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Thursday’s Child Had Far to Go
Training Indian village children to look after buffaloes, instructing girls to use a sewing machine, running adult literacy classes for rural women – Did Betty Robinson in her Youth Employment Office in Dunfermline in the 1950s and 1960s realise where her application for missionary training with the London Missionary Society would take her? Three years of missionary training did not prepare her for that. A buffalo and a sewing machine can literally save a village and give its children a future.
Then romance and marriage to a fellow Scot, Leslie Robinson, General Surgeon and Medical Superintendent at the Church of South India’s hospital in Chickballapur, Karnataka.
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Twinship and Consciousness
Do you think you are born a one-off, a unique individual entirely different from all others? Do you feel apart from others, or part of them, that you belong to yourself – responsible for yourself alone, or that you belong with and for others?
For the author, who, as an identical twin, was factually one and the same as her twin before the egg split, these questions as to what constitutes the self and how it emerges from the cosmos have been particularly pressing. In separate cots, they cried every night for three years till put into the same bed. It was like a marriage from birth. In this one life on Earth, should these twins ever have been parted? Does science offer any clues as to what underlies the superficial appearance of separate consciousness, of separate people?
This book is both a description of the transformative experience the author went through and a serious quest for understanding, enquiring into psychotherapy, philosophy and quantum physics. As this dilemma of separateness and relatedness is the human predicament intensified in twins, this story is about all of us.
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White Socks and Chalk Dust
Proof that truth is often stranger than fiction, this hilarious and poignant account of the unlikely journey of a mobile soft-drink salesman and sometime band member to school headship, is made still more compelling by virtue of the fact that all events leading up to and during this metaphorical mountain climb are entirely true…
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AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY
On a Saturday afternoon in 2012, Ben’s life changed forever after a serious road traffic accident put him in a life-threatening situation and in an induced coma. After pulling through against all the odds, Ben had to navigate through living a normal life after surviving a traumatic brain injury. Not coming to terms with his new limitations, Ben carried on with life, keeping himself busy and throwing himself into everything that came his way. He got married, continued to work full time and had a child. It was after his daughter was born that Ben finally reached breaking point and finally asked for help. Whilst he was being treated by a local brain injury service, Ben’s life was turned upside down again with another life-changing event, putting further strain on his recovery.
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Golden Orchid: The True Story of an Only Child in Contemporary China
Amid the hustle and bustle of teeming contemporary Guangzhou (also known as Canton), capital of Guangdong province, an ordinary blue-collar Chinese family of three copes with a life-threatening crisis. As an only child"”the product of China's harsh one-child policy"”the daughter of the family must care for her mother who is in the late stage of colon cancer. This is the story of that struggle. That child takes the reader back in time to see the marriage of her parents through the eyes of an only child. Growing up alone without the love and support of a sibling, how does the only child bear the filial responsibility so deeply influenced by traditional Chinese culture? How does she deal with the dilemma of keeping secret from her mother the terminal nature of her cancer? How does her mother's deathbed account of her life change the daughter's understanding of her parents' generation? The true life story is unique both in its depiction of ordinary life in today's China and in its universal picture of an ordinary family dealing with its past and facing its grim future. This young woman, typical of China's one-child generation, tells a tale that ranges from grim to comic, revealing human frailty as well as faith and extraordinary courage.
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How to Best Help an Autism Mum
Life changes rapidly when a child is diagnosed with autism. As parents, we are shell-shocked, laid bare, unsure as to where our new circumstances will lead us. With the right travelling companions, though, any journey becomes an adventure.
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Kicking on
Kicking On by Andrew Jobling is the account of one man's journey from a very unlikely professional footballer to personal trainer, cafe owner and finally ‘Accidental Author'.Funny, candid and poignant, Kicking On is a fly-on-the-wall account of life as a young sportsman and the personal journey which ensues for Andrew Jobling following his dismissal from the St Kilda Football Club. The author's self-awareness and observation has led to this frank and humorous account of self-development, life's highs and lows, honesty and a desire ultimately to share his experiences and acquired wisdom with the wider world. This is the great debate about how much is fate and how much of life comes down to our own choices. What comes across strongly in Kicking On is the desire to teach, inform and to instruct - because Andrew Jobling has found the true meaning of life and his life in particular, an understanding which many search for and which pass some by completely. Pithy and without self-pity, this book will shed a little light into the lives of everyone who reads it.
