Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Jumping the Picket Fence - A great read.

This week I wish to use this space to review a fabulous book, written by a dynamite woman: Jumping The Picket Fence, by Lydia Dean.















But first some backstory.

This photo was taken last week in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  Do we look happy, or what?


The smiles were because we had just spent four days in the company of a group of people who can best be described by this adjective train; energetic, intelligent, gracious, compassionate, virtuous, and above all else, lovingly kind. The retreat/visioning session was with Go Philanthropic — A foundation and ethical travel enterprise.  www.gophilanthropic.org (the foundation)   or www.gophilanthropic.com (the travel company).

We first met Lydia Dean, one of the founders of "Go Phil," about seven years ago in Vietnam. At the time we were working on one of our humanitarian projects and Lydia was in Hoi An to explore partnerships with local Vietnamese, grass-roots NGOs. We met her family and, a year later, met another of the founders of Go Philanthropic, one exceedingly brilliant woman, Linda De Wolf who was also in Vietnam and Cambodia visiting grass roots programs with whom Go Phil partners.








Lydia and friends.








   Linda and friends











Lydia was writing her book at the same time Elaine and I were putting the finishing touches on our first book, Back to Vietnam:Tours of the Heart. Over the years, we became close with both Lydia and Linda and began collaborating on various humanitarian projects, as well as supporting one another in the brutal business of writing for publication and marketing our products, once written. Earlier this year, after January meetings in Santa Fe and Denver, Elaine and i became proud members of the Go Philanthropic Founders Circle. That led to our series of meetings with about twenty other members of the go phil family last week. We're excited about moving forward as more active collaborators with this wonderful organization.






The Go Phil family just before dinner in Santa Fe. Lydia and Linda stand just left of center. Tracey Morrell next to Lydia, on her right, is the third co-founder




So much for the preamble. Now for Lydia's book.


Lydia Dean is clearly a woman with a compelling story to tell. And she tells it with astounding candor, rich narrative and profound depth. It is a deeply personal account of one woman’s journey to find her life’s purpose, and along the way to discover the breadth of human resilience in the face of adversity, and the power of compassion to fuel change and bring light to the darkest corners of despair. 

At the age of 28, Lydia and her husband John ran a successful executive search business and had achieved financial independence. But Lydia awoke one morning thinking there must be more to life than a balance sheet. She loved her work, cared deeply for her family and enjoyed her comfortable lifestyle, but realized that her soul was being insufficiently nourished. She embarked on a several-year journey — physical, emotional and spiritual — to discover how she might live a more meaningful life, and ultimately found her purpose in philanthropy. 

This is an uplifting love story that spans the globe from the cesspools of Southeast Asia to the slums of India and beyond. A must read for anyone, male or female, who is inspired by those who make a 
 difference. 

Buy it. Read it. Be inspired by it. Change your life.  It's available on amazon.com in both digital and print formats,  

https://www.amazon.com/Jumping-Picket-Fence-Meaning-Suburbs/dp/0990821307/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1532626919&sr=8-1&keywords=jumping+the+picket+fence&dpID=415Xuwx7LmL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch 

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