For immediate release
Contact: Sandra Strauss
703.273.6457
703.867.7023
Give the Gift of Guts,
Grace, & Gusto
For the women on your holiday list who are often overworked, overwhelmed and over-the-top with competing priorities, Dancing through Life with Guts, Grace and Gusto – Fancy Footwork for the Woman’s Sole, is a fitting gift of inspiration. It’s a travel guide for maneuvering through life’s transitions when the dances of change require courage, faith and wisdom—with splashes of joy, humor and sanity along the way. The 233-page book is a collection of stories written by women swept into life-changing events—divorce, disability, disease, death and other detours—and the discoveries and recoveries through their journeys of the unexpected.
Ironically, in the process of writing the book, all three coauthors—professional speakers and experts on effective life strategies—experienced major life shifts.
A mysterious illness struck down Richard, husband to author Sandra Strauss, severely affecting his body, brain and behavior. As the disease progressed, Richard’s behavior became erratic and his judgment faded—he moved out, blocked her access to his medical and mental health treatment and revoked her legal rights to help him. With mental health laws blocking every step of the way, Strauss was only able to get her husband needed treatment when the court system finally intervened.
Allie Bowling, a long-time caregiver to her mother and mother-in-law, both suffering from dementia, was diagnosed with a brain tumor and became single-sided deaf as a result of the surgery and maintained her role as caregiver.
Gail Hahn didn’t marry until she was in her forties, when she thought she found the man of her dreams. Her fairytale marriage ended a mere two years later. She packed her bags and moved across the country in search of a new beginning in the next phase of her life.
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“When the unexpected turned our worlds upside down, we sought to manage all the change and imbalance with as much courage, grace and positive energy we could muster,” says Bowling. “We walk our talk. It was as if we were all being tested in the line of fire. We invited women to share their lessons of their hearts, of how they sustained their spirits, traveled through transitions, and transformed their lives in the process.”
The book’s title reflects that winning spirit. “It takes guts to move forward when life throws you for a loop as well as when you choose to step in a new direction,” says Strauss. “It takes grace to handle transitions, whether by choice or chance. And of course, gusto is needed for breathing energy into whatever you do. Sometimes, even the simple act of breathing is challenging when life slams you hard and knocks the wind out of you.”
As Baby Boomers, collectively they’ve fashioned their share of fancy footwork: undergoing scary medical procedures, surviving life-threatening brain surgery, raising tots to teens then awakening to life as an empty-nester, uprooting parents from their homes, watching dementia ravage their most precious relationships, enduring physical and mental exhaustion from care giving, thinking and doing for loved ones because they had lost the ability to do so for themselves, moving across the country and starting a new life and more, all while juggling their professional pursuits amidst their changing circumstances.
“As we’ve dealt with our own dramatic life changes, we have pondered our purpose, walked in the wilderness of the “Don’t Know Zone”, replaced our priorities, let go of old ways of being and plotted new directions when our old maps no longer served us,” says Strauss.
The Guts, Grace & Gusto logo is represented as a shoe with wings, symbolic for lifting women up. “Sometimes even taking one step forward can be difficult,” says Bowling. “The dance steps of change may be unfamiliar, especially when you may have lost your footing. A good pair of wings can lift you up and get you soaring again.” A new pair of wings might be the perfect gift for the dance of imperfection.
For a free chapter and more information visit : www.GutsGraceandGusto.com.
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