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Rugby Tries and Knock Ons: Tales of a college rugby player in New England and the game that gave birth to American football
Tales of a college rugby player in New England and the game that gave birth to American footballWe had just beaten a few of the top men’s rugby football clubs in the East that excelled in both sevens and fifteens. This included – Mystic River, Beacon Hill, the Washington Exiles and two good college teams – Brown University and Coast Guard Academy. As I prepared for the championship final against another very good men’s club – the Hartford Wanderers RFC – I lay down on the sidelines and stretched my sore leg muscles. My mind drifted and I couldn’t help but remember the previous three consecutive finals our school (URI) had participated in. We had beaten some excellent teams each year to advance to the Harvard Business School Sevens finals, but we had lost each close championship match. This rugby sevens tournament was the most popular sevens tournament in the East and it consisted of rugby clubs – men’s and college teams from all over and the U.S. – winner takes all!
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The Militia Boy
This is the autobiography, memories and impressions of a boy born in 1918 in the poorer district of a large, Lancashire city. His childhood and early youth were spent unaware of the awful poverty and deprivation of the hungry thirties which were coloured by the spectre of mass unemployment, social degradation and abject misery. The clouds of war had been building up from 1935 and the Spanish Civil War was a prelude to the final holocaust of 1939.On his twenty-first birthday, in July 1939, his passport into manhood was to be conscripted into the Armed Forces among the newly recruited Militia and he became a Militia Boy. For over six years these militia boys served in every theatre of war from Narvik to Dunkirk, the deserts of North Africa, Sicily, Burma, Singapore and Malaysia, India, Iraq and Syria, Crete, Italy and Germany and even witnessed the final disregard of human life in the charnel houses of the concentration camps of Europe.This story is dedicated to all those Militia Boys who were unfortunate to be born at the wrong time and who gave over six years of their manhood in the hope that the World would become a better place to live in.James PalmerJune 1980
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God and Chips
We all have busy lives with a million things to do and places to be. The author was no different until a life-changing episode did just that, changed his life forever. He recounts, often in minute detail and with a sense of humour, a growing awareness of the world around him as his perceptions of the reality of life unfolded.
Each new experience is told with breathtaking honesty and dissected thoroughly in plain English with even the most complex spiritual theories being challenged from this unique perspective. Every chapter reveals a deeper understanding and experience of life beyond that of the mundane, leading you ultimately to the source of all life and all creation. A true and incredible story that may challenge all you presently understand about your life here on this earth.
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The Special Lady
This book takes you on Elizabeth’s transformative journey, showcasing how she embraced and overcame life’s challenges.
Elizabeth’s resilience shines through as she faces various obstacles, demonstrating her ability to bounce back from setbacks.
By fostering a growth mindset, she learns to perceive challenges as opportunities for personal development and growth.
The book emphasizes the significance of self-care and making healthy lifestyle choices, which can enhance overall well-being and minimize the risk of encountering life’s hurdles.
Embarking on a path of self-growth allows individuals to discover a greater sense of purpose and meaning in life.
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Notice Me
Notice Me is a compelling and thought-provoking book that delves into the challenging journey of living with autism, dyslexia, bullying, alcohol, and violence, and having a hearing impairment. This powerful narrative explores the experiences of individuals facing multiple adversities and their relentless pursuit of success.
Through heartfelt storytelling, Notice Me offers an intimate look into the characters’ daily struggles, triumphs, and emotional turmoil. The book sheds light on the unique challenges and stigmas associated with autism, dyslexia, and hearing impairments, fostering an understanding and empathy among readers.
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