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Book details

  • Genre:body, mind & spirit
  • Sub-genre:Inspiration & Personal Growth
  • Language:English
  • Pages:176
  • Paperback ISBN:9781098321703

Thursday Mornings

Breathe, Stretch, Listen, Love

By Ruth Mannino

Overview

Thursday Mornings is an in-depth look at eight members of America's fastest-growing age group, senior citizens, as told in their own words from childhood through adulthood. What brought this diverse group together to a chair yoga class in a small New Jersey town is only part of the story. The truly interesting and more provocative narrative is in the details of where and how each overcame adversity, showing courage, adaptability, tenacity, and, perhaps most importantly, the ability to see the humor in what life throws our way.
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Description

Through a dichotomy of life experiences, the author presents an account that is part history lesson and part love story with loss and redemption headlining the interviews. Readers will discover what it was like to have front row seats to World War II; how it felt when communism took over land once called home; the feeling of wonder experienced by a young child upon seeing the Statue of Liberty after enduring a long Atlantic voyage; what it was like to be an integral part of civil rights activism of the 1960s; how it felt to be gay before the LGBTQ movement; what it was like to lose loved ones and continue to live when all life's enjoyment left with them. And lastly, how they confront the myriad of physical complications that inevitably come with aging. The reader will meet people who are vulnerable, yet proud; fragile in body but indomitable in spirit. People who were willing to let down their guard and agree to candid story telling. In turns funny, wistful, tragic, and hopeful, this book is a testament to the power of faith, optimism, purpose, and love.
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About The Author

RUTH MANNINO was born, educated, and married in Buffalo, New York. After working and raising her family in Niskayuna, New York, she moved to Robbinsville, New Jersey to help with her daughter's growing family. She is a mother of four, grandmother of five, math teacher, tutor, and retired business analyst in the health care industry. She is an avid reader of all genres, enjoys a good mystery, and loves jigsaw puzzles, a form of meditation. An active member of her local YMCA and senior center, she leads weekly chair yoga sessions with fun-loving seniors in their sixties through nineties, gaining a respectful appreciation of how everyone deals with aging on their own terms. After reading Happiness is a Choice You Make by John Leland, the idea for this book was born, and her lifelong ambition for authorship came to fruition.
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Book Reviews

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Diane
Thursday Mornings Such beautiful stories of unique and diverse individuals! Each story is a testament to the versatility and tenacity of the human spirit! Each is written with the loving words of the gifted author, Ruth Mannino! You can tell that she has a true interest in the lives of each storyteller and she retells their stories expertly! I hope others enjoy these life stories as much as I did! Read more
Megan
Ups Downs and Side steps Thursday Mornings reminds you that although life is not made of straight lines your ups, downs and side steps can still make a beautiful picture. One can tell that the author had a immense affection for all the souls in this great book. I feel like I could be fast friends with any and all of them. I walk away from this book a little more empowered because I know that life doesn't stop when you get to a certain age - you just keep drawing your picture. Read more
Matthew
We’re All Special Delightful insight into the extraordinary personal lives of the very ordinary people who allowed the author to tell their most extraordinary stories. Like Hubble Telescope’s revelation of countless galaxies when it examines of an ordinary patch of dark space, Ruth Mannino brings to light the rich, textured lives of eight seniors in her chair yoga’s class and, in so doing, brings us along to experience the joy, pain and beauty of day-to-day life. Her telling of their stories reminds us we all have a special story to tell, if we’re just lucky enough to have someone ask. Thursday Mornings: Breathe, Stretch, Listen, Love is an enjoyable and must read addition to your holiday reading list. Read more
Deborah
Thursday Mornings What a wonderful feel good book for these difficult times! The stories were all so interesting and diverse. It’s amazing to think that 7 seniors attending the same yoga class in the same community could have such different life experiences all over the world. What a wonderful read! ( and reread) Read more