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3 books you can’t live without

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Much like Castaway and Tom Hanks’ obsession with Wilson, there are things we can honestly say we don’t think we could live without.

My best friend is a music director, and he asks his students (each year) if they could only take three albums on their iPod to an isolated island – what would they be? Then, what would they do once the charge to the iPod runs out? Interesting discussion ensues…

Luckily for those paperbacks, they don’t require a charge and their only fault is not being waterproof. So, if you had to only pick 3, which books (all-time) matter the most to you?

Re-readable qualities…Characters you can’t live without…Narration that soars and exposition that is just right.

What are those 3?

 

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Favorite Quote of All-Time.

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What’s your FAVORITE quote of ALL-TIME?

Tall order to come up with that one, I know.

But, think about it…

….

Still thinking? That’s OK.

FAVORITE is tough to process. There are so many!

So many wise people saying wise things over the course of humanity that it’s hard to pick just one.

Maybe one didn’t jump out at you.

If you’re like me, it’s so easy to jump right into a Bible verse. Maybe Solomon or someone like King David jumps out at you? Of course there’s wisdom there…(I mean, c’mon, one of Solomon’s books was named ‘Proverbs’)… and it isn’t really fair to call Psalms unwise.

But, maybe for you a favorite quote is some bit of advice a family member told you. Something your best friend said in high school once. Now the wheels are turning!

Favorite movie quote. Favorite book quote. Favorite author. Favorite unwise quote. Regardless of what you land on, it’s still difficult to let that quote be your FAVORITE of ALL-TIME isn’t it?

Why?

Because it encapsulates all of YOU…or, it feels like it does when you share with others that it’s your most beloved, cherished, irresistible tidbit of knowledge ever bestowed upon you by someone else. Right?

So again think about it…not plural. Single. FAVORITE. ALL-TIME.

Got one in mind?

(Hey, I’m with you. This is tough for some.) It might take you an entire lifetime to land on one quote, verse, ounce of wisdom that hits you at your core like none other.

We have so many favorites we don’t know how to pick just 1. I love literature obviously. And as I read more works, I discover new phrases and revelations along the way. This path called life keeps offering new discoveries.

You hopefully have that FAVORITE. It’s OK to have more than 1. I do. But, within the realm of literature, I’ve found one of my favorites of ALL-TIME within one of my FAVORITE books of ALL-TIME: Moby Dick.

The quote goes…

“…and Heaven have mercy on us all – Presbyterians and Pagans alike – for we are all somehow dreadfully cracked about the head, and sadly need mending.”

Melville wrote it, and I always smile when I read it. There’s wisdom, humor, & universality to it. It is a quote that I get, and it gets me. Such a great book. It’s filled with life-lessons and adventure. It’s a book that I love reading.

Like literature, FAVORITE(S) can come from anywhere. FAVORITE song lyric. FAVORITE expression from a celebrity. Steve Martin once said, “A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.” Maybe that fits into a FAVORITE category for you.

Regardless, it’s safe to say life is too short to not have some FAVORITE somethings.

One final time: What’s YOURS?