Author: Rebecca Rose Thering

2017: The Year in Books

I read 63 books this year. My original goal was 42, so the final number looks high to me, too. This is, however, thanks to the fact that I was unemployed a majority of the year and spent the summer at my parents’ home, a 15-minute walk from the local library.

Some of the books I read this year were poetry collections and children’s books, so I’m always interested to see how my “pages read” stats compare year to year. Fifteen thousand seven hundred forty-one pages in 2017. (Thanks Goodreads!)

2017 Pages Read

I’ll list them all this year—here’s what I read, beginning in January and ending in December:

Books Read in 2017

  • “The World According to Mister Rogers: Important Things to Remember” by Fred Rogers
  • “Modern Calligraphy: Everything You Need to Know to Get Started in Script Calligraphy” by Molly Suber Thorpe
  • “Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within” by Natalie Goldberg
  • “Creative Block: Get Unstuck, Discover New Ideas, Advice, and Projects from 50 Successful Artist” by Danielle Krysa
  • “Playing Big: Find Your Voice, Your Mission, Your Message” by Tara Mohr
  • “Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life” by Jon Kabat-Zinn
  • “Living Color: Painting, Writing, and the Bones of Seeing” by Natalie Goldberg
  • “Milk & Honey: A Love Story” by Alexandra Franzen
  • “So This Is the End” by Alexandra Franzen
  • “On Beauty” by Zadie Smith
  • “The Postmistress” by Sarah Blake
  • “Fluent Forever: How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It” by Gabriel Wyner
  • “All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr
  • “Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder” by Arianna Huffington
  • “Milk and Honey” by Rupi Kaur
  • “The Yellow Envelope: One Gift, Three Rules, and a Life-Changing Journey Around the World” by Kim Dinan
  • “The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8AM)” by Hal Elrod
  • “Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead” by Brené Brown
  • “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*uck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life” by Mark Manson
  • “Love Warrior” by Glennon Doyle Melton
  • “Carry On, Warrior: Thoughts on Life Unarmed” by Glennon Doyle Melton
  • “Forward: A Memoir” by Abby Wambach
  • “Rising Strong” by Brené Brown
  • “The Sketchnote Handbook: The Illustrated Guide to Visual Note Taking” by Mike Rohde
  • “Refuse to Choose!: Use All of Your Interests, Passions, and Hobbies to Create the Life and Career of Your Dreams” by Barbara Sher
  • “Brave Enough” by Cheryl Strayed
  • “Spinster: Making a Life of One’s Own” by Kate Bolick
  • “Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar” by Cheryl Strayed
  • “Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between” by Lauren Graham
  • “This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage” by Ann Patchett
  • “All Over the Place: Adventures in Travel, True Love, and Petty Theft” by Geraldine DeRuiter
  • “The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles” by Steven Pressfield
  • “Janesville: An American Story” by Amy Goldstein
  • “Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life” by Anne Lamott
  • “This Is How It Always Is” by Laurie Frankel
  • “The Last Unicorn” by Peter Beagle
  • “Ariel” by Sylvia Plath
  • “Dog Songs” by Mary Oliver
  • “Felicity” by Mary Oliver
  • “The Master and Margarita” by Mikhail Bulgakov
  • “Ladies Drawing Night: Make Art, Get Inspired, Join the Party” by Julia Rothman
  • “The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures” by Dan Roam
  • “Harry Potter et les reliques de la mort” by J.K. Rowling
  • “Our World” by Mary Oliver
  • “Upstream: Selected Essays” by Mary Oliver
  • “Blue Horses” by Mary Oliver
  • “A Poetry Handbook” by Mary Oliver
  • “Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person” by Shonda Rhimes
  • “Worm Loves Worm” by J.J. Austrian
  • “The Great Failure: A Bartender, a Monk, and My Unlikely Path to Truth” by Natalie Goldberg
  • “Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians but Were Afraid to Ask” by Anton Treuer
  • “Walking to Listen: 4,000 Miles Across America, One Story at a Time” by Andrew Forsthoefel
  • “Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative” by Austin Kleon
  • “Just Diagnosed: The Five Keys to Living with MS from the Driver’s Seat” by Laura Sowinski
  • “The Cuckoo’s Calling” by Robert Galbraith
  • “Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture” by Shannon Hayes
  • “Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith” by Martha Beck
  • “Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone” by Brené Brown
  • “The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America” by Timothy Egan
  • “The Zero-Waste Lifestyle: Live Well by Throwing Away Less” by Amy Korst
  • “The Colorado Kid” by Stephen King
  • “The Big Tiny: A Built-It-Myself Memoir” by Dee Williams
  • “The True Secret of Writing: Connecting Life with Language” by Natalie Goldberg

