What? Quit our jobs, sell everything, and take the kids on a 4 year adventure through the Caribbean and South America? Are we crazy? You will laugh out loud as you read the inspiring true story of a family who abandoned their crazy, stress-filled days to live a life of adventure. Carla and Dan were living what was supposed to be the American dream-the big house, successful corporate careers, and two young, wonderful children. But it all came at a cost-the constant stress of the weekly morning race to work and school, the tired weekends, a family headed in different directions, the struggle to keep it all together as effortlessly as everyone else seemed to be doing, and the overwhelming fear that the struggle to live this life was costing them a life of happiness. They knew they had to make a dramatic change, so over the objections of family, friends, and co-workers, that's what they did-they made a big change. Though not proficient sailors, they sold their house and most of their possessions, bought a sailboat, and with their six-year-old daughter and ten-year-old son, left on a four-year adventure, sailing through the Caribbean and backpacking through South America. "Everything that defined who we were was gone. Now it was time to find out who we are." They sailed down the Caribbean, battling the fears of storms, pirates, and homeschooling. Surviving those things and more, the foursome were not only surprised to still be talking to each other, but were inspired by how strong they had become as a team. Encouraged and emboldened, they left their sailboat in Aruba and backpacked through South America where they: Fought off biting ants in the Amazon Reveled in the beauty of Machu Picchu Observed penguins in Chile Hiked to a glacier on top of a volcano in Ecuador Stood star-struck in the remoteness of the Atacama Desert Wanderlust still not satisfied, their expedition branched out to the US. The family crossed the country by train and RV, where they became schooled in the art of RV parking by German tourists and learned the dangers of mistaking a fellow camper for a potato chip eating bear. The best part of their odyssey was connecting with other cultures and reconnecting as a family, learning they will always be stronger when they are together. Whether you can sail a boat, ride a bus, take a train, or just cross the street, Carla and her family will inspire you to live a life without borders.

"Consider going on the adventure of your life--one of profound love, real joy, and many surprises along the way. [This book] is the true story of Linda Vannoy-Castillo, who chose to follow Jesus at age five, and three years later began her fifty-plus-year journey as a missionary. Her story is an inspirational illustration of a life dedicated to saying yes to Jesus anytime, anywhere--through disappointments, death of a spouse, infertility, and cancer diagnoses. In this book you will see Jesus at every turn and begin to understand that guidance is always nearby; detours can be unplanned adventures; relationships hold us and mold us; your life has a purpose and a plan. You are designed by God for something only you can do. Learn from your past, take charge of your present, and plan for your future."--

From the founder of This Gathered Nest YouTube channel, an uplifting story of Angela Braniff's unusual path to becoming the mother to seven children through various methods of adoption and biological approaches, encouraging women and mothers to embrace the unique purpose that God has put in their lives. Angela’s love for life and her family radiates through everything she does. The Braniff household includes their two biological daughters, Kennedy, 12, and Shelby 10; Rosie, 7, who was adopted from China with Down syndrome; Noah, 7, adopted from Congo; Jonah 5, adopted domestically; and finally, Ivy and Amelia, their one year old twins who were adopted as embryos, and implanted in Angela, who gave birth to them. In fact, after the book was finished, they joyfully welcomed a new baby into their home, Benjamin, through adoption, making them now a family of ten! Love Without Borders shares Angela's relatable, humorous, and honest view of motherhood. Angela chronicles her journey to discover God’s purpose for her life. For years she walked the safe, expected path, until one day she could feel God calling her to boldly step out and follow him into new places, which led her to raise a large, non-traditional family that looked different than she ever imagined. It was a winding path to motherhood, complete with heartbreak from failed adoptions, challenging pregnancies, and secondary infertility, but through it all Angela found the unique adventure God had for her. She has shared her family’s stories on her popular YouTube channel, This Gathered Nest, and now invites us in to go deeper and listen to where God might be calling us to go and who we’ve been tasked with loving, no matter how unusual (or just plain crazy) it may sound! The beauty of God’s plan is he uses imperfect people to bring about perfectly beautiful stories.

