Everything to Gain

As Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter left the White House in early 1981 they faced an uncertain future. Like many people who retire, they just weren't sure what to do with themselves and all of their free time. To make matters worse, they still had to deal with the hurt they felt after having lost the 1980 election. The decisions they made about their future have vaulted Jimmy Carter from having lost his bid for reelection in a decisive manner to one of the most beloved figures in the United States. In 1984 President Carter was no where to be seen at the Democratic National Convention, twenty years later Democratic Presidential candidates beat a path to Plains, Georgia to try and obtain his blessing. Along the way the Carter's learned many valuable lessons that apply to anyone who may feel that their productive years have passed. This book is the story of what they learned. This book was published in 1987 and was I believe President Carter's third post-Presidential book and Mrs. Carter's second book and both of them had become quite good writers. They are both open and honest about their feelings and concerns, especially Rosalynn and because of this their narrative reaches the reader on a very personal level. Many of the activities they describe were only possible of course because of the office Mr. Carter held and because of the Carter Center but they go to great lengths to point out many worthwhile activities that anyone can participate in. Reading this book will definitely make you stop and think about all of the things you could be doing to help others and I think that was the Carter's goal. Part travelogue and part handbook for volunteerism this book will give you the warm fuzzies all over. You will feel sad with the Carter's and laugh with the Carter's and you will feel as if you had known this former first couple for years. You will in fact feel like you have traveled with the Carter's and maybe even helped them build a Habitat house. If you are looking for a retirement gift for anyone, this would be a perfect choice!

Collaboratively written by former American President and winner of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize Jimmy Carter, and his beloved wife and former First Lady, Rosalynn Carter, Everything To Gain: Making The Most Of The Rest Of Your Life is a revealing and inspiring memoir about personal challenges they've had to face and overcome; the satisfaction of their work with Habitat for Humanity; their struggles to promote peace and human rights; and the personal steps they've taken to enjoy physical and spiritual health at home. Everything To Gain is enthusiastically recommended as a deeply rewarding and heartfelt encouragement to living our lives to the fullest.

... even former Presidents and their First Ladies, as Jimmy and Rosalynn show us in this, their entry in the self-improvement / retirement advice category. Of course, anybody who's not a Dem is likely to be unwilling to take any such advice from the self-styled peanut farmer and his wife. So, I'm going over my stock of acquaintances, trying to remember who voted for Carter. The book would make a great gift not just for recent retirees, but also those whose life has just gone through change, whether it be a layoff, a disabling illness, or the death of a spouse. Sure wish my father had read it, twelve years ago, when my mother died -- so many ideas for him! Instead, he simply curled up in front of the TV. Jimmy and Rosalynn show how devastated they were by their 1980 defeat, then, step by step, how they rebuilt. Parts of the book delve too far into global health and other policy issues, but chapter after chapter, they introduce new activities, like a flower opening! If you're tired of fist-pounding self-improvement tomes, here is one that feels like a gentle friend, sitting beside you, arm around your shoulders, sharing the same problems you're having, and showing you several ways out of the "box" you've built for yourself. Read it and relax, then, go out and make the most of the rest of your life -- whether it's the next ten or next fifty years.