Pleasures & Ponderings

Experiencing life as an art form, March 17, 2004

Ms. Vestan is a connoisseur of experience, pure and simple, which she raises to an art form. She never loses her childlike wonder and delight in enjoying the simplest of things. One minute it is found ingredients in the refrigerator for a meal, the next enjoying herself at a nudist camp and coming up with always intriguing observations. An entrepreneur of the spirit and relisher of all experience!

She has broken the book up into 8 sections, from "Tasting and Savoring Life's Pleasures" to "Family Matters: Pigtails to Gray Hair" to "Figuring it Out". You can read 77 delightful vignettes, like daily meditations, that will have you laughing, bring wonder, share raw honesty, and experience pure joy from events like a wheelbarrow ride. These 2-4 page pieces each draw the reader in as if addressing questions, feelings and delights with a friend. Do one a day for your reminder to openness! The words in her Dedication probably say it about as well as anything: "To all who are nurtured in their pursuit of meaning, who delight in everyday pleasures, who grow from open-heartedness, and who love themselves and others with compassion."

Her work on this book deserves praise for her delight, wonder, honesty, zaniness, and love that she relates beautifully through the stories of daily rituals. As her stories seep into you, you find yourself seeing, living experiences never even dreamed of, but suddenly enjoyed. It is a book of possibility. Are you stymied or stuck in your thinking or your life? Read these pages and be ready for openings into new possibilities! It inspires with its imagination, soothes with its tender care, jolts with its fascination of all that's around us. . I got a chance to experience great depth and breadth of living. Let yourself feel it all! Enjoy yourself on the journey!

Put on your seatbelt and get ready to enjoy a courageous, wild ride. Here's a woman who doesn't need permission for who she is or what she does. She's a fast thinker whose writing is amusing, passionate, insightful, sensual, matter-of- fact, about the exotic and the everyday, all in one. You'll want to read Vestan just to share in her sense of wonder and possibilities.

Here's what another wrote: (Sage)
Want reading fun? This is it! Rich stories, images and interesting truths. A reader's dream to read aloud...Moreah's stories are amazingly vivid. She hides nothing. I could hear, smell, see and feel it all. A simple truth is that Pleasures and Ponderings makes me glad I was taught to read.....I wandered into her world but I think what she really did was walk me deeper into mine.

For the twenty years I've known Moreah, I have witnessed what she has written. She has what people envy, an ability to translate her experiences so that you (the reader) can live a more rewarding life.Through her writings, you will be able to understand " When all doors seem closed and locked, that's why God made windows. "You might ask "Who Am I?' I am a product of her wisdom.

Want to awaken your senses? Moreah, in Pleasures and Ponderings, reminds us all how to walk through our day with child-like delight, and step into the brilliance of every moment. This smorgasbord of reveries invites us all to the simple joys of life. Absolutely uplifting!

Moreah's thinking is definitely outside the box. In fact it is liberating, mind altering, and yet nurturing at the same time. If you are, however, comfortable in your box, this is not the book for you. As Moreah shares her journey from obedient child to autonomous woman, you might be inspired, shocked, amazed, or enlightened, but never bored.

She draws the best from her own experience and other teachers of Nonviolent Communication to convey the spirit of truly listening with empathy and communicating with compassion.

Kelly Bryson, Don't be Nice, Be Real - Balancing Passion for Self with Compassion for Others. Certified trainer of Nonviolent Communication. LanguageofCompassion.

Moreah's soulful generosity shows up through her personal stories. She conveys wisdom as she shares her journey. She connects and shares more deeply than most people I know.

Elizabeth Crouch, Synergems Integral Coaching

Moreah has an easy, yet interesting array of essays that are a delight to read...it's the kind of book you want to take to bed, read and relish in a leisurely fashion. Delightful!

Trudy Parman, Seattle, WA

As the title suggests, Moreah Vestan has lived an interesting life. Her candid personal essays celebrate her free spirit and inspire the reader to relish life's small daily pleasures.

Lisa McCullough, Seattle, WA

Moreah's reflections touch a chord with me on my life long search for a perfect partner. I have gone through many, many relationships and have learned from each one. I shared in that process with her. I'm struck by her writing style. Each vignette is an adventure in itself.

Jon Jarvis, Seattle, WA