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If You Would Be Happy: Cultivate Your Life Like a Garden
Simple-living advocate Ruth Stout, author of "Gardening Without Work," believed that life just doesn't have to be so hard! In If You Would Be Happy, she once again helps you find the sense amid all the nonsense that life offers, and find simplicity amid the rough and tumble of life.
She "It is happiness, not perfection, we're concerned with here, and they're not necessarily even related." "Our activities are successful insofar as they are giving us real satisfaction." "Any experience, trivial or important, is likely to give us more pleasure if we are interested, unhurried, and are looking for the best the situation has to offer. It also helps if we expect something good, for in that case we don't overlook it if it's there in front of us." "We must forever keep in mind that it is our inside feelings we are aiming to change; we are really going to become a serene and pleasant person, not merely give the appearance of one."
She "It is happiness, not perfection, we're concerned with here, and they're not necessarily even related." "Our activities are successful insofar as they are giving us real satisfaction." "Any experience, trivial or important, is likely to give us more pleasure if we are interested, unhurried, and are looking for the best the situation has to offer. It also helps if we expect something good, for in that case we don't overlook it if it's there in front of us." "We must forever keep in mind that it is our inside feelings we are aiming to change; we are really going to become a serene and pleasant person, not merely give the appearance of one."
164 pages, Paperback
Published May 22, 2016
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About the author
Ruth Stout
22 books23 followersRuth Imogen Stout was the fifth child of Quaker parents John Wallace Stout and Lucetta Elizabeth Todhunter Stout. Her younger brother Rex Stout, an author, was famous for the Nero Wolfe detective stories.
Stout moved to New York when she was 18 and was employed at various times as a nurse, bookkeeper, secretary, business manager, and factory worker. She coordinated lectures and debates and she also owned a small tea shop in Greenwich Village. She worked for a fake mind-reading act.
In 1923, she accompanied fellow Quakers to Russia to assist in famine relief. She met and married Alfred Rossiter in June 1929. In March 1930, the couple moved to Poverty Hollow at Redding Ridge, on the outskirts of Redding, Connecticut.
Ruth continued to use her maiden name as her pen name and Rossiter as her official name. Fred, a Columbia-trained psychologist, followed his passion for wood turning and subsequently became known for his wooden bowls. Ruth decided to try her luck at gardening, and in the spring of 1930, she planted her first garden
Stout moved to New York when she was 18 and was employed at various times as a nurse, bookkeeper, secretary, business manager, and factory worker. She coordinated lectures and debates and she also owned a small tea shop in Greenwich Village. She worked for a fake mind-reading act.
In 1923, she accompanied fellow Quakers to Russia to assist in famine relief. She met and married Alfred Rossiter in June 1929. In March 1930, the couple moved to Poverty Hollow at Redding Ridge, on the outskirts of Redding, Connecticut.
Ruth continued to use her maiden name as her pen name and Rossiter as her official name. Fred, a Columbia-trained psychologist, followed his passion for wood turning and subsequently became known for his wooden bowls. Ruth decided to try her luck at gardening, and in the spring of 1930, she planted her first garden
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 27, 2020
I love Ruth Stout’s writing - like talking to a wise, feisty aunt. Her wisdom mirrors lots of paths I’ve explored - mindfulness, cognitive therapy, simplifying life. Fun read, full of good insights.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews