Cynthia Wolfe

I grew up in the Middle East , born in Lebanon to an American mother from Ohio and an Armenian father from Egypt and Aleppo Syria. I LOVED my childhood but transitioned to the USA for college and was not able to return to Lebanon for a quarter of a century due to its civil war created by various powers in the Middle East. When I did return, with my husband and children by then, it validated all my memories. By then, I had finally found Home in Olympia WA, and my "tribe", but it took 25 years to make my transition successfully complete. I came from practical, flexible, tough, curious, independent and adaptable stock, but it still was not easy. Between Worlds described the situation and emotions of being a person who has one foot in each world, but who can never be in both simultaneously. I never "fit" in totally in either world, but I never would want to. In the depths of my soul I knew that I was uniquely a mix and was glad for it. I was more comfortable and connected to a sense of Oneness and Humanity than most of my friends and relatives on either side of the Ocean, and I am grateful for that. Loved this book.

Describes how working directly with the public as well as with bureaucracies which have become overloaded, out of touch, and inefficient, it is possible to make highly effective changes by using well designed (human-centered!) IT programs. This relatively new movement has shown huge effects where it has been used, successfully making processes much more efficient, saving time and money, while providing more benefits to the public. This is a fast read about the successes and gives hope.

BEAUTIFUL paintings of different trout. One can tell that the author and artist has a real passion for the fish - and an amazing talent to depict them. Truly art.