In a world where it seems more and more that one size must fit all, I wonder why there are so many self help books. Surely if one or two worked then there would be no need for others. At the same time I cant help but think that the whole self help industry is surely a corrupt one; secretly wanting a sicker society for a bigger market share.
Every time I see another self help Guru like Doctor Phil, or Jerry Springer on the TV, I treat them as I would any other evangelical minister preaching; I change the damn channel.
I find the whole requirement for these shows to be morally repugnant - like Captain James T Kirk, I believe that we are all a product of our life experiences; both good and bad. Why people insist on polishing all the rough edges off themselves makes little sense to me.
Not that I don't take mental illness seriously. Dooce wrote a lovely essay on mental illness just the other day. It's a serious business, and one not to be trivialized with by buying a self help book - I often wonder if people try to self medicate with these, instead of seeking out the real deal. It's time like this that I realize how much admiration I have for people who put their hands up and ask for help - they are the strong ones.
Then again, all this angst was gone after one Belgian biscuit, so what do I know :)
4 comments:
dear marcus,
i did text for christmas but alas i had no reply... so sending lots of love for christmas and the new year...
from the elf and her daughter
I showed Gert and he kind of shook his head disbelievingly, saying he'd never heard of or seen a biscuit like that.
I dug out the Edmunds cookbook - I do believe there's a bake-fest coming up, once I can get over to Brussels and the English shop for the mixed spice they don't have here.
A Belgian Biscuit, never heard of it. Heard of Belgian waffles, but the Parisians are better, but don't tell anyone or they'll lynch me.
Hehe, Marcus, no wonder you were wandering in the self-help section of the bookstore. Just kidding mark ;)
Happy (warm) Holidays!
There are currently an abundance of Belgian biscuits about lately - I cant remember if they are a Christmas thing per say or not. Regardless they are lovely. :)
Manic - I have no idea why I spied the self help books. I was looking for a book called "Personality Plus" at the time - recommended to me by NFG. I've yet to find it tho. I hope your Christmas has been fun (albeit cold) so far. :)
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