One of the first people to respond to my request was my dear friend and colleague, Pavan. Among his many interests and hobbies, Pavan enjoys the following:
Chocolate Fountains
Chipotle
Shawn Michaels
The Bambino (a personal pizza) from Miseno's
Harry Potter
The Bambino (a personal pizza) from Miseno's
Harry Potter
His beautiful partner, Elizabeth
In all seriousness, Pavan is an amazing person and I value his opinion and insight above a lot of people. He is a very quiet, thoughtful person who really listens when I speak and offers valuable advice when I need it most. One of the greatest lessons he has taught me is that it is okay to admit weakness - and that, in fact, there is actually STRENGTH in your ability to forgive yourself for those weaknesses.
He recommended a number of books and I ended up choosing one that he owned and was able to lend to me. The book is called, "What If?: Short Stories to Spark Diversity Dialogue" by Steve Robbins. As the title suggests, this book is a collection of short, rather simplistic stories that are written as metaphors to demonstrate greater issues surrounding the topic of diversity. I read the book in two sittings - I started reading on a beautiful Saturday afternoon on a blanket along the river in Harrisburg and just finished it up this past weekend while on the beach in Rehoboth.
I really enjoyed the book overall - and there were a few stories that stood out to me in particular - namely the ones to which I was able to connect my own personal experiences. I did find the writing somewhat basic and although I could see how Mr. Robbins would likely make a fantastic public speaker - I don't necessarily think that his humor translated as smoothly to the written page. I do plan to use some of the stories in conjunction with future training sessions or presentations that I do with my students. I think they are very easy to relate to and I think my students will react positively to them.
Thanks for the recommendation, Pavan! You rock.
No comments:
Post a Comment