Boy, do I wish I'd written this book.....

by

Patti Dickinson

A friend of mine, and six-houses-away neighbor, wrote a book entitled I Believe. It was written by Allan Stark. His kids and mine went to Westwood View Elementary School together. I have been friends with his wife for years....we used to run into each other regularly at Mission Highlands, a just-down-the-street mom and pop grocery store, where the cart would barely fit down the aisles. Both with toddlers in the seat of the cart...and we would stop, block the already-too-narrow aisle, and catch up until one of the two toddlers started to fuss, needing the cart to move.

This book easily makes my top five. It is one man's beliefs. Allan talks in the Preface about the inspiration for the book...that it is not so much what a man believes, but that he knows what he believes.

Here are a few excerpts: "I believe in saying 'good morning' to my neighbors." and "I believe I could survive on peanut M&M's." "I believe in stopping my car to help turtles across the road." and "I believe kissing and making up is one of the best things about marriage." You get the idea.

This book's ripples are, and continue to be, felt at the Dickinson's. Every so often, I will tape a sheet of butcher paper on the refrigerator. Pen close at hand. I tell Wood and the kids to write down their beliefs. Most of them are funny, or surprising. Stuff you knew you believed, but would never have thought to write down.

So --- here's the challenge. Would you guys do that? And here's the important part. Share them with me, here on this blog.

Sadly, this book is out-of-print. So I emailed Allan, and he said that it can still be ordered from Amazon's and Barnes & Nobles's websites.

Small book, big inspiration.

I am looking forward to hearing from you!