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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
Oh, my friends, read this beautiful memoir! It will alternately break and warm your heart and deepen your sense of the poignant beauty and quirky reality of this life. It might also make you wish your work was as unique as Reverend Braestrup's service as chaplain with game wardens in the state of Maine. Infused with a gentle, gently amused, questioning yet unquestionable faith, this life story is a reassuring gift of goodness, here in a time when we need it.
I found this really pleasant to read and rather inspiring, in a non-intimidating way. I really like the way Braestrup writes about spirituality, a topic that usually turns me off. And, in fact, when I read summaries of this book, I wasn't particularly interested. But then I ran across an interview with the author and found her totally charming. Now I want to be her best friend. (Kate Braestrup, please don't take out a restraining order.)
I really enjoyed this book. I learned tons about the jobs of Maine Game Wardens, which was a bit unexpected but enjoyable. I loved her take on her relationship with God and her belief that just showing up, being love, is her calling in life. When folks are on the 'hinge' (the moment that the news she delivers will change their lives wildly) she is there to absorb their tears & hold them up.
"From Jesus, ten lepers receive a cure. 'And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus's feet and thanked him.' Were not ten made clean?
Yes. Ten were made clean.
But only one received a miracle.
A miracle is not defined by an event. A miracle is defined by gratitude." p. 180-181 Kindle edition.
"From Jesus, ten lepers receive a cure. 'And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus's feet and thanked him.' Were not ten made clean?
Yes. Ten were made clean.
But only one received a miracle.
A miracle is not defined by an event. A miracle is defined by gratitude." p. 180-181 Kindle edition.
This book is more 3 1/2 stars. I liked it but it got repetitive the last third. Overall, I found it inspiring. Kate has amazing strength and wisdom and I enjoyed learning about the benefits a chaplain can bring to game wardens and the people they serve. Kate is a Unitarian Universalist (and so am I) and I appreciated the way the she was respectful of and able to authentically serve people of all faiths.
[audiobook] A really lovely and unexpected memoir about the author’s journey from grieving widow to game warden chaplain to new-found love. Overall it’s about finding the divine in the everyday, yet Braestrup delivers this message by simply recounting events and details of her work with the warden service. Some lines about love, miracles, gratitude, and (my beloved) Maine will stick with me too.
I listened to the audio version of this book, read by the author, and it was fantastic. I'm not sure I've ever enjoyed a memoir as much. Bravo and well done.
Started this book 4/9/11 and I'm on Chapter 4. So far it's a bit morbid and off-beat, but it is holding my interest.
4/24/11-It took me a bit to finish this book just because I needed to be in the mood to read it. Otherwise, it is a quick read. It is not a 'sun-shiny' read. It is about Ms. Braestrup losing her husband, becoming a Unitarian Universalist minister and becoming a Maine Warden chaplain. She is called to the scene of search & rescues. A child lost in the Maine woods, a couple who goes off a waterfall, a child trapped under the ice, and more. She is called out with the search & rescue team to be of comfort to the families whose loved one is missing or in danger. She is also there to help the search & rescue wardens along.
I usually read more 'sun-shiny' books. I had found a small review of this in a magazine and had put it on my TBR (to-be-read) list. It was eye opening and gave me a new appreciation for people who do this kind of work.
4/24/11-It took me a bit to finish this book just because I needed to be in the mood to read it. Otherwise, it is a quick read. It is not a 'sun-shiny' read. It is about Ms. Braestrup losing her husband, becoming a Unitarian Universalist minister and becoming a Maine Warden chaplain. She is called to the scene of search & rescues. A child lost in the Maine woods, a couple who goes off a waterfall, a child trapped under the ice, and more. She is called out with the search & rescue team to be of comfort to the families whose loved one is missing or in danger. She is also there to help the search & rescue wardens along.
I usually read more 'sun-shiny' books. I had found a small review of this in a magazine and had put it on my TBR (to-be-read) list. It was eye opening and gave me a new appreciation for people who do this kind of work.
What a sweet, gentle book! Those may seem odd words to describe a book that includes stories of searches for dead bodies, but it's all in the telling and point of view. The stories are told not for the voyeur's excitement, but as a way to understand the human side of these tragedies and the author's role as a law enforcement chaplain. Braestrup is sensitive and humane, and I admire the humility and grace in her work and her writing.
I highly recommend this book, especially for anyone interested in supporting others in times of grief and pain, Unitarian Universalism, or the role of a chaplain.
I highly recommend this book, especially for anyone interested in supporting others in times of grief and pain, Unitarian Universalism, or the role of a chaplain.