Remember this one? – Steering by Starlight

Well, actually, that may be a far stretch considering Oprah has been around for-freaking-ever!

However, Steering by Starlight is the kind of book you may have expected me to write about already. Martha Beck is almost-as important to self-helpers as… oh… yourSELF. Seriously! She is a highly intelligent, deeply thoughtful, motivating and lovely spirit.

The back cover of this book has a big ol’ sentence on top:

BECOME YOUR OWN LIFE COACH.

That is the goal of this book and I dare say, the goal of Beck’s work as a whole.

If you’ve read Oprah’s magazine – like, ever – you know her. She’s a contributing writer who always has something important to say. (Although, I’d like to say that we all share that characteristic. Not the point. Ahem.) She’s no slouch in the education department, having earned several degrees from Harvard. I find it interesting that she feels no need to put the Ph.D. after her name… certainly, after working so hard, she deserves it.

Momentary aside: I may have mentioned this before… possibly even last week (lol) but I was alongside my mother during the writing of her Doctoral Dissertation. I even helped to edit it (my brush with greatness. Accolades not necessary.). < — A second aside about punctuation – I never understand if I should put a second period after the parenthesis. Writing is hard. Back to the first Aside: My mom was a shadow of herself pouring over that opus. She worked her ass off and commandeered their second bedroom with books, her computer, the dog bed, and coffee. It’s a BIG FLIPPIN’ DEAL.

This book touches on something Beck mentioned in one of her first books. Mentioned. I make me laugh because the whole book is named Finding Your Own North Star. it was presented to me by a friend and became one of my favorites for one reason above all others: The North Star. I mean, finding your own internal compass and sticking to what you know to be true. I love that sooooooo much. I have a photo of a compass on my Vision Board. (Note to self: One day we must discuss vision boards.) Another aside: See, I get that I don’t need a period after this parenthesis because there’s not a sentence around it. Know what I mean? It’s so hard trying to be perfect. (Second note to self: Quit trying to be perfect.)

Anyway, the North Star theme is carried through to this book (along with much of her writing) as she asks you to become a Stargazer, a Mapmaker and finally a Pathfinder.

And this is where I shall leave you today. Because, as I was going over this book, I realized I really, REALLY need to read it again. Like… yesterday.

So, I’m gonna do that. Will you, too? Let me know!