Reading, Writing & Pondering

Ten years ago it was Lena Donohue's wedding day. However, to say things didn't go as planned is an understatement. Today, Lena deals with the fall out of her sister and her fiance's betrayal that day. Or rather she tries not to think about the painful memories of the day. Since then, she has moved on with her life and became a successful travel writer in New York City. She stays far away from Watersend, South Carolina where her sister lives, currently married to her former fiance, until Lena's brother calls to let her know she is needed at home. Lena's dad's health is failing. One thing has never changed, Lena loves her dad and would do anything for him. Including going home and facing old memories and people she has avoided for years. The Favorite Daughter is a complex layered story that touched me on several levels. I thought Lena's wrestling with forgiveness was realistic and I could understand why it wouldn't be easy for her to be with her fami...

I have personal experience with Alzheimer's disease and dementia as we have cared for family members and I have friends caring for family members with this disease. I understand the toll it can take on caregivers so I try to read whatever I can about this disease and how to care for those who have it. New Every Day by Dave Meurer is full of compassion and great advice for those who are caring for a loved one with this disease. New Every Day , according to Meurer, is not written in any particular order to sort of mimic what it is like to deal with the disease that often seems somewhat random in how it presents itself. Meurer give a lot of factual information on how to care for your loved one, how to pace yourself and not burn out, how to manage the financial and legal end of things, and a lot of other good information. At the same time, Meurer encourages caregivers to keep their sense of humor throughout the book. I think New Every Day would be especially helpful to someone...

Increasingly people in our society are diagnosed with some form of dementia. Daniel Amen has two new books designed to help people at risk for memory problems to makes changes to improve their odds of not getting memory-related disease. Memory Rescue is Amen's main new book with detailed steps to improve brain health. Stones of Remembrance is designed as a companion book to help Christians, in particular, contribute to a healthier mind through Scripture memorization. Stones of Remembrance is a small book that would be easy to carry along for memorization and mediation on Scripture to inspire, comfort and challenge believers in all walks of life. This little book starts out with an inspiring introduction from Stephen Arterburn on how Dr. Amen helped him with his brain issues. There are three sections to this book: The Twelve Spiritual Disciplines for improving your memory, The Twelve verses to remember when. . . , and The Twelve Verses every Christian Should Know. I am so ...