The Simplest Gift
by Stefanos Xenakis
Harlequin
Athens-based Stefanos Xenakis is a social media phenomenon who has a passion for self-improvement. He has come a long way from the scared little child who couldn’t stand up for himself, was scared to say ‘no’ to someone, scared to do what he wanted and even scared to put his hand up in class.
A decade ago, he began writing a notebook, filling it with the miracles that were all around him and his perception of life was transformed. Appreciating the small joys in life made him revise how he looked at the world and he began sharing the wonders he was finding with others.
Even finding beauty in ugliness and seeing the positive in distressing situations, he connected with other people and discovered he could take chances, face fears, accept mistakes, question beliefs and break out of his comfort zone.
Xenakis believes in karma – that life always seems to balance out and we get what we give, even when we least expect it. Certainly striving to be the best person you can be and leaving the world (or your small part of it) a better place than you found it is a worthwhile life goal. I like his analogy that if we feel resentful, it is like drinking poison and hoping that the other person will die.
Having attended many motivational workshops and read widely on the subject of self-improvement, many of the homilies he passes on will sound familiar as they have been around for a while. Xenakis admits that he sometimes rediscovers wise, old adages and rewords them to make them seem cool.
Believing that every day is a gift is a way of looking after the most important person in the world – yourself. The Simplest Gift is one of those books you can dip into and take what you want to help appreciate life’s gifts. If you smile at life, it will smile back; embrace it and it will embrace you.
Lezly Herbert
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