Glad No Matter What Book Review

Transforming Loss and Change into Gift and Opportunity
by SARK

I’ve always thought SARK’s books looked like fun. They’re colorful, have a handwritten look, and are filled with pictures, so they seem a little quirky.

Glad No Matter What seems to be an unpolished, authentic look into someone’s soul (maybe ours). Her stories are insightful, playful, and touching, and I found myself able to relate and find comfort for my own worries and concerns within her journeys.

“The opposite of loss is not gain, it is… found. What can you find within your losses? I recommend looking for the gifts first. They might not appear immediately. I’m often convinced that this time, they’re just. Not. There. This occurs to me in my mind.” From the book – page 73-74.

When I first received Glad No Matter What, I thought it would be a fun read. And it was, for the most part. Initially, I had to get over the handwritten look. Where at first I’d found it charming, I soon found myself having to re-read certain things over before I understood what she was saying.

But I soon got used to it and found myself getting drawn into her stories.

One of my favorite chapters was “Singing through the Storms.” She spoke of how when she’d go through a difficult time, she’d try to hold it together rather than fall to pieces. But when we fall to pieces we allow “the pieces to reassemble, new pieces materialize, and old pieces can be discarded or reshaped.”

“Most growth takes place in the darkness.” From the book – page 95.

My favorite chapter was “Waves of Love,” where she wrote about the importance of self love in order that we may love others.

“We are not taught or guided about how to actually feel self-loving. We’re just expected to be able to do it without examples, teachers, role models or permission to support ourselves as self-loving souls.” From the book – page 44.

Amen Sister!!! She’s right! I can only speak for myself, but when I was growing up self-love was not condoned nearly as often as self-sacrificing. So even when a therapist tells us we need to love ourselves, it feels so fake, do we ever stick with it?

She also describes a simple and effective process that she calls the “Micromovement Wheel of Delight.” It’s basically a big circle you write a goal in – and things you can do to move toward that goal. It’s meant to serve as an ignition device to get you moving forward. I did a couple and they were pretty cool!

Okay, so crazy writing aside, I loved this book. Most of us have experienced loss, fear, or change. We’ve felt inadequate, dramatic, and lethargic. Glad No Matter What was a thoughtful and perceptive glimpse into the average stuff that most of us go through that can, and does, feel terrible. It’s a hopeful, authentic and beautiful reminder that we can transform our challenges into something better and brighter.

Glad No Matter What was sent to Deanna, by the publisher, free of charge, for the purpose of reviewing.