A Warm and Practical Guide to Writing the Perfect Card Message Are you at a complete loss for words when a birthday card or congratulatory card circulates at the office? When was the last time you mailed a "thinking of you" card to a faraway family member, just to say hello? What should you write to a grieving friend? How do you comfort a colleague in a time of need? Every greeting card needs a personal, handwritten message to make it complete. In this comprehensive, encouraging guide, journalist and lifestyle expert Sandra Lamb offers a wealth of advice, inspiration, and examples for anyone who wants to add the perfect personal touch to their card messages---as well as anyone who wants to know the etiquette of when and what to write. Something as small as a heartfelt message on a greeting card can help remedy our hectic, e-mail--dependent lives. Lamb provides tips and sample messages for every occasion under the sun, both happy and somber (thank-you, birthday, birth and adoption, condolence), and explains the meanings of possibly unfamiliar holidays and religious rituals to aid in the writing of appropriate messages. This personal, indispensable guide will help you rekindle the joy of putting pen to paper and truly connect with loved ones and friends.

A Message to the Heart was originally supposed to be a compilation of poetry. It was something that I was writing as a hobby or whenever a feeling or a thought I wanted to write a rhythm to came. There were even times I would sit there with pencil and paper and having nothing, wanting to write but my mind just go blank. Still sitting there holding the pencil, all of a sudden words would just start to come to me and I would start to write, and in doing so, it was very different and original. I would tell myself when I go back to read them, "Where did that come from?" Further through life, I started to separate the moment poems from forced poems. The moment poems, when I read them, seemed to ring a message. Not knowing what the message was, I would feel like the poems were unfinished or missing something. I couldn't figure out what it was, so I sit them to the side. I actually stopped writing altogether. It wasn't until a few years later when I started attending a nondenominational church, and going home at night, I would flip through the Bible to go over certain scriptures the pastor had touched on. One night, an exact same thought I had written in one of my moment poems word for word sounded out like a siren going off in my head. I was fast in finding my poems and was in awe of how matched the words were. So that started me on my mission of searching, seeking, and looking for the meaning of what I had written. There were certain words that stuck out like a sore thumb in which they are now called power words. Now I had it in my mind that God was saying something. Continuing through the years, studying the words, reading and rereading my poem, searching through the Bible concordance, and ultimately searching through each scripture listed under each word. I had to discern which scripture truly interpreted, not how the power word was used but how, when reading the poem, it spoke to my heart. And in compiling all this together through a process of a whole lot of ups and downs, trial and error, life lessons, a true message came through.

Every loss mama deserves to be reminded she is the mother of all mothers.

Journey to the Heart by New York Times bestselling author of Codependent No More, Beyond Codependency, and Lessons of Love, contains 365 insightful daily meditations that inspire readers to unlock their personal creativity and discover their divine purposes in life. “Melody Beattie gives you the tools to discover the magnificence and splendor of your being.” –Deepak Chopra, author of Jesus and Buddha

“As poet, prophet, and priest, Thurman builds upon a powerful legacy of ancestral hope: belief in a liberating God who can always be found ‘in and among the struggling.’” —Yolanda Pierce A universal beacon of hope and endurance for people of all faiths seeking to meet the challenges, uncertainties, and joys of life Howard Thurman’s Meditations of the Heart is a beautiful collection of over 150 prayers, poems, and meditations on prayer, community, and the joys and rituals of life by one of our greatest spiritual leaders. Thurman, a spiritualist and mystic, was renowned for the quiet beauty of his reflections on humanity and our relationship with God. In a new foreword, Yolanda Pierce, dean of Howard University’s School of Divinity, calls attention to the justice-centered theological framework of Thurman’s words. Pierce notes how Thurman brings to light an image of God who can always be found “in and among the struggling,” both in times of weariness and in strength. First written for and shared with his congregation of the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco, California, these meditations sustain, elevate, and inspire. They are a universal beacon of hope and endurance for people of all faiths seeking to meet the challenges, uncertainties, and joys of everyday life with a renewed and liberating faith.

A Message from a Mother’s Heart is a compelling autobiography that chronicles the life of Ana Lydia, who grew up as one of five children in a border town in Sonora, Mexico. In the summer of 1977, Ana Lydia’s life takes a dramatic turn when her mother decides to uproot the family and move to California in search of a better life, and to reunite with their father. However, Ana Lydia’s journey towards a brighter future is riddled with unexpected tragedies and setbacks that take a toll on her young life. Her life takes a rebellious and reckless turn as she grapples with the events that unfold before her.