A copy of William Glasser's book Choice Theory, which was meant to be a present for a good friend, had been sitting on my book shelf for some time before I finally had a chance to meet her and give it to her during the Chinese New Year holiday.
What prompted me to think about giving her the book was when she was suffering from what appeared to be postpartum depression and her overbearing husband simply piled on the pressure. I was hoping that the book, together with my prayer, would help. According to Glasser's choice theory, while "Love and Belonging" is one of the five key human needs, some people seek to meet the need by choosing to exert external control on others, not realising that this would damage relationships and cause unhappiness, which is quite the opposite of the outcome they intend. I thought this was something my friend and, particularly, her husband should know. I mentioned the book and the theory to her and she seemed interested, but I didn't have a chance to pass it on. Fortunately, her postpartum depression was healed after she sought medical attention, and it seemed that her husband also tried to improve his attitude upon seeing how she had suffered. But I believed that the book would still be useful, so I made it a Chinese New Year gift.
I ran into her when having afternoon tea today and the first thing she told me was that she had read more than 70 pages of the book and found it very useful. What was even more encouraging was the news that her husband is also learning to apply what the book teaches.
It is always a joy to share knowledge. It is even more so when the shared knowledge makes a difference.
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