Becca's Inspirational Book Blog

WHEN YOU NEED TO BE INSPIRED…

Life Tweets, Inspirational & Spiritual Insights That Will Change Your Life — Tom Rapsas has compiled his favorite inspirational quotes and provided his own take on each one of them, offering added insight on how to apply each gem of wisdom in our lives. One of my favorites that I opened to at random is “Love like you’ve never been hurt.” Tom’s explanation on why it’s best to let your love flow without restrictions — to see it returned with the same energy — gives you another reason to forgive and forget.

This is a wonderful book to read when you’re a little off or if you just want to start your day with a bit of inspiration. I found the quotes all so wonderful, and the explanations so wise, that I read the entire collection of 200 quotes in 3 sittings. But I know I’ll go back over and over again to pick a page at random, to be uplifted, to help me see the “bigger picture.”

One of Tom’s Life Tweets is “Your answers lie inside you. All you need to do is look, listen and trust.” We should all take advantage of his suggestions to use quiet introspection, prayer or meditation to our day. However, I’ll include reading, especially reading that inspires you to make your life the best that it can be, like this book.

I was so intrigued by his collection of wise sayings, I asked Tom to share a little more insight with us:

Q: What inspired you to write the book?

TOM: For over a decade, I collected spiritual and inspirational quotes, putting them in odd notebooks that would eventually make their way to my attic where they collected dust. When Twitter came along, it seemed like the perfect way to share my collected quotes with others, so I began to tweet one or two of them a day.

After awhile, one of the things I realized was that the 140-character limit of Twitter was limiting. I wasn’t able to expand on what the quotes meant to me, what insights could be gleaned from them — so I began writing what eventually became Life Tweets. From the almost 1,000 quotes I had tweeted through mid-2011, I chose my 200 favorites and wrote brief passages about each one, explaining their meaning to me and how they might also help guide and inspire others.

Q: What do you hope readers will take away from your book?

TOM: I believe that the right words literally have the power to change our perspective on life and the path we take moving forward. So I’m hoping at least some of these quotes and insights will have an impact on the life of those who read them and help change their life for the better.

Some of the insights really demand some contemplation. So ideally the reader will consume them in small doses, no more than a few at a time. This will give the reader the ability to let their meaning really sink in. I’m planting the seeds and from there it’s up to the people who read the book to take the next step.

Q. Where do you find your inspiration?

TOM: I primarily find it in the writings of other spiritual writers, my all-time favorites are Thomas Moore, Napolean Hill, John Templeton, Ralph Trine and Ralph Waldo Emerson. But there are too many others to name, including some recent books I’ve read by Ram Dass, Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Mirabai Starr (and yes, Becca Chopra!)

I also find inspiration when my brain is at rest. This happens during and after my morning runs, which really seem to have a calming, centering effect on me. And, I love the beach, any beach, which definitely has a restorative and energizing effect on my soul.

But I’ve found inspiration in places as diverse as a jam-packed bus commuting to New York City, playing with one of our nine cats, or sitting in a chair on a small plot of land at the side of my house where the breeze brings the shrubbery to life.

Q. What is the best thing anyone has said about your book?

TOM: I’ve had a few people tell me that they start their mornings by reading a Life Tweet or two to get their day off to a good start. I think that’s perfect. I personally try to start each day with a little inspirational reading, I just think it puts you in a good place for the day ahead. So I’m glad people are able to find this same kind of inspiration through Life Tweets.

Namaste!

Becca Chopra, author of The Chakra Diaries

www.thechakras.org