Anne Lamott is an inspiring writer, so I was excited to hear her speak about her latest bestseller, Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers. “On a recent book tour,” Lamott explained, “the interviewer got the title wrong, and he referred to it a lot in the [live radio] interview as ‘Help, Thanks, Whoa!’ That’s an even better title,” she decided. “Help, Thanks, Whoaaaa!” And I agree.
Lamott has been through a lot—alcohol and drug abuse, financial problems, serious family illnesses, and the challenges of single parenthood—and has come out on the other side, sober and spiritually alive. Speaking at St. Andrew Church in Marin City, she shared personal insights:
- “I believe in action. I go outside. I get on my knees. I pick up the 200-pound telephone.
- “I forgive myself for being ambitious, for having done well, for the many mistakes I’ve made in every area of my life.
- “Radical self-care is one of the most important themes of my life. I was raised to be … so depleted by trying to make everyone else OK. When I watched myself talk, I
saw that the oppressor was inside of me. Now I do not talk to myself that way … It was the hardest work I’ve ever done. - “The secret of life is…” Read more in the article I wrote about Anne Lamott for The Women’s Eye.