Across half a century, from the division of Germany through the end of the Cold War, a cohort of thirty women from the small German town of Schönebeck in what used to be the GDR circulated among themselves a remarkable collective archive of their lives: a Rundbrief, or bulletin, containing hundreds of letters and photographs. This book draws on that unprecedented resource, complemented by a set of interviews, to paint a rich portrait of “ordinary” life in postwar Germany. It shows how these women—whether reflecting on their experiences as Nazi-era schoolchildren or witnessing reunification—were united by their complex interactions with official power and their commitment to sustaining a shared German identity as they made the most of their everyday lives in both the GDR and the Federal Republic.

Business leaders in today’s borderless global marketplace face unprecedented challenges. The emergence of the knowledge economy has demanded that business leaders become global leaders. Successful global leaders are those with strategies for guiding and empowering a diversified workforce operating in different countries, cultures, and time zones so that they can maximize the returns from trading in a worldwide market with distinct local needs. Leadership Without Borders poses the question: What advice do successful global leaders have for future and current global leaders? Part 1 distills the practical insights provided by a large number of global business leaders into five key areas: The personal characteristics required to ensure success as a global leader. The business acumen needed to thrive as a global leader. Methods for expanding global awareness – or “worldview”. The people leadership skills and attributes needed to succeed in any environment. Business leadership skills and attributes that will enhance global leadership ability. The practical suggestions in business acumen, worldview, people leadership skills, and business leadership will equip the readers to become leaders in the new borderless marketplace. Each chapter ends with a summary of the global leadership viewpoints presented, to assist you in building your own checklist of global leadership knowledge, skills, and behaviors that you can start to use right away.

Life in Crisis tells the story of Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders or MSF) and its effort to "save lives" on a global scale. Begun in 1971 as a French alternative to the Red Cross, the MSF has grown into an international institution with a reputation for outspoken protest as well as technical efficiency. It has also expanded beyond emergency response, providing for a wider range of endeavors, including AIDS care. Yet its seemingly simple ethical goal proves deeply complex in practice. MSF continually faces the problem of defining its own limits. Its minimalist form of care recalls the promise of state welfare, but without political resolution or a sense of well-being beyond health and survival. Lacking utopian certainty, the group struggles when the moral clarity of crisis fades. Nevertheless, it continues to take action and innovate. Its organizational history illustrates both the logic and the tensions of casting humanitarian medicine into a leading role in international affairs.

*"This superb anthology of short stories, comics, and poems is fresh, funny, and full of authentic YA voices revealing what it means to be Mexican American . . . Not to be missed."--SLC, starred review *"Superlative . . . A memorable collection." --Booklist, starred review *"Voices reach out from the pages of this anthology . . . It will make a lasting impression on all readers." --SLJ, starred review Twenty stand-alone short stories, essays, poems, and more from celebrated and award-winning authors make up this YA anthology that explores the Mexican American experience. With works by Francisco X. Stork, Guadalupe Garcia McCall, David Bowles, Rubén Degollado, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo, Diana López, Xavier Garza, Trinidad Gonzales, Alex Temblador, Aida Salazar, Guadalupe Ruiz-Flores, Sylvia Sánchez Garza, Dominic Carrillo, Angela Cervantes, Carolyn Dee Flores, René Saldaña Jr., Justine Narro, Daniel García Ordáz, and Anna Meriano. In this mixed-media collection of short stories, personal essays, poetry, and comics, this celebrated group of authors share the borders they have crossed, the struggles they have pushed through, and the two cultures they continue to navigate as Mexican Americans. Living Beyond Borders is at once an eye-opening, heart-wrenching, and hopeful love letter from the Mexican American community to today's young readers. A powerful exploration of what it means to be Mexican American.