Super Great Finds: White Elephant Sale, Anyone?

I remember a long time ago the term White Elephant Sale used to fascinate me. My mom used to bring me everywhere she went and this included the university where she (and subsequently, I) attended. One of the best memories I have of that was when my mom brought me to the Christmas bazaar of the university. There was a White Elephant Book Sale, wherein we swam in the musty scented lobby of the old library and searched for books to buy and bring home. I still have the book my mom purchased for me from 1984, entitled Splendid Journey, a collection of children’s stories from various authors. I especially loved An Old Story From Hawaii by Mary Kawena Pukui, Aesop’s Fables on The The North Wind and the Sun and The Milkmaid, and the song “On Top of Spaghetti”.

This weekend, I went to the mall and made a side trip to the Book Sale. I systematically scanned the shelves, but found no book “calling out to me”. Undeterred, I crouched and looked under the shelves and to my delight, found some interesting books at less that $0.75 (USD). I got a used library copy of C.A. Belmond’s A Rather Lovely Inheritance and a dog-eared, food-stained, truly used copy of Bill Richardson’s Bachelor Brothers’ Bed and Breakfast. I’m pretty excited of getting more than my money’s worth of traveling in these worlds.

By the way, about the White Elephant Sale, I googled what it actually means. Here’s what google answers says: White Elephant: Something that is costly to obtain or maintain and provides little benefit or value… If you want to know more, click on the link. There’s a little bit of history to the term.

Well, books are great White Elephants. Sometimes, we have to dispose of them if it takes too much space and collects dust. Somebody is sure to benefit from it the way we benefit from other people’s “junk” or excess.

Lazy, Cloudy Days in 2002

It’s the third cloudy, windy day in a row, unusual for the tropic where it’s usually sunny and sweltering hot.

Got nothing to do?

Here’s what I remember from 2002, when I was still finishing my college degree and school was still out.

Bathed and scented with the tranquil fragrance of Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Perfume, I’d spend my early mornings to infinity while rain pattered on our roof listening to Michelle Branch’s Spirit Room Album, Vanessa Carlton’s Be Not Nobody, Norah Jones’ Come Away with Me and John Mayer’s Room for Squares while curling up to Nicholas Sparks’ A Walk to Remember (the book and the movie) and the dogeared Jude Deveraux novels Remembrance and Sweet Liar. I’d check on my 2-liner Ericsson T10 model to see if I got any overseas call or text message from the first man I’d called soulmate.

Lovely, huh?

Was reminded of these slivers of recollection as I prepared for work and slathered lotion which smelled like Green Tea. Amazing what a whiff of sweet smelling beauty products could do to the memory.

Book Report: Healing the Child Within by Whitfield

I just found out yesterday that it is my turn to present a book report as part of our monthly requirement at work.

With only three days to do blitz-read and understand the material, my boss suggested that I read “Healing the Child Within” by Charles L. Whitfield, M.D.

Thank God I am jargon-savvy on 12 Steps Recovery tools and principles that it has not been such a tedious task to skim and get what this author has lovingly compiled.

Healing the Child Within is a recovery book on how to reclaim the our True Self which has been stifled by dysfunctions, abuse (unwittingly or consciously done) by our families and the world at large. The book proposes that wounded children are survivors by the mere fact that they are still alive to this day despite the subtle atrocities that are done to them on a daily basis. This stifles the Inner Child which is basically spontaneous, loving and creative (among other characteristics) and distorts the person’s sense of reality, thus bringing suffering and chaos in one’s life. The order of the day is to work on Core Issues through the spiritual practice of trusting Life’s processes by means of a therapist, counselor or a support group (all of whom should have the requisite of working their own life issues if the process is to be a healing, instead of a further harmful one).

I am writing in long hand the notes and bullets of this gem of a book and am learning more and more about Life and the practical solutions in dealing with people at work and my own family as well.

Here is a sneak peak into the life’s work of Charles Whitfield. Click here to be redirected to the source.