Everything Happens for a Reason by Mira Kirshenbaum

Everything Happens for Reason by Mira Kirshenbaum

I really enjoyed this book and HIGHLY recommend it for anyone who wants to understand the meaning behind events in our lives. Mira is a psychotherapist which allows her to have extensively researched the eye-opening events and the meanings they hold for an individual during the course of her career. She has broken them down into 10 reasons…each giving a spiritual and intuitive insight into personal growth and understanding. For anyone going through a divorce, recovering from an illness, gaining back strength after an accident, or grieving over a loved one..this book can bring peace to the soul. Mira has written several other books and I am interested in reading them as well as they pop up in my Library-fi-cation Project. I think one of the things I loved about the book was how much she focuses on overcoming fears. It’s also very well written and she uses beautiful phrases to weave together a fabric of encouragement and motivation to really change your life by SEEING it differently. I can’t say enough good things about this book. Some stand out points in the book:

Kirshenbaum Seven-Step Method for Overcoming Fear

1. What am I really afraid of?

2. What’s the worst that can happen?

3. How likely is it?

4. Can I prevent this?

5. Can I insure myself against this?

6. Could I cope with it if the thing I’m afraid of came to pass?

7. Who can I talk to about this?

“Find your way to liking yourself by looking at what you’ve had trouble accepting and asking yourself, “ How is this good?” And search for an answer, as if the wisest guru on the planet had given you this as the theme for your meditation.

“Real love is not just how you feel about your partner. It’s much more how your partner makes you feel about yourself.

Real love is not about losing yourself in your partner. It’s about becoming true to yourself with your partner.

Real love is not about how great your partner is. It’s about how great you can become alongside your partner.

Real love is not just about how much you love your partner. It’s about how your partner helps you love yourself.

Real love is not just about your partner finding room in his or heart for you. It’s about your partner finding room in his or her life for your energy, drive, ambition, passions, interests, and needs.

Real Love is not just based on how god your partner is “deep down.” It’s based on how much you actually experience your partner’s goodness as you live your life together.

Real love is not based on how your partner makes you hungry to be with him or her. It’s based on how much your partner makes you feel at home when you are with each other.

Real love is not about the love you say you share. It’s about the life you really do share, fully, equally, deeply.

Real love is about treating your partner the way you’d want to be treated.

Real love is about falling in like.”

“Instead of thinking about what you wish you’d done differently in the past, think about how you can do things differently in the future. From now on in my relationship I’m going to pay more attention to what I really need and make sure my important needs get met, or From now on in all my relationships I’m going to be more honest about who I really am even if I find that a little scary. You can’t fix the past, but you can fix your life if you do in the future what you wish you’d done in the past.”

“Love is richest , most genuine, and most long lasting when you focus on being yourself and doing everything you can to make it possible for the other person to be him- or herself.”

I loved her discussion on shrines and how people hold onto the past. This in turns keeps them from moving forward in life and holds them back.

“But at some point she has got to get up, go in that room, and dismantle that shrine. That means throwing some stuff away, putting other stuff in boxes, and maybe putting other things in a scrapbook. And then she has to turn that space into a room that can be used by the living.”

“What are our shrines? Whatever we use to make the present serve the past. There is a different between a shrine and a commemoration. If someone you love dies, of course you are going to want to keep photographs of that person. You’re just commemorating the past. But if you spend all day kneeling in front of those photographs, your present is being destroyed to serve the past.”

WISE INDEX: 4 OWLS

Simple-ology: The Simple Science of Getting What You Want by Mark Joyner

I have completed my first book in the Library-fi-cation Project. I was actually excited about reading this one but it ended up taking me almost a week to finish. Simple-ology; The Simple Science of Getting What You Want by Mark Joyner was the first book to pop the Library-fi-cation Project ‘s cherry and possibly got the gears moving along quite well in my mind. As you read my reviews, please note that these are just my opinions on the books. Our brains work different and our likes/dislikes are very personal to us based on certain beliefs, etc. Indulge in my reviews and thought process but know that yours may be entirely different. Please read the book and come to your own conclusions. Not only am I on a learning journey but I hope to inspire people to read so get out to your own library and get your butt in gear.

