would be a good book for breast-cancer survivors, and because so many of us have had a challenging 18 months.
As someone with a history of trauma, Lamott explores the same issues from different angles—dysfunctional childhoods, spiritual challenges, redemption, single parenting, mental illness, and so on. Recently married at the age of 66, she now brings in a new narrative. As she defly states, "I have a doctorate in morbid reflection, and a grave anxiety disorder, which is not ideal for our times as we join hands to turn the climate change around (p. 135).
Lamott's pearls of wisdom are sprinkled throughout the book, but the best of them are condensed in the final chapters. When finding our way out of darkness, whether it is cancer or a pandemic or the loss of loved ones, there are certain passages that can truly help soothe the soul. Here's one of my favorites: "The facts of this world will never satisfy the human heart, but what we give each other can, when it holds love" (p. 176). AMEN!