Life is a Verb

“We need this book.”

-poet Naomi Shihab Nye

Life is a Verb: 37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful, and Live Intentionally (Globe Pequot Press, 2008)

About the book:

In October 2003, Patti Digh’s stepfather was diagnosed with lung cancer. He died 37 days later. The timeframe made an impression on her. What emerged was a commitment to ask herself every morning: What would I be doing today if I had only 37 days left to live? The answers changed her life and led to this new kind of book. Part meditation, part how-to guide, part memoir, Life is a Verb is all heart.

Lee Hancock Dallas Morning News
“Damn, girl. You write good.”
Sam Keen NY Times best-selling author of Fire In the Belly
“Life is a Verb is at once beautiful, profound and helpful–you can’t beat that combination.”
Jesse Kornbluth HeadButler
“The stories in the news these days are so big. Tectonic plates are moving. History is being made. But then, it always is. Life is a Verb is a reminder that our lives are bigger than the stories in the headlines. A small thought? Not to me.”

Within these pages―enhanced by original artwork and wide, inviting margins ready to be written in―Digh identifies six core practices to jump-start a meaningful life:

  • Say Yes
  • Be Generous
  • Love More
  • Trust Yourself
  • Speak Up
  • Slow Down

Within this framework she supplies 37 edgy, funny, and literary life stories, each followed by a “do it now” 10-minute exercise as well as a practice to try for 37 days―and perhaps the rest of your life.

Hear Patti read from Life is a Verb:

At the Georgia Center for the Book, Decatur, Georgia

“Write to Remember” from Life is a Verb

“Say Wow When You See a Bus” from Life is a Verb

“Save Face for Someone Else” from Life is a Verb

“Say Hi to Yaron,” from Life is a Verb

You can purchase the audiobook of Life is a Verb, read by the author, here. The paperback of Life is a Verb is available from Patti’s online shop or from any of these retailers:

Lisa Gates
"Patti Digh writes like her hair is burning. You will dog-ear the pages and circle words and phrases and write in the margins. Patti is a great big, wide open contribution to the planet."
Patricia Ryan Madson Stanford Emerita,
author of Improv Wisdom: Don't Prepare,
Just Show Up
"Reading Life is a Verb is like mainlining goodness. Digh shows us what is real and what matters, and she gives us insiders tips on how to make minuscule life corrections that result in quantum shifts in experience. She reminds us that life can easily be fun. This will surely be the last self-help book you will ever need or want to read."
Roger von Oech author of A Whack on the Side of the Head:
How You Can Be More Creative
"Life Is A Verb is a wonderful treat! Reading it will help you appreciate just how much can be gained through living with intention. It's also a lot of fun."
Jennifer Louden author of The Woman's Comfort Book
"I adore Patti Digh’s book Life is a Verb. I love her writing, her depth, her sizzle. This is a book that makes me sing with life and the possibilities we all have for transformation and awareness. It is the best antidote I’ve got these days for the pain and fear raging around us."

All of the art in Patti’s last six books has been created by readers of her blog, 37days. Here is a selection of the reader art from Life is a Verb: