Becoming Flame: Uncommon Mother-Daughter Wisdom

Isabel Anders
Wipf and Stock (2010)
ISBN 9781608992669
Reviewed by Marissa Libbit for Reader Views (12/10)

 

“Becoming Flame” by Isabel Anders is a collection of wise dialogues between mother and daughter that seek to pass on wisdom from elder to younger.  Anders maintains that the wisdom of a woman is a treasure, and women evolve in a special way as they age that gives them a keen understanding, confidence, and appreciation for life.  A flame of wisdom passed onto women from generation to generation cannot be distinguished, and women that become the flame have been lighted themselves by other women in their lives. 
      
“Becoming Flame” sets up dialogues between mother and daughter.  The book is a quick read.  There are study group questions at the end that can be pondered as an individual or with other women also reading the book.  I found the dialogues were insightful, and some were challenging enough that I had to contemplate their meaning.  Others were a bit more straightforward.  I particularly liked the conversation where the mother wished for the daughter to sit quietly with her at the end of the day.  The daughter said, “But what of the work yet undone?  Will not tomorrow’s demands press us unbearably if we stop now?”  The mother answered, “There will always be doubt and uncertainty while we are in Time.  But such concerns must not keep us from the Living that all our tasks are meant to serve:  the Being Together.”  So true in today’s hustle and bustle life for us to always be worrying and thinking about what still has to be done rather than enjoying the people and things we have now. 
    
While “Becoming Flame” is relatable, and I could extrapolate the wisdom from the scenarios as I did in the previous example, I would have liked more modern day settings rather than so many “sitting by the fire” type situations that harkened back to a much simpler time. 
     
“Becoming Flame” makes the reader think about how the decisions she makes in her life impact those of the next generation who are watching much more closely than we realize.

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