Top 10 Books Read in 2017

I usually select five or so which I highlight as favorites, but this year I couldn’t get that number any lower than ten (plus some honorable mentions, below). In alphabetical order, I recommend:

“All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr

I started this historical fiction book when I was visiting my friend Max in Munich and finished it on the train into France—which happened to be so fitting because it takes place in both countries during World War II. (I hadn’t known what the book was about when I began reading.) There’s a reason this won the Pulitzer Prize and spent over two years on the New York Times bestseller list; I enjoyed getting lost in the story.

“The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America” by Timothy Egan

A friend in ACE recommended this one to me, and it was an interesting, educative read. I hadn’t read anything by Egan before, but he has the gift of bringing the past to life, so the retelling of these historical events was lively and engaging.

 

 

“Janesville: An American Story” by Amy Goldstein

This story takes place in Janesville, Wisconsin—which lies just an hour southeast of where I’m from. The book follows several families/politicians/teachers before, during, and after the GM plant closing / recession of 2008. Although informative and well-researched, this book—like “Evicted”—is far from dry, filled with approachable and engrossing stories.

 

“Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith” by Martha Beck

This memoir was incredible. I’ll definitely be reading more of Martha Beck this year.

 

 

 

“Love Warrior” by Glennon Doyle Melton

Another incredible memoir. What a treat to read! I also read her other book, “Carry On, Warrior” this year, which I enjoyed and recommend as well.

 

 

 

“Playing Big: Practical Wisdom for Women Who Want to Speak Up, Create, and Lead” by Tara Mohr

In case anyone missed my ooh-ing and aah-ing over this one last year, I’m including it again because I reread it at the start of the year. If you were a “good student” in school, this book is full of practical ways to break from good-student habits we women are taught at a young age—in order to lead, create, and speak up in our communities.

 

“Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture” by Shannon Hayes

This book articulated so well many ideas I’d partially uncovered on my own. How refreshing to see a fuller picture, though, and to consider ideas I hadn’t yet stopped to consider. For example: What does a country’s GDP really indicate? It’s not a measure of personal well-being, so why does society care so much about a “healthy” GDP? Here’s a snippet from the Goodreads summary:

“Radical Homemakers nationwide speak about empowerment, transformation, happiness, and casting aside the pressures of a consumer culture to live in a world where money loses its power to relationships, independent thought, and creativity. If you ever considered quitting a job to plant tomatoes, read to a child, pursue creative work, can green beans and heal the planet, this is your book.”

“Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar” by Cheryl Strayed

Incredibly beautiful writing and a joy to read. Definitely a book I’ll reread in the future, as well as gift to high school / college graduates.

 

 

 

“Walking to Listen: 4,000 Miles Across America, One Story at a Time” by Andrew Forsthoefel

This memoir particularly gripped me because walking the country is something I’d thought of doing years ago—though I hadn’t had an idea for a “reason”/name/project and never moved an inch forward. Andrew Forsthoefel did, however, and five years later he wrote a book about his experiences. Not only is the story compelling and a neat way to get an up-close-and-personal tour of various regions of the USA, but the writing is beautiful to boot.

“Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within” by Natalie Goldberg

Oh, Natalie. This was the first book I read by Natalie Goldberg, and I couldn’t believe it had taken 28 years for us to meet! After this one I read several others by Natalie throughout the year, and there are plenty more of hers I’d like to read. I’m happy to have gained another role model this year.

