Читать книгу 365 Simple Pleasures - Susannah Seton - Страница 6

by Gail Greco

author of Secrets of Entertaining and Tea-Time at the

Inn, and host/producer of the award-winning PBS TV

series, Country Inn Cooking with Gail Greco

During the past twenty years, while I’ve been writing about bed-and-breakfast inns, innkeepers have led me not only through the doors of their charming, well-appointed, and thoughtful rooms and their delicious, homemade meals. In addition, surrounded by the great halo of their hospitality, I have learned about myself and about others. Once I asked an innkeeper, “So, what do you do on those days when you want to shut out the world, but in just a few short hours, guests will be arriving, seeking your undivided attention and whatever is left of your energy?”

On a high note, she challenged me, “Having a bad day? What a great time to invite someone over!”

What an incredible comment, I thought. But the she was right. As she had discovered—by having no choice in the matter—if she could pull herself up, suppress her doldrums, and muster up strength with a smile, she would not only please her guests, but also, unbelievably, herself.

Life is full of moments—make that hours—when we are beside ourselves with uncertainty, fear, stress, or any one of a host of dilemmas that weigh us down and paralyze our thoughts and actions. Sometimes we are under so thick a cloud of confusion that we are rendered immobile. Some people have found help through such means as prayer, meditation, or close friends. The innkeeper has her guests. What do you have?

How about the book you are holding in your hands? Like a guest knocking at your door, 365 Simple Pleasures is bound to turn your day around.

By reading daily and trying out some of the suggestions, you will not only lift your spirits, but also experience pleasure and perhaps notice the same reaction as the innkeeper gets from her guests. You will come away feeling renewed and out of your sour mood. The point of Susannah Seton’s new book on the exploration of comfort and joy in your life is that proactive, life-giving ideas are all around you, even in household chores. Sometimes, though, we are blind, as our minds race with so many things that we do not pay attention to what we are doing or how we are feeling.

Our author wants to bring us back to Earth, and she points out that past generations of women can help us get there. Pioneers were faced with making things by hand, and by doing so they were self-rejuvenated, an experience that we too can have. Bravo! Anything that brings us to our knees again will most assuredly also bring us to our senses, and thus to 365 pleasures and then some.