Life is So Good

Have you noticed there is a time for certain books?

If you’re a reader like me, a book might be sitting on your shelf for years and years and then one day, you pick it up and it’s just what you needed to read at that time in your life.

That’s how it was with a book I read during my vacation: Life is So Good by George Dawson.

Life is so good.

Makes you think it’s all about some lucky guy who had this amazing, easy life filled with every good thing imaginable, doesn’t it?

It’s not.

It was written by a grandson of freed slaves who worked his ass off his entire life, endured the institutional racism of the Deep South, outlived four wives, and finally learned to read at the age of 98.

This book is filled with great bits of wisdom. Here’s an example (and I’m paraphrasing because I don’t have the book in front of me now): when he learned of what happened at Columbine high school, he said “These days, the problem is people are growing kids, not raising them. Kids need your time, guidance and discipline.”

What’s most amazing about his story is Dawson’s profound gratitude for a life that mostly was filled with hardship and discrimination.

So back to the timing thing.

Here’s me, reading this book while sitting on a beach in one of the most beautiful places on Earth. If he thought his life was so good, what the hell do I ever have to complain about, really?

It’s true. Life is so good. Please read this book.

I am listening to: Bob Schneider – The World Exploded Into Love
I am reading: A Beautiful Mind (still, it’s a long book)
And I’m: Relaxed