2017 Books Read: Honorable Mentions

  • “Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone” by Brené Brown — I read two of Brené’s other big ones this year as well (“Daring Greatly” and “Rising Strong”), and wanted to highlight at least one of hers somewhere in this post. Her latest book nicely summarizes many concepts I’ve learned over the years—so nothing breakthrough for me, but she’s certainly a helpful voice to have a stage, especially during this political climate.
  • “Felicity” by Mary Oliver — If anyone’s new to poetry like I am, this Mary Oliver collection was an enjoyable read. (Additional shoutout to Oliver’s “Upstream: Selected Essays”)
  • “The Master and Margarita” by Mikhail Bulgakov — I read this book because Regina Spektor mentioned it in an interview somewhere. I was also curious to read a Russian author and a fiction book (I usually find myself reading within the non-fiction genre). It was sure interesting! I didn’t understand the deeper metaphors that must have been going on, but the story itself kept my interest the whole time.
  • “On Beauty” by Zadie Smith — This was my first Zadie Smith book, found on the bookshelf while I was HelpXing on the farm in Italy, and I enjoyed getting lost in her story.
  • “The Postmistress” by Sarah Blake — This is another one from the bookshelf on the farm in Dozza, and it was also an enjoyable fiction read.
  • “Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life” by Jon Kabat-Zinn — I finished reading this at the start of 2017 and wanted to mention it somewhere, as it was a peaceful read which nurtured mindfulness.

Finally, if you’d like to see five more years of past year-end book reviews, they are below.

>>Past years in books: 2012 // 2013 // 2014 // 2015 // 2016

Your turn! What were your favorite reads of the year? What do you recommend I read in 2018? I’d love to hear what you have to say—the space below is yours to comment your heart out!

Christmas Poetry Project (+ Bamboo Toothbrushes)

My family typically doesn’t buy each other Christmas gifts—except for my parents, who would get stuff for us four kids—but this year we decided to start doing no gifts from anyone. We all have what we need and would rather spend time together playing games (or watching “The Office”) than to unwrap things our parents spent money on.

That said, since I had the two weeks before Christmas at home and the itch to create, I gave myself a mini-poetry project. I’d select a poem for each member of my family and gift it to them for Christmas.

This way, I’d be exposed to a greater number of poems during the selection process, helping me along on my poetry journey, while also spending $0 on homemade gifts. It was realistic and thus approachable.

I checked out a poetry anthology from the library and borrowed three other poetry collections from my grandma’s bookshelf:

Then I spent a few days browsing through all of them, looking for anything that reminded me of any of my five family members. I got most of my poems from “The Family Book of Best Loved Poems” (edited by David L. George), though I had some honorable mentions from all of the books.

After I had selected a poem for each family member, I wrote it out by hand on white card stock and then painted a watercolor border on watercolor paper. A little snip, snip, glue, glue, and they were done!

Here are the final poems:

Little Things

Life's Tests

Life

A Book by Emily Dickinson

A Prayer for Every Day

Everyone got a bamboo toothbrush from Mother’s Vault along with their poem, since I’d bought two 4-packs back in August before I moved to Arizona (specifically to give the extras out at Christmas).

For anyone who’s new to this idea, by the way, plastic toothbrushes will never biodegrade. Rather, they will fill our landfills and pollute our oceans. Here’s why bamboo is a fantastic alternative (from Mother’s Vault’s website):

Bamboo is the fastest growing plant with natural antimicrobial properties, making it the perfect material to use.  Our mao bamboo toothbrush is made from 100% real biodegradable bamboo, features BPA-free bristles and plastic free compostable packing. This means no plastic waste, no chemicals in your body and no waiting for trees to regrow.

That was the first time I’d ever bought a bamboo toothbrush, and after using it for the past three months, I’m definitely on board to stay bamboo!

Finally, I wrote out a poem for myself as well (while I was at it), featuring Mary Oliver’s “Moments.”

Moments by Mary Oliver

 

Have you given handmade gifts before? Are any of these poems familiar to you? Do any particularly resonate with you?

