Good morning!
Last night Eric and I went out for Mexican food, stuffed ourselves silly on fajitas, and then headed to Chapters book store. Pretty much my dream night. I had gift cards to use and I bought Eat Pray Love and didn’t have to pay a dime.
My story with Eat Pray Love goes back a couple years. In 2008, I purchased the EPL audio book shortly after seeing Elizabeth Gilbert’s interview with Oprah.
I was going through a rough time in my life and this book really spoke to me. I felt like I knew Elizabeth and that I connected with her desire for self-discovery in some way. I thought having her voice in an audio book would comfort me during this tough time in my life and I planned on listening to the book during my commutes to and from work and school.
Ironically, not long after I downloaded the audio book onto my computer, my computer crashed and I lost everything, including the audio book. Life was busy and I just forgot about it assuming one day I would buy the book.
That day was yesterday!
I could not put this book down last night. Around midnight my eyes were drooping and I was literally falling asleep reading. I woke up with my head on Eric’s shoulder around 12:30am and I stumbled up to bed.
Sketchie also loves when I read because it means that I am actually in one spot more than 5 minutes at a time…
I love when he sleeps on me. :biggrin:
I also love how Elizabeth organized the book in terms of a short story representing each japa mala. I love how the book is divided up by the three countries that she visited, each for a different purpose along her journey. It is quite brilliant actually. The book just exudes symmetry.
I was excited when I woke up this morning for a few reasons:
1) I had a solid 8 hours of sleep
2) Today is my day off
3) I have a book to read
4) The weather is gorgeous and sunny
5) I have new music for my run today (‘Over’ by Drake is a new fav)
I used up the rest of my beet greens and some new spinach for Green Monster energy!
I also threw in some raspberries, Almond Milk, raw maca powder, 1 tbsp homemade almond butter, and 1 frozen banana.
I had another situation on my hands…
I had some Green Monster spillage as I juggled my GM and SLR camera while freaking out about walking through a HUGE cobweb. Story of my life.
It was good though.
I wanted to share with you a quote from Eat Pray Love that I think is really powerful:
“For years, I’d wished I could speak Italian- a language I find more beautiful than roses- but I could never make the practical justification for studying it…What was I going to do with Italian? It’s not like I was going to move there. It would be more practical to learn how to play the accordion.
But why must everything have a practical application? I’d been such a diligent soldier for years- working, producing, never missing a deadline, etc. Is this lifetime supposed to be only about duty?…It’s not like I was saying at age 32, ‘I want to become the principal ballerina for the NYC ballet.” Studying a language is something you can actually do. So I signed up for classes at one of those continuing education places. My friends thought this was hilarious…But I loved it.”
This got me thinking a lot about my life, Eric’s, and whether there were things that we wanted to do, but didn’t think there was a practical application for. Eric is currently struggling with some decisions in his own life (that I can’t get into, but probably will some day in the future) and I know there are many things that he wants right now, but he doesn’t think they are practical to actually do. This makes me very sad to think about. Why must we live our lives ‘by the book’ or doing what others expect of us? As Elizabeth mentioned in the quote above, why must everything have a practical purpose? Can’t we just listen to our hearts sometimes?
So I ask you today…What are the things you want to do but you aren’t sure they have a practical purpose?
One of the things that we desperately want to do at this stage in our lives is travel. We always said that our free time in our late twenties would be spent traveling together, but so far we have not found a practical purpose (or free time) to try to put this goal into action.
I saw the preview for the movie Eat, Pray, Love a few weeks ago and decided I really wanted to read the book. I am currently reading it, and I find it to be very insightful. I definitely believe we should all follow our dreams and our hearts and stay true to our inner voice. I think you will find time to travel. After thinking about it, I’d like to find time to travel after I have kids as well. I think showing them different places in the world would probably make the experience even more exciting for me.
