Most of you know I am a voracious reader. And while I realize some of you aren’t, if you are going to read one book this summer, make it ‘Happiness is Calling You by Maureen Namirembe. I hope this is a wake-up call for many people. When you read what this woman went through in Uganda, wars, losing her mother, losing family and friends, running for her life and not being captured – you’ll think twice before you complain about something petty or trivial.
This woman, who now lives in Montreal, has the most amazing positive outlook on life. I remember in the book, the author recounts of a story of how soldiers would catch and kidnap people and force them into the army. They were chasing her one day in a truck and she ran and ran. Her legs started to hurt and she thought they were going to catch her. If she was caught, she would have been raped, beaten and probably not seen again by her family. But she ran, and she got away – so when this lady tells you to stop worrying about the small stuff, I found myself really paying attention.
I thought it was great advice to give on not worrying about things that may or may not happen. When a friend of hers asked her one day ‘Can I be happier than this, or is it greedy of me to expect more”? Maureen didn’t hesitate when she answered ‘Of course you can!”
I feel the greatest tribute I can give to the author of this book, Maureen Namirembe is to share the book. And that’s exactly what I did this week when I finished it. I gave it to a colleague and co-worker who feels for some reason she doesn’t deserve to be happy.
Enjoy time to read – it’s one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves.
Darlene
Wine-It’s Just My Opinion 