It’s Up to You…

My dad has been going through the file cabinets downstairs and today he handed me a file to toss or keep up in my room. They’re my old dental records—mostly bills and letters from my root canal and later orthodontics treatment.

I found a gem in that folder, though:

It’s a large booklet from my old orthodontist, which we probably received circa 2001. I don’t recall ever seeing it before, but the illustrations and text were entertaining enough that I wanted to share it here. Enjoy!

Finally, here’s the back cover:

And now that it’s documented here, I’ll be cutting up the illustrations for snail mail fun!

Creatives I’ve Supported in 2017

This year something that’s been on my mind more and more is how to support the creatives in my life and those whose work I’m a fan of. While you’ll see below that such loyalty is not limited to monetary support, I’ve been more aware of my purchasing power as well.

I’m getting a little better at checking Etsy when looking for a particular item/gift, rather than heading straight to Amazon (though Amazon is still very much a habit), and this fall I’ve been buying all of my painting supplies from a local art shop in Flagstaff.

It’s important for me to support the values I believe in—not just when it’s convenient for me. This means taking a closer look at my smaller, everyday actions—including purchases—and evaluating how well they align with my values. If we encourage and help the people who are bringing more kindness, creativity, and truth into the world, their impact will expand exponentially.

As I reflect on my year and this particular topic, the people below continue to pop up. I’m excited to share their work with you—because obviously I think they’re really cool people doing great things—but I’m also including some of my interactions with them. The purpose of sharing these is not to pat myself on the back, but rather to provide concrete ideas/examples of what support can look like.

Creatives I’ve Supported in 2017

Josh Lonsdale – Venice Walking Tour

Venice Walking Tour

While staying in Venice, I saw an event on Couchsurfing for a free walking tour, hosted by Josh. I’ve gone on many walking tours throughout my years of travel, but this was hands-down the best. Picture the Bill Bryson of walking tours. Josh was incredibly well spoken and pointed out such interesting details and nuggets of history that he had my full attention for the entire three hours. What a joy to experience that tour!

Surprisingly enough, this was only the second time he’d given the tour. Ever. He was trying it out via Couchsurfing to see if it’s something he could charge for, down the line. He accepted tips at the end, so I gave much more than I tip at “regular” walking tours. Then I gave him encouraging spoken words, assuring him that he could totally make a living doing this—the quality is superb.

When I got back to my hostel, I felt propelled to push him along even more, so I sent a message via Couchsurfing with some positive testimony, which he later used to advertise future walking tour events.

Kim Dinan – “The Yellow Envelope”

Kim Dinan - The Yellow Envelope

I’ve been a long-time reader of Kim’s blog, So Many Places, and thus a long-time fan of Kim. Naturally, then, I pre-ordered her book “The Yellow Envelope” late last year before it was released this April.

A few days after returning to the states this spring, I attended her book signing event at Barnes and Noble in Madison. I recommend the book to others and share her Yellow Envelope project on my site.

Meg Kissack – Couragemakers/That Hummingbird Life

Epic Shit Sessions - That Hummingbird Life

I hope you’ve heard me talk about The Couragemakers Podcast before, as it’s been a favorite of mine this year. To help support Meg’s fantastic podcast, I left a positive review on iTunes earlier in the year and often shared episodes via Twitter when I was active on the platform.

Since I align so well with her values and approaches, I also hired Meg as a mentor/coach for two of her “Epic Shit” session offerings: “Get Shit Rolling” (a brainstorming session for multi-passionate creatives) and “Get Shit Done” (an email accountability/encouragement experience). The (tangible) result? This very site! It was an even better experience than I could have imagined, and you can bet I provided feedback and testimony for this amazing Couragemaker.