Great post. I think about this kind of thing pretty often, especially in regards to women. There are so many expectations in mainstream society about what we should be doing and when. We are expected to ‘do it all’, in general, meaning have a family a career, and beauty. I got married young (22), but don’t want to have kids for awhile. I want to travel, as well, and open my own bakery that gives back to the community and the world.
I loved that book….loved it so much that when I saw that I was getting close to the end I put it down and walked away from it for a month…reflecting back to it, and upon my own life. A couple of years ago my life changed and I had no control of it- and I feel like I needed to read that book to figure things out. :)
Thank you for sharing…aren’t books like that the best? I love when I leave a page and set the book down and think about the words for the rest of the day.
I love this question! I think I am going to spend today thinking about it. Thanks for the challenge :)
I’d love to be part of something like a high school band again – I miss my saxophone and the feeling of being part of the music! I don’t even know if such a thing exists for adults though… If I ever do find something, I’ll be joining in a heartbeat! I agree with Elizabeth Gilbert: we all need to do things “just because” — if only to bring ourselves joy. I really do believe that making our hearts sing IS a practical application!
I can’t wait to go back and read what everyone else wrote and get inspired! :D
Just to let you know, there are community bands (and orchestras and choirs…) all over the place. You might try looking around at a local university or in community education listings.
Oohh! I’ll look into that! Thanks Grace!!
I really wanted to like this book…I SO wanted to. In addition to other things my main problem with this book was basically that the author was given a big advance to write it. If I was given an advance of course I would manage to find self-awareness throughout the world. I mean, how objective was she really?
I’m probably jaded though so forgive me!
I want to do so many things careerwise but I have trouble reconciling the pay cut I’d likely have to take. Plus with a 5-year-old the hours I’d have to put in to become successful aren’t really possible right now. One day!!
I can see your point…I really can. I think with any type of book like this you have to take what the author recounts with a grain of salt, however regardless of whether I know the exact truth to her experience I find that it inspires my own thoughts about life and I appreciate that a lot!
I love that passage & it’s so true. One thing I’ve always wanted to do was learn how to sew & make my own clothes. That actually has a useful application but it doesn’t seem like someting important enough to dedicate time/money to when there’s a plateful of other things that need to be done first. One day, though :)
Hi Ang,
I’ve followed you for about 4 months now, as a fellow twenty-something Torontonian trying to find balance in my life. I just wanted to let you know that as a result of your blog, I’ve made small changes in my day-to-days that have made a noticeably positive difference (Green Monsters, tackling a Sprint Triathlon and most recently, going vegetarian – soon to be vegan). I really look forward to my mornings with you!
I had meant to write you last week and suggest that you read Eat Pray Love – having just read it. It was inspiring, emotional and initiated a lot of self reflection. I hope you love it as much as I did! I’m reading the follow up to the book now – I also highly recommend it!
Aww thank you so much for your comment..that made me smile =) I was wondering about her folow up book too…what is it called? I am sure I will be buying it soon ;)
Not sure if anyone has followed up to this comment at all, but the next book is called Committed. I just bought it yesterday and it is almost as insightful as the first one so far.
I love how real she just let’s the reader in to her life and her outlook.
I just read Committed not too long ago. It’s not quite as adventurous or as funny (although she’s still got that lovable style of writing) as EPL. It’s a lot about the history of marriage and her own take on it as her view of it evolves. She makes it interesting though, especially if you read it all the way to the end. I enjoyed both book for different reasons.
Awesome thanks, I will def. be picking it up!
I love this book and cannot wait to see the movie! I’m so glad you’re reading it too; you will not be able to put it down! :)
I have read the book many times and I feel it really promoted a lot of self reflection (something I rarely did before). I have such a huge desire for travelling and seeing the world and reading this book has only brought that out more and helped me to realize other passions I have in my life as well. I hope you continue to enjoy it!
I agree that it has made me self reflect more too. I find when I get busy I get caught up in day to day things and I dont think about the bigger picture, you know? This book is great for that!
