The Seventeen Second Miracle

If I read a book I like, I will try more of their works. That's why I read so many of Jodi Piccoult's book. I was hooked on Plain Truth and then read Nineteen Minutes which I couldn't put down and recommend to any one associated with high schools. A few years ago the book of the Christmas season was The Christmas Jars by Jason Wright. I read it in a few days and really loved it. I can't say I have read all of his books, but when Wednesday Letters came out I purchased it and read it. It was another great book and really had me thinking about my life. I knew that Mr. Wright was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but his books aren't "churchy" books but all about good characters and doing good for and to others. I joined up with his Facebook fans because, well frankly, I like his books.
One day he was giving away some "slightly damaged" books to anyone who would write a review of his book, "The Cross Gardner". I had just finished reading it, so I gladly write the kind review, sent him my link, and he sent me a copy of "Recovering Charles". It was a really good book with the twist at the end that I have grown accustomed to. It is about a man who returns to Louisiana to find his father after Katrina.
"The Cross Gardner" got me wondering about the families whose loved ones are remembered by the small crosses at the side of the road which indicate that someones loved one had died near that spot. The book is about a man who makes it his passion to keep the weeds and bushes trimmed around the crosses on the road. It was a very good book.
"Recovering Charles " made me think about how we might judge people before we even get to know them. Another very good book.
Not too long ago Mr. Wright had a contest on his blog. He had those rubber bracelets in a jar and asked people to estimate how many were actually in the jar. The closest winner got an autographed copy of his newest book "The Seventeen Second Miracle." The time to guess was coming to an end, so I quickly looked over the other posts, decided on a number, and sent in my guess. The next morning he had posted a video showing his daughter counting the bracelets, and the number was exactly MY guess. However, there was another lady with the same guess that had posted before me. I just had not seen it. But the kind man that he is, he send both of us a copy of the book. That makes two autographed books I have received from him for free. Now, that is my kind of an author!
The book is very good, very, very good. I needed it just at this time of my life. It is the story of a man who teaches that everyone can do some good in the world, if we just take 17 seconds out of our time. That is all it takes, 17 seconds to do something good, or something bad. Which do you want it to be that people remember about you? Yes, there are twists at the end, but even if you read the last chapter (like I sometimes do in Jodi Piccoult books) you wouldn't understand the twists unless you read the book. It is a fast, easy read and keeps you wondering what will happen next. And just when you think you have figured it all out, you find out you haven't. But the most important part of the book is that you learn about 17 second miracles and want to do your best to find them in your own life and be that 17 seconds of good in someone else's life.



I got to thinking about a tradition we had in our home when I was growing up. Most of our family decisions took place around the kitchen table. It seems like once we got up from the table we all went our separate ways, but if we sat there we would keep on talking with each other for hours. (It was the same when my children were young, but that is another post.) Dad taught something we all thought had come straight from his home when he was a child, but after digging into the tradition I learned that it was pretty popular at the time, so perhaps it didn't "originate" from the Ware table, but it was practiced there, and Dad taught us all about it.
We were taught to find something good to say about our family members when we learned about TLs. TL stands for "trade last". A family member would say "I have a TL for _____,"(insert another family member's name) which meant they had heard someone say something about that person. They would tell you who and what as soon as you got something nice to give them first. The idea was to go around to your friends and family and get them to say something nice without asking them directly "Do you know something nice about ____?" It had to just come up in conversation, not a forced response. When you finally got something, you could then go to the table with some comment you could trade.
I think focusing on TLs would be similar to 17 Second Miracles. Doing and saying nice things sure do make life more meaningful. In this season of Thanksgiving, look for the good things others do and tell them. So this month, be looking here because I will be posting something I see good in the people I love.