Discovering Joye by Jim Stovall

Stovall never met Joye Kanelakos. He only knew her as the mother of one of his colleagues and coworkers, Dorothy. When Joye was near death, she told her daughter about a special box. After her death, her children went through the box and found a treasure. The box was filled with Joye's poetry. Dorothy read one of them to Stovall and the scene came alive in his mind.

Stovall realized there are discoveries like Joye's poetry to make every day. He shares some of the discoveries he has made through his relationships with others. It may be a discovery he made while on a speaking engagement or something one of his wise friends said. He relates the story and adds one or more of Joye's poems.

Here are some of his discoveries:

“We must savor each moment with the special people in our lives as we never know which moment with them will be our last.” (27)

“Every season is a gift, every day is an opportunity, and every moment is a treasure. Spend them all wisely.” (46)

“Being grateful today makes you appreciate yesterday and anticipate tomorrow.” (130)

The poems from Joye are moving. Here is one of my favorites:

Our Legacies

Every footprint that we take

Makes a change where we have passed.

Small things there beneath our heel

Are changing where the print was cast.

What then could any difference make

When ruthless paths our courses take?

Beneath our heel some things will bend

Without the strength to rise again.

The nineteen stories that Stovall tells are encouraging and full of insight. There is one on money and another on friends. He encourages learning, celebrating family, giving joyfully, practicing gratitude, choosing happiness, and includes many other topics on living life.

Stovall does an amazing job of revealing the insights found in Joye's poetry. The combination of poetry and prose makes for pleasant reading. This book would be a wonderful gift. Its small size and short chapters of wisdom would be appreciated by anyone loving poetry. Stovall's book is a good reminder that we all leave a legacy. What kind of a legacy it will be is up to us.

Find out more about the book and read a couple of paragraphs at http://www.discoveringjoye.com/.

Jim Stovall began going blind at seventeen and was fully blind at 29. He is the president of the Emmy award-winning Narrative Television Network. He is the author of twenty books, including the bestselling The Ultimate Gift. Find out more at http://www.jimstovall.com/ and www.narrativetv.com,

Destiny Image, 172 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Book Club Network for the purpose of an independent and honest review.