Be the Miracle by Regina Brett. Finished 5-22-12, rating 4/5, 267 pages, pub. 2012

Regina Brett is a popular Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist where she was a finalist in 2008 and 2009 for the Pulitzer Prize in commentary and has her own call-in talk show.  Her breast cancer journey inspired her first book, God Never Blinks:50 Lessons for Life’s Little Detours.  This book follows in the same vein, so that we see everyday opportunities to be a miracle, not only for ourselves but more importantly, others.  Regina was born just south of where I live and has spent her life in the Cleveland/Akron area and is the first stop on my Ohioana author tour.  I met Regina in February at a book signing.

Each of these lessons is short enough to read on a daily basis for a jump-start to your day which is how I approached it.  Since it’s been awhile since I started it I don’t remember all of the lessons and, to be honest, as much as I loved some of them others were equally as forgettable.

There were a few standouts.  Lesson 40 is titled Aim Higher and it’s about Bonnie St. John, the first African American to win Olympic medals in ski racing.  Oh, and she did it with one leg.

Bonnie often goes to hospitals to visit patients and give talks to people who are facing obstacles that seem insurmountable like hers once did.  She met one mother whose 13-year-old son had been horribly burned on his face and arms.  The mother turned to Bonnie and asked, “Will my son ever live a normal life?”

I expected Bonnie to promise, “Of course he will.”  She shocked me with her answer.

“No,” Bonnie said.  “He should aim higher.”

That’s what she did. 

And the last two chapters were the strongest.  Leave a legacy time can’t erase and If you woke up today, God isn’t through with you yet are both about taking time to reflect on life’s end game and living life to the fullest every moment of every day.

This book definitely had a Christian slant, but I didn’t feel it was preachy, just what’s important in Brett’s life.  I liked most of it and might give her first book, God Never Blinks a try.

I bought this one at the book signing in February.