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The ESL Times / December, 2001
"EXISTENTIAL REALISM"
Adventures in Being
Alfredo Rubio
1992
By Julius Letikirich
Are you happy with your life? Do you enjoy living, or some days do you feel that it would have been better if you had never existed? Are there aspects of your past which continue to trouble you? Do you feel that the circumstances of your birth have contributed to your unhappiness? For all these questions, we can find the solutions in Adventures in Being. In Adventures in Being, the author, Afredo Rubio, used real stories; he shows how all of us can cut ourselves loose from the dead fingers of the past. Alfredo Rubio was a doctor and a former lecturer on the history of medicine at a university in Barcelona, Spain. Adventures in Being has helped me appreciate who I am and to be thankful for all that has happened in my past. Alfredo Rubio writes in Adventures in Being: "If my father had declined from the invitation to that party where he first came across my mother....Or if they had not fixed another day for the wedding... Or even if that day, being cross with each other, they hadn't made love, I would not have existed."
This sentence helped me to remember to thank my parents for bringing me into the world with the help of God. I also learned from Adventures in Being to look at all the circumstances of my life where I am weak and to try to improve for the best and make my life fruitful.
Adventures in Being contains 22 different stories. These stories are real situations of the lives of different people which are very interesting because you can find many that seem to relate to your own experiences. Although Adventures in Being does not have photos, which would have made it more interesting, Alfredo Rubio writes clearly in a way that arouses your attention. For instance, in one story, Rubio discussed how love can change a person's outlook.
Alfredo Rubio is a medical doctor and a teacher. He chooses to arrange all the stories in Adventures in Being in the form of case histories, in pedagogical form. I believe that Adventures in Being is a book for everybody because it helps us to realize our existential reality. Adventures in Being has already caused thousands of people to reassess their lives; this can be done by reading the stories, by trying to apply them to your life and by reflecting on them.
Psychologists, clergy, and even professional diplomats have used Adventures in Being and found the case histories useful. I believe that all those who come to know and read and understand these stories, will draw more pleasure from life because they will come to greater understanding of human nature and to a real peace within themselves which others will be grateful for also. Go out and read Adventures in Being-- it will be useful for your life and your future.
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