Luke Thering – Musical Creations

Luke is my younger brother, a wonderful human being who plays piano (incredibly well) and composes (also incredibly well), among other actions. In past years I’ve supported him on Kickstarter and attended performances. What comes to mind right away for this past year was sharing two of his fun videos with others:

  • “Fire Sale” – Any “Arrested Development” fans out there should check this one out!
  • “My Best Friend” – In this video, Luke adds accompaniment to Key and Peele’s “best friend” comedy sketch

And while we’re on the topic, here’s a one-minute wintertime video that always brings a smile to my face:

Candace Rose Rardon – Moment Sketchers

Moment Sketchers

Another woman I’ve mentioned a lot this year is Candace Rose Rardon and her Moment Sketchers community (to which I belong). I support her by commenting on blog posts, sharing the community with others (writing about it, talking about it, inviting others to join me for the monthly sketch weekends), and encouraging fellow community members via Instagram comments.

James Hansen – FOUL The Webseries

A friend from high school is creating a webseries called “FOUL,” which he is funding thanks to Kickstarter. I was happy to contribute to the campaign when it was live.

 

Genevieve Lacombe – Atelier Art Postal

https://www.instagram.com/p/BaPsqCNAbhq/?taken-by=rebeccathering

Genevieve Lacombe, a fellow Moment Sketcher, opened her Etsy shop this fall: Atelier Art Postal. I had lots of fun ordering and sending out the adorable postcards seen above. I left positive feedback on her Etsy page and shared the postcards on Instagram too.

Alexandra Franzen – “You’re Going to Survive”Alex Franzen You're Going to Survive

One of my favorite writers/humans/heroes, Alexandra Franzen, released a book this month: “You’re Going to Survive: True stories about adversity, rejection, defeat, terrible bosses, online trolls, 1-star Yelp reviews, and other soul-crushing experiences―and how to get through it”

I pre-ordered the book when she first announced it (the book just arrived a few days ago!) and I’ll be recommending it to anyone in need of her uplifting message.

Nicole Antoinette – Real Talk Radio

Real Talk Radio with Nicole Antoinette

A podcast I’ve fallen in love with these past few months is Real Talk Radio with Nicole Antoinette. She’s real-life friends with Alexandra Franzen (above), which is how I first learned of the podcast.

After listening to only a few episodes, it was an easy decision to make a pledge on Nicole’s Patreon page to help keep the podcast running.

Street Musicians/Poets/Bloggers

While traveling around Italy this spring, I tipped street musicians after enjoying their songs, and one afternoon in Bologna I “bought” a poem from an Italian street poet.

Online interactions with Matt Maldre reminded me how important it is to leave a comment on all blog posts I read—which I now try to do.

Celebrating Support Received

This year I’ve also been on the receiving end of such support. From a monetary view, I received $7 in tips from two people via Paypal donation (which I’d added to my Oh No She Madridn’t blog a few years ago—these are the first donations ever received) and I sold six copies of my Korean Food/Restaurant Guide on Gumroad. (Hooray!)

Just a few days ago this new blog received its first comment (thank you Eva!), and that’s definitely something to celebrate.

I have a folder on my desktop where I keep screenshots of tweets, emails, and other encouraging words from friends and fellow humans. I added several clips to this folder throughout the year and I’m grateful to everyone who contributed.

I appreciate the friends and family who came to the Trains on Main reception this summer, and all of the supportive words I’ve received—while travel sketching, speaking at the library, chatting with friends, via snail mail, etc.

How to Support Creatives in Your Life

As we move into the new year, I’ll keep an even closer eye out for ways to support the creatives I value. Remember, there are many ways to support creatives in your life—no matter how new/far they are on the journey. Here’s a starter list:

  • Comment on a blog post / Instagram post
  • Write a letter/email of encouragement
  • Recommend an encouraging book/post/podcast/community to your creative friend
  • Share one of their articles/creations/event info. on social media or by email
  • Send a gratitude or fan letter (here’s how to write a six-minute fan letter—see #1)
  • Support their Kickstarter
  • Pledge to support them via Patreon
  • Make a Paypal donation
  • Purchase one of their creations—for yourself or to give as a gift
  • Attend their shows/performances
  • Leave a positive review / offer testimony

 

Who do you support? How do you support creatives in your life? (Any more ideas I can add to this list?)