Simple-ology; The Simple Science of Getting What You Want by Mark Joyner was a tough book to get through although it started strong and ended strong…even though those high points were very short lived. I initially thought that this book was a book about the law of attraction..which I love reading about however it was almost an anti-attraction dissertation which even (in my opinion) completely bashed quantum phsyics. Since these books are pulled off the shelves without me even really looking at them to begin with..I did not read the inner flap or the back of it. I thought it would be as simple as the title suggested and it would also show me how to get what I wanted in life. The book was mostly about logic, the linguistic tools that are used for manipulation by media and people in general, and the methods of information control. Overall, I was confused by this part and had a hard time following along. The information was dabbed with some funny cartoons and some very interesting facts but the rest of it went over my head. I am not a logical, technical, scientific person so FOR ME…this book was a hard read. I believe what the author was trying to get across was that we build these walls around us that make it hard to get outside of our little worlds and in essence, we waste time following the same path. If you can understand these invisilble walls and conquer demolishing them, you will rise above and be able to obtain what you want. The part that I did enjoy is that Mark Joyner asks that you question your beliefs, question authority, and question information you receive including his own book. Was it conspiracy theory? Not exactly….but he does touch on government control of information and deception with words. He urges you to create different models and make truths that are your own. It did incite me to question some of my own beliefs and made me more aware of marketing and information control tactics. It was not until the last chapters (small chapters at that) that Mr. Joyner introduces how to apply this to getting what you want in life and attempts to tie all the scientific bullshit together that he has rambled on for 206 pgs about. In the end, the most poignant messages of the book were-

“The shortest path between two points is a straight line.”

“In order to hit a target, you must be able to see it clearly.”

“In order to hit a target, you must focus sufficient attention on it until you hit it.”

“In order to accomplish something you must focus sufficient energy on it until you have done so.”

“The inescapability of action/reaction states that there are two things from which you can never escape; action and reaction. In other words, you are always acting- even if you think you are not. The collorary is that for every action we take, there is some reaction.” (my fave)

WISE INDEX: 2 OWLS

First Trip - Starting in the 100's

Ok slight detour. 001 starts the dewey decimal system and these are all computer books for programs. Most of it is wayyyy over my head so I started at the end of the row on the other side in the 100's which is psychology and philosophy. Definitely 2 of my fave subjects! This will take me through a good amount of psychology, philosophy, occult, astrology ( my passion), then on to more technical things. I went right into the library..grabbed the first 4 books off the top right shelf and put them into my bag. These are the titles I got:

Simple-ology: The Simple Science of Getting What you Want by Mark Joyner

Kick Up Your Heels...Before You're Too Short to Wear Them by Loretta Laroche

Everything Happens for a Reason by Mira Kirshenbaum

I'm Dysfunctional, You're Dysfunctional by Wendy Kaminer


I hope to come back and post my thoughts on each book and keep you updated as to which new ones I pull. They are on 2 week borrowing time so for now, my time frame is 4 at a time. This may vary depending on what else I might be up to...so go easy on me. lol.

I started reading simple-ology first and it sucked me in right away. It appears to be very anti-The Secret...enforcing more of a "go get them" attitude than a believe in the universe and meditate theory of getting what you want. I am slightly alarmed tho..the back of it says do not shelve..return to business and information center. I am afraid the library police might come after me for this one!

Technically for record keeping purposes..I started at 158 J, K, and beginning of L. Granted there will be books I might be missing due to them being out or on the new book shelf. This is one of the purposes of keeping track of the books I have read...that way I can look back and grab any I might have missed from the ones I have already read.

I honestly do not know if I can set a time limit on any of this. I am a single mother, I work on many projects, have 2 blogs, and I spend a lot of time with family, friends and in the Outdoors. i figure after a few weeks I can see what my reading schedule looks like and perhaps set mini goals. I need to come up with something that is reasonable..and something that I can actually accomplish.

Who What When Why Where and how

The mission- to start reading books that perhaps my mind has not drawn me to previously or that I would otherwise not be so interested in. AKA- read all the books in the

I am an avid reader who grew up within the walls of the local city library. I have read hundreds of books, if not thousands, in my lifetime however I have mostly been drawn to certain genres. I am on a spiritual and mental journey of expanding my horizons so I have decided to start along the back wall of the library (beginning of dewey decimal system) and read 4 books at a time in ORDER.

Possible roadblocks-

What if I don't care for the book or the subject? I have to take the book home and at least attempt to read it...can allow myself to just browse through it. But generally must give it a real effort.

How will you find the time? I will set aside 1 hr reading blocks every morning and night to accomplish this. Luckily my daily schedule for the time being allows this to work. Adjustments may be made down the road.

What about the new book shelf? I will allow myself 2 books from the new bookshelf as long as they are not books or novels. Mostly non-fiction how to books and cookbooks.