I finally have a quiet moment to write you to tell you about my experience with the insights that I gained from your book. I have always tried to be polite and acknowledge people but I hardly ever made a conscious effort to take those acknowledgments to a higher level. I read your book the first time and enjoyed it, but a lot of that enjoyment came from having a personal acquaintance with and in interest in the author.

I took your book with me to read again while I waited for Jim to have the heart catheter procedure as I had several hours to wait for the procedure to be performed. Your suggestions on acknowledgment held a more personal meaning for me when I learned the disturbing news of the extent of his heart disease and realized that his life was literally in the hands of strangers.

We were in the critical care unit, the cardiac surgical critical care unit and the cardiac step down unit over the course of 10 days. Jim had cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, physicians assistants, critical care nurses, dieticians, physical therapists and housekeepers taking care of him. We had friends, family, co-workers and strangers all praying for a positive outcome for him. I was truly grateful for each and every kindness shown to him and to me and I was able to express my gratitude and acknowledgment to so many of them because of the reminders I got from your book. I don’t know if it made a difference to those I was able to acknowledge, but it made a difference to me to do it. It was a little uncomfortable in the beginning saying more than a heartfelt “thank you”, but I got more comfortable as I got practiced at it. I still have a long way to go, but at this point your book has served me well and I plan to keep practicing.

When James first brought it home I never dreamed that I would get my first chance to practice acknowledgments in such a serious situation. Thank you so much for sharing it with me.