It must be s sign. I just finished a book on Friday and I was asking some friends for suggestions on what to read, and guess what they suggested Eat, pray, love. And then here you are today reading it. I guess it’s calling my name.
Yes, you should pick it up…then we can chat about it! :)
I LOVE that book!!
Ana
Eat, Pray, Love is such a good book. I feel like I learned a lot from it too. I completely agree that we should be able to do what we really want, not just what is the most practical. Sometimes it is easier said than done though.
I took a 6 week trip to India one summer during college. Everyone asked me why and I would respond, “For fun!” People didn’t get it. They assumed the only reason one would go to India would be to study, do charity work, or something related. Nope! We went and toured and partied like it was 1999!
hahah this is awesome, thanks for sharing!
Eat, Pray, Love is absolutely fantastic. I loved it so much. I really want to take cooking lessons and become better in the kitchen. I mean yes, eventually those skills might be good if I feed my future family, but I’m an architecture major. I should be focusing that. I’m trying to get very high grades so that I can go to any school for my masters.
This book will change your life.
My best friend and I both read it while we were traveling through Italy together for 2 weeks this past February. It gave us so much “food for thought.” And still, months later, we are beginning to implement changes in our life that were inspired by the book.
Enjoy :)
Wow that would be amazing to read it while on a trip like that doubly so!
I love the book. It’s actually one of the few books that I’ve read several times and each time that I’ve read it, the words on the pages changes meaning and it’s different for me. It gets better each time I re-read it. I believe it’s because the 1st time I read it a few years ago, I was in a different phase in my life. Reading it again now, it will mean differently as it applies to your life. Hope that makes sense.
I’ve always loved to travel and make time to do it. It also helps to save for travel plans and stay within your budget. I loved traveling knowing I’ve saved up for it and that there will be no surprise expenses on my credit card charges after we get home.
I want to read this book, but I’m waiting because it might be on my Book Club list.
The thing I want that I’ve held back on for years isn’t as much about it not having practical application so much as…. I’ve grown up being urged away from it because it’s “impractical,” and so I hesitate to jump in and try without a clear cut plan for doing so. I’ve wanted to do some kind of work where I really feel like I’m inspiring youth to be an active part of global change. I love teaching (I teach in museums), but finding the right program opportunity or MAKING the right program opportunity seems to be elusive. So I keep searching and dreaming and hoping that I just need to make it to the next step in my career and then I’ll be able to…. I think that my close friends have grown tired of hearing me dream without doing, and so they’ve stopped being supportive or encouraging or really involved at all. I understand that, but I miss getting their feedback on my ideas.
Thanks for sharing, I hope you can make it a reality :)
This is a little different than most ideas, and maybe not quite what you meant, but I have wanted a dog for years now, but it’s so not practical now that I really can’t justify it. I grew up on a farm, and always had tons of animals around me and they bring me so much joy and love into my life. But being a student (now grad student), renter, frequent traveler, and currently living abroad, it’s just never seemed like a good time. But I want one soooo badly! I CRAVE having a dog to snuggle and jog with and give kisses to and play in the park with. I’ve always had a plan, like “I’ll get one when…” and then something always comes up to offset that. I guess it’s kind of like having a kid that way?
I was the same way and I work at an animal shelter! I had rationalized that I didn’t have time or energy to have a dog… My boyfriend didn’t want a dog in the house, he hates the shedding and the mess… But, along came a little deaf puppy who stole my heart. Things fell into place, I got to take him home for a night and honestly thought he would leave the next day… Well, my boyfriend said if I wanted to keep him I could. It was honestly a huge turning point in my life, getting my little boy helped me make other decisions to better my life… I’ve taken up running (with my dog), which lead to eating better, which lead to re-doing our oh so 70’s kitchen.
It may not seem practical to have a dog right now, but it might be the best thing you do… You will change your life to make room/time for the dog.
Love that quote from the book! Similarly, I want to learn French and one day be fluent in it. Because I haven’t been able to think of a practical application for it, I haven’t bothered with trying. This has definitely inspired me, though!