The Book Thief

Set in Nazi Germany, narrated by Death, a story of resilience, the power of words and of standing up against that which is wrong. There are many reviews on the internet, but I recommend you just read The Book Thief without knowing what to expect.

The archives [6]

Seven deadly sins
Tuesday 05 February, 2008 - 16:38

I'm currently reading a book called '365 ways to change the world' by Michael Norton. It will take me a year to read, as I'm limiting myself to one entry per day so I can really think about some of the things. It includes all sorts of ideas - not just 'greenie' stuff, but also social justice, consumerism, health, employment and enterprise, culture and more.

The entry for February 2 starts off with the 'traditional' seven deadly sins: pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed and sloth, and the medieval Church's punishments for each sin, including the enforced consumption of rats, toads and snakes (for gluttony), and immersion in boiling oil (for greed).

The book then lists Mahatma Gandhi's seven dealy sins for the modern world, and I think they bear thinking about:

• Wealth without work
• Pleasure without conscience
• Science without humanity
• Knowledge without character
• Politics without principle
• Commerce without morality
• Worship without sacrifice

A lot of the problems in society (and that can mean anything from yourself and your immediate family to our global society) can be traced to the desire for the first without due consideration to the second. Perhaps to attain a true state of happiness (and I'm certainly nowhere near it, although I have my moments) the key word in everything is 'balance'.

And just because I can - here is my latest hair colour - Scream Hot Pink:



[Note: the husband has been earning his keep and making dinner, so no food photos for the moment :) And that's not all - he did some vacuuming last night! Something must be wrong, but I'm not complaining!]