Image Source: Amazon
It appears virtually everybody has discovered themselves on some type of a therapeutic journey in 2023. While wellness and self-care have all the time been vital, generally it additionally feels a little bit overwhelming. Why does caring for ourselves really feel like such a heavy subject? I communicate for myself when I say: entertaining my interior baby as a lot as doable is one in all my favourite components of therapeutic, so I was over the moon to learn Kristin Chenoweth’s “I’m No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts” ($17).
From the ebook’s hot-pink cowl to the 200-page assortment of “mini-meditations for saints, sinners, and the rest of us,” this ebook gave me a brand new perspective on religion, rage, and what it means to heal in your individual means, with a variety of laughing required.
Following a foreword written by Ariana Grande, who’s taking over the function of Glinda the Good Witch within the upcoming movie adaptation of the musical “Wicked” (a job Chenoweth originated on Broadway), Chenoweth makes use of private anecdotes to start every of the ebook’s 16 chapters. Each part reads like an intimate cellphone name with a buddy, with Chenoweth sharing her ideas on a mixture of subjects from dwelling with power ache to dealing with loss, anxiousness, and closure.
Similar to her 2009 debut memoir, “A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages,” Chenoweth wraps these relatable tales with Southern allure and theater analogies. The graphics-led ebook hosts a sequence of interactive pages for self-reflection (together with writing your self a love letter) and breathwork workout routines for meditation alongside phrases from poet Rupi Kaur, prayers, and quirky lists on quite a lot of issues that all of us in all probability consider. One of my favorites was her “Partial List of Things I Totally Believe In” (which incorporates the Wright brothers being time vacationers, and I am completely in settlement with). Chenoweth continues to middle her Christian religion and Oklahoma roots, discovering a slew of Bible scriptures to suit all conditions (and an ideal Southern idiom to match).
Image Source: John Russo
Not realizing what was approaching every web page stored the studying thrilling and unpredictable: much like how one might describe any self-care journey. “I’m No Philosopher” reminds readers that the therapeutic path is twisty, windy, and utterly distinctive to every individual.
In the chapter titled “Thoughts on Disruption,” Chenoweth goes into element in regards to the aftermath of an harm she sustained on the set of “The Good Wife” when a lighting fixture hit her within the face and knocked her onto a avenue curb, leading to a seven-inch cranium fracture and fractures in her face, enamel, and ribs. And whereas the incident sounds downright terrifying, Chenoweth managed to not solely flip the scenario right into a humorous lesson on having a great weave (hers held her pores and skin collectively, saving her life), however it additionally led her to a deeper inner reflection on the connection between rage and forgiveness. She writes, “Honoring our anger is a necessary first step to forgiveness . . . Rage doesn’t have to be a bully; rage can be a teacher and a tour guide.”
Chenoweth’s commentary on social media and present enterprise acquired rightful head nods of settlement, however it was her ideas about her organic mom that induced an audible gasp and made me clutch my chest to catch my breath. Chenoweth, who was adopted, explains within the ebook why she declined a proposal from “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to seek out the lady who gave beginning to her earlier than finally connecting along with her herself, writing, “I never wanted to ask my bio mom, ‘Why didn’t you keep me?’ I wanted to ask her, ‘Where did you find the strength to let me go?’ Whoever this woman was, she went through the pain and effort of bringing me into the world, and then she has the humility and grace to recognize that I belonged to someone else.”
“I’m No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts: Mini-Meditations For Saints, Sinners, and the Rest of Us” by Kristin Chenoweth is in bookstores now.
Discussion about this post