The Year Of Small Things

When Sarah and Tom Arthur were appointed to a suburban church after three years in an urban Christian community, they faced a unique challenge: how to translate the practices of "radical" faith into their new context. Together with their friends and fellow church members Erin and Dave Wasinger, the Arthurs embarked on a yearlong experiment to implement twelve small practices of radical faith--not waiting until they were out of debt or the kids were out of diapers or God sent them elsewhere, but right now. This book is Sarah and Erin's story, told with humor, theological reflection, and practical insight, exploring such practices as simplicity, hospitality, accountability, sustainability, and social justice--but, most of all, discernment. Along the way readers will consider how God might be calling them to embark on their own year of small but radical changes, right where God has planted them. Each chapter includes discussion questions and suggested readings. Foreword by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. For more information, visit [www.YearofSmallThings.com](http://www.YearofSmallThings.com).

The God Of Small Things, The International Best Seller By Arundhati Roy, Has Raised Numerous Questions. Is It A Piece Of Anti-Communist Propaganda? Does It Distort Social Reality? Is It A Cheap Imitation Of The Western Fashion In Novel? Does It Offer Nothing But Play With Words? The Present Book Examines The Novel Sociologically And Answers All These Questions Well.The Book Also Shows That The Novelist Cares For The Neglected In The Society Like Women, Children And Dalits And Even The Environment. She Conveys Messages So Relevant To Our Society And Our Age.

Its the Small Things is an invitation to take customer experience seriously; not just as a sustainable way of differentiation, but as a way to improve your customer service and inspire your team. Its intended for all people and organizations who want to go beyond selling something to meaning something. Its about moving past carrying out mere commercial transactions to building relationships and surprising with pleasant experiences.Creating memorable experiences is a powerful form of differentiation. Value propositions are becoming homogenized, so audiences pay less and less attention every time. No matter what you sell or what industry youre in, everything implies a significant level of service. Whether you are a sales rep, a freelancer, or the head of a large corporation, the service you provide and the experiences of those who buy from you make a difference. Each experience determines whether a customer will buy from you again and recommend you to others, or whether it will be the first and last time you see them.Its about how your customers perceive all of their interactions with your company. These interactions happen all the time: before, during, and after the purchase; with all kinds of people and processes. The quality of the experience isnt determined by the company, but by the customer according to his own perception and expectations.This book offers examples from different parts of the world, especially from Latin America.

How the leisure class has been replaced by a new elite, and how their consumer habits affect us all In today’s world, the leisure class has been replaced by a new elite. Highly educated and defined by cultural capital rather than income bracket, these individuals earnestly buy organic, carry NPR tote bags, and breast-feed their babies. They care about discreet, inconspicuous consumption—like eating free-range chicken and heirloom tomatoes, wearing organic cotton shirts and TOMS shoes, and listening to the Serial podcast. They use their purchasing power to hire nannies and housekeepers, to cultivate their children’s growth, and to practice yoga and Pilates. In The Sum of Small Things, Elizabeth Currid-Halkett dubs this segment of society “the aspirational class” and discusses how, through deft decisions about education, health, parenting, and retirement, the aspirational class reproduces wealth and upward mobility, deepening the ever-wider class divide. Exploring the rise of the aspirational class, Currid-Halkett considers how much has changed since the 1899 publication of Thorstein Veblen’s Theory of the Leisure Class. In that inflammatory classic, which coined the phrase “conspicuous consumption,” Veblen described upper-class frivolities: men who used walking sticks for show, and women who bought silver flatware despite the effectiveness of cheaper aluminum utensils. Now, Currid-Halkett argues, the power of material goods as symbols of social position has diminished due to their accessibility. As a result, the aspirational class has altered its consumer habits away from overt materialism to more subtle expenditures that reveal status and knowledge. And these transformations influence how we all make choices. With a rich narrative and extensive interviews and research, The Sum of Small Things illustrates how cultural capital leads to lifestyle shifts and what this forecasts, not just for the aspirational class but for everyone.

Rich, soul-inspiring practices for moms who have neither quiet nor time. Dirty laundry, crayon-smeared bills, and smashed crackers . . . And there’s your Bible—buried under a pile of diapers. Bleary-eyed from lack of sleep, without a moment of peace and quiet, you wonder if the spiritual life you crave is even possible. But God sees you. He designed this parenting journey, after all. He understands the chaos of motherhood. And he joins you in everything—whether you’re scrubbing the floor, nursing a fussy newborn, or driving to soccer practice. Catherine McNiel invites you to connect with God right here, in the sacred mundane of every mothering moment.

“I think I have been laid up nearly two years on this sofa, Phillis?” said I. “Two years, come the 6th of October,” said Phillis. “And, during that time, what mercies I have received! what alleviations, what blessings!” “What sea-kale and early spare-o’-grass! what baskets of grapes and pottles of strawberries!” said Phillis. “What songs in the night, what in-pourings of strength!” said I. “So many pheasants, too, and partridges!” said Phillis. “Teal, woodcocks, and wild ducks!” “David might well say, the Lord maketh our bed in our sickness, Phillis,” said I. “Such a pretty bed as it is, too!” said Phillis. “So white, sweet, and clean! Russia sheets and Marseilles quilt, bleached on a heath common, close by a sweetbriar hedge!” “Not only that—” said I. “Not only that,” said Phillis, “but such pretty daisy-fringe to the curtains, and a clean tarletan blind to the window.” “Such a lovely view from the window!” said I.