(MENAFN- EIN Presswire) EINPresswire/ -- Life is never a smooth story. Rather, it manifests itself in brief meetings, random interactions, the burlesque, and the modesty of everyday life. Gregory Allen Badersnider's new work, Picking Up Sticks, a mid-term project, expresses this fact in a set of works that are both highly personal and fully universal.

The stories by Badersnider are not presented in a chronological sequence, but rather in themes capturing the randomness of life itself. Structured into parts like Day by Day, Adventures, Side Hustle, Climbing Mountains, Afrika, The Outdoor Poet, and Time Out, the project compiles pieces of experience that are mundane and revelatory. Describing a heartrending encounter with a homeless woman, finding that there was more than just foolishness in a conversation with a stranger, or laughing at his clumsiness in the presence of an angry turkey, the author shows that even the smallest details can be significant.

Picking Up Sticks is reflective and playful. Humor is not excluded as mundane but seen as a must-have in the learning and growing process. Laughter will soften the suffering, and difficulty is re-packaged as a carrying experience. What comes out is a story that can make readers smile despite reflecting on the deeper lessons of life.

Throughout the book, there is an underlying theme of motion. In South African wedding chapels and the Michigan wilderness, Badersnider shows us that life demands movement-knocking us down, educating us, and compelling us to continue moving. The image of picking up sticks becomes a kind of guiding figure of speech: every stick is a burden but also a resource, something to collect and turn into light and warmth.

Reading this collection is like sitting by a fire and listening to a storyteller who perceives what other people miss. Badersnider delivers sensitive, witty, and respectful work that stays with you for a long time after you read it.

About The Author:

Greg Badersnider is a highly experienced individual with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Central Michigan University and a successful four-decade career in the insurance business. He works part-time and uses his free time to pursue new endeavors and reflect on the moments that have defined his life.
He lives in Rockford, Michigan, with his wife of forty years and growing. They have three grown sons of which they have imparted to them the values of character and integrity. The philosophy of Greg is simple and at the same time deep: each day I get a chance to do something good, even if it is something little. Being an outdoorsman and a fan of the simple things in life, he is committed to taking every new stage with purpose and enthusiasm.

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