Dragonflies and Turtles

About the Book

"Dragonflies and Turtles...is a remarkable book about pausing once in a while to update ourselves on what we want from life and what life wants from us...an incisive, witty and wise book."
John Butler, Import

"It will have the place...where I keep books that are most useful to me."
Robert Thompson, Timmins Daily Press

This book is a gentle guide...thought provoking insights and practical suggestions to the reader who is interested in getting in touch with his or her own authentic self."
Judy Ruan, North Country Business

Dragonflies and Turtles will be of interest to busy readers who struggle to cope with the hectic pace of their lives and who feel that their futures are being dictated from somewhere outside themselves.

"I wrote the book to remind people, myself included, to pause once in a while and update ourselves on what we want from life and what life wants from us," says the author. "All of our experiences possess deep meaning and if we can move beyond our fears and preoccupations, we open ourselves to what they teach us about who we really are and what we're here to do. Creativity and wisdom come from listening. They can't be bought in the marketplace."

Written in a provocative and humorous style, the book will help readers to re-think their beliefs about time management, possessions and the importance of space in daily life. Dragonflies and Turtles contains thirty-three short pieces that provide inspiring ideas, simple tools and entertaining illustrations designed to help readers to pause, let go of junk, reclaim their natural rhythm and free up creativity without having to learn complicated belief systems, rituals and formulas. The book is organized according to five principles:

Chapter One: Step Back and See the Bars on the Cage explores the need to become more conscious of the daily pressures that are so soaked into our daily lives that we hardly notice the extent to which they dominate our energies.

Chapter Two: Stop the World and Get Off looks at how to pause and be aware of our lives as we live them. It provides ideas and activities for moving away from obsession with the past and future, and connecting to the present.

Chapter Three: Quit Junk and Travel Light provides a starting point for creating more breathing room. It presents six steps for simplifying surroundings by getting rid of possessions that get in the way.

Chapter Four: Give Yourself the Time and Space to Process Your Life offers alternate ways to view time and presents tips for carving out more time and space for living creatively.

Chapter Five: Connect and Share describes how reducing distractions can produce new perspectives on the spiritual reality of giving and receiving in our daily lives.

Depending on how each reader best absorbs information, Dragonflies and Turtles can be read quickly or slowly, front to back, back to front or in random pieces.

The Dragonflies website can be found at www.dragonflies.comÊ.

About the Author

Dennis Bernardi worked for twenty-nine years in the addictions field as an International Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (I.C.A.D.C.), community consultant, educator, researcher, administrator, program developer and syndicated columnist. He is co-author of Everybody's Business: A How-To Guide for Establishing a Withdrawal Management Service in your Community (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Ontario). Dennis has two children, Leigh and Aaron, and lives in Timmins, Ontario, with his wife Lynda.