Bird by Bird, a book review

I discovered Anne Lamott when I was in college, working at Half Price Books.  I read Operating Instructions at the recommendation of a friend.  I loved it so much I still give it as a gift to new mothers.  I also started buying everything that Anne Lamott was tangentially related to.

One book of hers that has been staring me in the face since 2001 is Bird by Bird.  It's about writing, and I have been gearing myself up to read it for 12 years.  (I know this because it still has the HPB sticker with the date on it.)  After hearing her in person say, "Put your butt in the chair and write because today is all you have," I did just that.  I also decided now was the time to read this book.

The cover says the book is about writing, and truly, that's half of it.  The other half is about life and being real and immersed in reality, and paying attention.

Here are some quotes that resonated with me from the book:

She quotes G.K. Chesterton: "Hope is the power of being cheerful in circumstances we know to be desperate."

"Clutter is wonderfully fertile ground -- You can still discover new treasures under all those piles, clean things up, edit things out, fix things, get a grip."

"Geneen Roth says awareness is learning to keep yourself company.  And then learn to be more compassionate company, as if you were somebody you are fond of and wish to encourage."

"Perfection is a mean, frozen form of idealism, while messes are the artist's true friend.  What people somehow (inadvertently, I'm sure) forgot to mention when we were children was that we need to make messes in order to find out who we are and why we are here--and by extension, what we're supposed to be writing."

"Think of reverence as awe, as presence in openness to the world."

"There is ecstasy in paying attention....to see the world sacramentally, to see everything as an outward and visible sign of inward, invisible grace."

My absolute favorite quote is this one:

"A big heart is both a clumsy and delicate thing; it doesn't protect itself and it doesn't  hide.  It stands out, like a baby's fontanel, where you can see the soul pulse through.  You can see this pulse in them now."