More or Less by Jeff
Shinabarger
I think most of us don’t
think of ourselves as being rich or of having enough money to make our lives
more complete. In this book by Jeff Shinabarger, the author challenges this
mindset, directly stating that ‘Chances are, if you are reading this book, you
are rich’ (2013). By “rich”, he means that we have all we need to live a normal
fulfilling life. He challenges us as the reader to look at our own situations
carefully and think about all the excess possessions we don’t really need to
have. This book is not simply about the author sharing theoretical ideas that
we can contemplate, he shows us practical ways how to turn our excess
possessions into generosity towards others.
Shinabarger’s encounter with Clarence, a local homeless
man, who welcomes him after he moves into his new house in East Atlanta village
is the pivotal moment when the author is forced to change his way of thinking
and to ask himself the question ‘what is enough?’ He begins by examining his
own comfortable financial and material position and contrasts it with Clarence
who is homeless. When Clarence asks for help, he does so and also uncovers
other ways to help those who need it.
Through a series of stories and his own personal anecdotes,
the author explains real life examples of the things we can do to help people
that we know either personally or not. At the end of each chapter, there is the
‘Enough Talk’ section that offers practical ideas, which the reader is
encouraged to undertake. The first task the author himself does is to live for
one month on all of the food in his home. Amazingly, he manages to survive on
this for about two months (147 meals, 3 meals a days for 7 weeks) proving that
there was so much food in his house that he and his wife had kept in storage. This
is just the first of many examples he gives to show the excess in his life that
many of us have in common in some way.
Different chapters focus on different areas of our lives
that we can look at and change. Clothes, presents and other material
possessions are looked at from the point of view that invites the reader to
take at look at his / her own life and the excesses we may have. A personal
success of the author is Gift Card Giver, a scheme devised to collect unwanted
or unused gift cards in order to then donate them to others who are worse off
than we are. This has been immensely successful with enormous amounts of money
raised to help out people who need this. This is a prime example of how we can use our
excess things of value to help those who need it.
This
book is a motivating read for those looking to get some ideas on how to connect
with other people and also to have a look at themselves from a different
perspective. It offers refreshing ideas on how to make changes in our lives and
encourages us to lead by example, which will then have a knock on effect on
others. Shinabarger’s book is refreshingly honest as the author admits moments
when he felt that things were not quite right in his own life. The most
empowering element about this book is that he changed and there are many other
examples of how other people also did something positive with their lives. I
recommend this book for all those out there who are looking for some practical
ideas on how to be more generous and how to be connected with other people in
their communities and elsewhere. It is sometimes hard to believe that little
gestures can make a big difference but this is something that Shinabarger
argues against in this book. Through his examples and suggestions, he
challenges us to contemplate what we can do to make a difference, however small
that may be. It has certainly made me think about the excess in my life. Now it's time to do something about it.
More or Less,
(2013) Jeff Shinabarger, Published by David C. Cook, Canada
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