The beloved bestselling collection of common sense wisdom from a celebrated psychologist and military veteran who proves it's never too late to move beyond the deepest of personal losses After service in Vietnam, as a surgeon for the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in 1968-69, at the height of the war, Dr. Gordon Livingston returned to the U.S. and began work as a psychiatrist. In that capacity, he has listened to people talk about their lives--what works, what doesn't, and the limitless ways (many of them self-inflicted) that people find to be unhappy. He is also a parent twice bereaved; in one thirteen-month period he lost his eldest son to suicide, his youngest to leukemia. Out of a lifetime of experience, Gordon Livingston has extracted thirty bedrock truths, including: We are what we do. Any relationship is under the control of the person who cares the least. The perfect is the enemy of the good. Only bad things happen quickly. Forgiveness is a form of letting go, but they are not the same thing. The statute of limitations has expired on most of our childhood traumas. Livingston illuminates these and twenty-four other truths in a series of carefully hewn, perfectly calibrated essays, many of which focus on our closest relationships and the things that we do to impede or, less frequently, enhance them. Again and again, these essays underscore that "we are what we do," and that while there may be no escaping who we are, we have the capacity to face loss, misfortune, and regret and to move beyond them--that it is not too late. Full of things we may know but have not articulated to ourselves, Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart offers solace, guidance, and hope to everyone ready to become the person they'd most like to be.

On a winter's night in July 2012, Kathy and Ralph Kelly received a phone call no parent should ever have to answer. It was the Emergency department of a Sydney hospital, telling them that their eldest son Thomas had been in an altercation and that they were to come at once. Thomas had been coward punched by a total stranger within two minutes of getting out of a taxi in Kings Cross, on his way to a private 18th birthday party of a friend. Two days after that first phone call Kathy and Ralph were told that their son had suffered catastrophic head injuries resulting in brain death. They were advised that there was no other option but to switch off his life support. He was 18 years old. In the aftermath of their son's death, Kathy and Ralph became the public face of the campaign to end the drunken violence that plagued Sydney's major nightspots. Along with Premiers Barry O'Farrell and Mike Baird they helped institute the lock out laws that have been a major factor in the reduction of alcohol related deaths and injuries in Darling Harbour, Kings Cross and Sydney's CBD. They were also instrumental in creating Take Kare Safe Spaces ('Kare' with a 'K' after Thomas's initials) for young people in key nightspots, which has now registered over 52,000 interventions since December 2014, what the Kellys call 'sliding door moments', the difference between a young person's life continuing on as normal or degenerating into something terrible. And they were one of the driving forces behind the introduction of tougher sentencing for 'coward-punch' deaths. But their campaigning created a huge toll on their family. Online intimidation, death threats and false news about the mishandling of donations came from those with a stake in the clubs and businesses who were the lock out laws financial losers. When Stuart Kelly, Thomas's younger brother, went for his first night at University of Sydney's St Paul's College, Ralph and Kathy believe the bullying he experienced because of the family's profile was so traumatising he left university for good the next day, and wouldn't tell his parents exactly what he'd been made to endure. Five months later, on July 25th 2016, Stuart took his own life. This book is the Kellys' story. How they coped with one unimaginable tragedy, only to find that it had sowed the seed for another. How in the face of these terrible losses they have found the spirit and the drive to campaign first for a safer environment for all our children, and for a greater understanding of young people's self-harm and its drivers.

Author Meaghan Morris asks how feminist culture critics can participate in political struggles about history. Questioning both contemporary cultural theory that imagines a world "beyond" history and feminist approaches to culture that minimize questions of economy, class, and nation, Morris argues that history created by popular culture is never truly "national" in scale or force. 11 photos.

This is a body of work which gives concerned parents and professionals instructive insight into the personality of "problem children" and gives practical suggestions for taking corrective and remedial steps before it's too late.

After repeating the same mistakes over and over again, author Alana L. Lilly often thinks, "What's wrong with me, and when am I going to learn?" Through one horrible relationship after another, Lilly swore to never make bad decisions again. But like many women, she still kept moving from one dysfunctional relationship to the next. Then, something miraculous happened. Has God ever spoken to you-literally reached out and grabbed your attention? People don't believe that this happens today; and at first, neither did Lilly. Like a small drip from a faucet that will not let up-with the constant drip-drip-drip that threatens to drive you nuts-she tried to ignore the persistent thought that God wanted her to write a book. But it didn't work. With His help, and guidance from the Holy Spirit, Lilly eventually trusts in the Lord's imploration to lend her story to those who might share in its message. All females face adversities, hardships, and trials. Life is hard-but turning your back on friends, family, and the ones you love is never the answer. So find a comfortable place to sit and relax, and let Lilly tell you her inspirational story

Gordon Livingston was awarded the Bronze Star for valor during the Vietnam War. He offers advice gleaned from his patients during his thirty years of professional work.