26 Apr Meet Ginny Moore, Caregiver and Author of: Don’t Make Lemonade; Leaning Into Life’s Difficult Transitions
This is the first in a series of book reviews about health, aging, and caregiving but it also marks the launch of a blog series profiling our wonderful caregivers. In these blogs we go beyond the demographic backgrounds of our staff and invite you to gain a deeper understanding of why our caregivers choose this meaningful work and why we’re proud to offer their service.
Meet Ginny Moore, caregiver and author of Don’t Make Lemonade; Leaning Into Life’s Difficult Transitions
What do we do when life gives us lemons? The reigning positivity in American culture tells us to make lemonade but author Ginny Moore, in her book Don’t Make Lemonade: Leaning Into Life’s Difficult Transitions, urges readers to “face the lemons.” In this engaging and honest book Moore portrays her challenging journey through adversity to empowerment with page turning skill. She draws universal themes around her complex personal experience and offers inspirational encouragement to readers going though loss and transition. With a trustworthy authorial voice like a wise friend Moore assures us that facing change and honestly processing emotions will lead to healing and greater understanding of our lives. This is a refreshing and validating book that I might read again—and again.
Don’t Make Lemonade is accessible to all levels of emotional searching. Factors that inspired Moore to write her book speak to the experiences of many: losing a job, ending a partnership, coping with the death of friends or family. Succinct sentences, easy to follow steps through transition, and welcoming writing draw the reader in and offer comfort. Pocket sized or Kindle formatted this is a resource that’s easy to carry around.
Would it surprise you that this talented author also shares her life as a caregiver for With A Little Help? Following her career as a graphic designer Moore decided to join our agency in 2011. “I wanted to leave a mark in life ever since I can remember,” she said. “Making a difference gives you tremendous purpose, and now I have two distinct areas: hands on experience making a difference in lives by caregiving through With A Little Help and the creative, more indirect experience through publishing a book.”
Giving time to With A Little Help’s clientele, Moore says, gives her balance and keeps her real. “Caregiving work provides a balance between the creative side and the human touch,” she explained. “Also, in order for me to have a space in my mind to create I need to have simplicity in my life, and caregiving offers that by way of just being present with what is happening at that moment. There might be details to attend to, but nothing like designing a 100 page catalog for a corporation! Caregiving is a spiritual practice. I can write, edit, and re-edit when I write a book, but it’s caregiving and the interaction with one person’s life that keeps me real.”
Don’t Make Lemonade, Leaning into Life’s Difficult Transitions is Moore’s first published book. In the future, she’s planning a series of books under her publishing LLC called Inside Stories. Though the journey she describes in Don’t Make Lemonade is intense and complex, it’s a light, simple and satisfying read. Whether on your care team, kindle or bookshelf, I hope you meet Ginny Moore and have the opportunity to gain from her thoughtful insights.