4 out of 4 stars
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Life is filled with so many happy and painful moments during our near century-long journey on this earth. We are born, we get married, we have children, we grow old and we die. At the end of life, we have grown to learn that life’s difficult and painful moments are inevitable, even though we fight pain and sadness our entire lives, even hurting those who try so hard to love us back.
Gracie Holman shares in her collection of poetry, Life Is Too Short to Waste and Do Nothing, that acceptance is the only answer to pain and injustice. Holman, whose other work includes, My Most Warm And Deepest Inner Feelings,
is not only a poet but also a seasoned Christian. Although Holman talks about pain and injustice as if it can never be conquered, she is no martyr. She wants us to recognize the richness of life in all its aspects, good or bad. The human condition is not only one of struggle and assertion but also the will to prevail: “I can’t give up on me because I am all I have, and giving up on me is not an option at all (In the poem, 'I Can't Give Up').” Here the radiance of her wisdom falls across the page.
The first sentence of each paragraph in nearly every poem is repeated to mirror anaphora of poetry, which gives the reader the beat you might experience in the stanzas of a song. The author’s writing style showcases not only an element of passion but also an interesting assortment of vivid imagery.
Poetry is musical. Poetry is passion and compassion on paper. Poetry is heartwarming, and it is therapeutic. But most of all, poetry is personal. In Gracie Holman’s book, Life Is Too Short to Waste and Do Nothing, her poems are all these things. Personally, I was deeply moved by her works.
Another thing that moved me was the author's reflection on her experiences. The author often wonders about the decisions she made throughout her life, and whether those different choices would have changed her fate. Specifically, she reflects on her recent accident and on the love she has for her husband and two sons. She laments the loss of her husband but takes joy that she now has two children from her marriage.
Besides emphasizing the contrasting circumstances she faced during lifetime, Holman also provides subtle advice which a person can take to achieve a strong personality and a virtuous character and illustrates how to handle those situations with virtue and dignity. “I will do all I can to make a difference to make this world a better place for all of us, but I can do this only by taking one step at a time (In the poem, 'One Step at a Time')." Her poems made me stop and think by reaching into my own personal and spiritual memories.
Life Is Too Short to Waste and Do Nothing by Gracie Holman, on the whole, is very well edited with only a few small errors. In spite of these, there are much more positive points than negative. Anyone, no matter their background or ethnicity, can appreciate Holman’s work. I rate Life Is Too Short to Waste and Do Nothing 4 out of 4 stars, as the book provides a valuable and absorbing window into a worldview that for most of us reach only in the latter years of our lives.
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Life is to Short to Waste and do Nothing
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