This summer has just been filled with relaxation time and, as many know, if I'm not moving, I'm reading. I have read a lot of really good books this summer and have plenty more on my list. School starts in a month so I have a lot of reading to get through before I am thrown into the whirlwind that is college.
One of the most memorable books I have read this summer (so far) is "Dance First. Think Later." by Kathryn and Ross Petras. What I liked about this book was that it was unlike anything I have ever read before. Most of the books I read are novels or non-fiction and all of them have a set plot. When I first picked up this book, I had been eyeing it on my aunt's coffee table for a week and was thinking it was going to be a non-fiction guide book of some sort. Boy was I in for a surprise. "Dance First. Think Later." is a collection of quotes or, as Kathryn and Ross call them, rules. 618 of them to be exact. It isn't something that I would normally pick up off the shelf in the store but has easily become one that I am going to add to my personal bookshelf. The 618 Rules that lie within the pages of this book are funny, thought-provoking, and downright inspiring.
Here are 10 of my favorites: 53 58
Rule No. 7: "If you're alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up.
who's going to know?"
-Julia Child
Chef
Rule No. 40: "Dance first. Think later. It's the natural order."
-Samuel Beckett
Writer
Rule No. 70: "Don't carry a grudge. While you're carrying the grudge, the other guy's out dancing"
-Buddy Hacket
Comedian/Actor
Rule No. 326: "Any time you have an opportunity to make a difference in this world and you don't,
then you are wasting your time on Earth."
-Roberto Clemente
Baseball Player
Rule No. 462: "Stare. It is the way to educate your eye, and more. Stare, pry, listen, eavesdrop. Die
knowing something. You are not here long."
-Walker Evans
Photographer
Rule No. 474: "Chase after the truth like all hell and you'll free yourself, even though you never touch
its coat tails."
-Clarence Darrow
Lawyer
Rule No. 496: "I once complained to my father that I didn't seem to be able to do things the same way
other people did. Dad's advice? 'Margo, don't be a sheep. People hate sheep. They eat
sheep.' "
-Margo Kaufman
Writer
Rule No. 513: "There are two kinds if people, those who do the work and those who take the credit.
Try to be in the first group; there is less competition there."
-Indira Gandhi
Stateswomen
Rule No. 558: "In whatever you are doing, failure is an option. But fear is not."
-James Cameron
Film Director
Rule No. 595: "Be willing to make decisions . . . Don't fall victim to what I call the 'ready-aim-aim-
aim-aim' syndrome."
-T. Boone Pickens
Businessman
I absolutely adore all of the wisdom this book has to offer. I mean, these rules are only 10 out of the 618 AMAZING rules in this book! I definitely know that I will be referencing this book a lot in the future, there is just so much to learn from it!
What are some of your favorite "Words of Wisdom"?
