A witty person observed that the best blood type is Be-Positive.
Life can be beautiful, but every life has difficulties. Sooner or later, all of us have dark and stormy nights.
In this book, my friend Allen Klein has compiled thoughts that have the power of fresh perspective in easy-to-digest nuggets. These gems of ideas will have you smiling and nodding with insights and coping better with adversity.
The oldest and wisest advice for a joyful life is to guard your thoughts carefully because they become your destiny; keep a merry heart because it is like medicine; and, when there are clouds, find the silver linings, especially the ones that make you smile and laugh.
Allen helps us choose our thoughts wisely so that we can quell the rough patches, allay our worries, and cope successfully with crises and pressures.
He is an entertaining, enthusiastic encourager, educator, motivator, public performer, and uplifter. He captures ideas that excite, enliven, and energize us to face the world with confidence and courage, regardless of whatever the day might bring.
He sifts through the good words of smart people, clever pundits, and common folks to bring us the wisdom of saints and sages, educators, artists, and philosophers. He has assorted them to inspire, to bolster optimism, to calm, and to eventually find contentment.
Allen and I have logged several decades presenting ideas to help people get better results for their health and happiness. He is my brother from another mother. We have roots in generations of courageous immigrants whose faith and optimism enabled them to successfully undertake emigrations, overcome mortal enemies, and survive hardships to have sunshine light new days and warm their lives.
Encouragement to lighten up may seem like an odd prescription, but ancient wisdom and modern science support the advice.
“A kind word often goes unspoken, but never goes unheard,” is one of my favorite quotations. It reminds me that the right word at the right time can make a big difference.
Read the Lighten Up quotations randomly or by topic. You will find one or more ideas that strike just the right note for your situation or mood at that time. You can select from a plethora of pithy pronouncements to bring pleasant perspectives to remedy life’s thorniest problems.
The witty, heartfelt, sometimes-funny-but-always-well-said thoughts in this book will help you look at all sides of a situation, find the less serious ones, lighten up, and restore hope and courage.
A quotation might be the fresh perspective or touch of humor that you need to lighten your load. You can find wisdom, encouragement, motivation, or the comfort of knowing that you are not alone. Like a good friend who knows you well, The Lighten Up Book will bring you the joy you need.
Steve Wilson, pychologist
The Joyologist
Cheerman of the Bored
Founder of The World Laughter Tour
Director of National Humor Month
Founder of Laughter Arts & Science Foundation (501.c.3)
WorldLaughterTour.com
This book has an interesting backstory. When I was writing my first book, The Healing Power of Humor, I collected numerous quotations related to the subject. Since I only used one quote at the beginning of each chapter (and a couple of handfuls scattered throughout the rest of the book), there were literally hundreds that were never used.
I started to look at each one of them and realized that they were, in themselves, rich sources of knowledge and inspiration. I also saw how they not only worked well together but also how they provided similar and occasionally divergent thinking on the same topic. It intrigued me, as I realized that it not only might interest readers but that it could uplift their lives as well. Thus, this book, with its sometimes amazing, sometimes amusing, quotations was born.
Speaking of quotations, I am a big believer in the power of words, especially when they form short easy-to-remember ideas, as quotes do. So, I was very pleased when, after helping me arrange material for this book, my daughter Sarah remarked, “Just reading these quotes made me feel better.”
Then, I realized that this was no ordinary reference book of collected quotations. It was also a source of inspiration and humor.
You may choose to use this book in several ways:
You could sit and read a section from start to finish as you would an ordinary book. Many quotes may tickle you because of the self-contained humor or because they echo, contradict, or confirm other thoughts nearby.
Thumb through or open the book randomly and read the first quote that pops up. It may be just what you need at that moment.
Find a quote you are especially drawn to and savor it for an hour, a day, or a week. Allow it to provide affirmation to uplift some part of your life.
Also, use this book as you would any reference work. It can serve as a wonderful resource for writers, speakers, editors, clergy, teachers, salespeople, businesspeople, parents, and others who rely on the power of the written or spoken word.
No matter how you use The Lighten Up Book: Affirmations and Insights to Inspire Health and Happiness, I hope it enriches your life.
Allen Klein
San Francisco, CA
a●muse vt to keep pleasantly or enjoyably occupied or interested; entertain
a●mus●ing adj entertaining; diverting
a●muse●ment n the condition or state of being amused
If you would rule the world quietly, you must keep it amused.
Ralph