Interview With D Anthony, Author of "The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me, Once"

D Anthony is on a quest to make a difference in the world. He has always felt the need to ask the difficult questions, ever since his life was altered by the untimely death of his mother. Her death set him on a journey to make his life matter again, and eventually, to a selfless desire to inspire others. He now maintains the uplifting website, SomethingToShare as an insightful respite from the unchecked stress and spiritual drain that too often defines our day to day existence, a haven for perspective and a place to inspire. He continues that journey with his new book “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me…Once: Stories and Perspectives to Help You Unlock Your Amazing Potential.”

Tyler: Thank you, D Anthony, for joining me today.

D Anthony: Hello Tyler. It’s great to be here.

Tyler: To begin, will you tell us a little bit about how the book is structured, and why you decided to write it as a series of short stories?

D Anthony: As your question indicates, the book is comprised of motivational and inspirational life stories-as well as poems and maxims. All are categorized within eight chapters involving pretty wide ranging topics such as being a leader, maintaining perspective, having passion, dealing with death and sustaining faith. Within the chapters, the order is random-thus mimicking the randomness of life. Because the book is primarily made up of short stories and poems, each can stand alone, offering its own distinctive motivational and/or inspirational message. This seems to be a popular aspect of the book as frequently readers comment how great it is to be able to pick up the book and read a passage or two anytime they could use a quick injection of motivation and inspiration. A number of readers have commented that they intentionally are not allowing themselves to read the book straight through, cover to cover-instead reading one a day to allow each passage and the associated impact the necessary time to sink in. Some readers have told me that they can’t seem to make it to the end of the book, because they continue to find themselves going back to reread previous passages that uniquely spoke to them.

Ultimately, although the individual passages cover a range of topics and opportunities for growth; collectively they are simply about who we are, who we will be and our degree of happiness, fulfillment and relevance in the time we have. As a whole, the inspiring life stories, poems and maxims offer a frank, yet insightful and empowering perspective for permanently enhancing your approach to, and getting the most out of, this life.

Tyler: D Anthony, that’s a wonderful reaction to be receiving from readers. Would you summarize for us just one of the stories, perhaps your favorite, in the book?

D Anthony: Two have popped into my mind here. So, if it’s okay with you, I’ll give a brief synopsis of each… since each one speaks to a different core message within the book.

There’s one life story entitled, “Lucky You?” that offers a different take on what it truly means to be lucky. It recounts a test that was conducted with two women, with very different personal perspectives as to how lucky respectively each was. Detailing the series of three tests, the inspirational story considers their varying mindsets and behaviors-and how the long-term effects of these enhance or inhibit the ultimate degree of success. In other words, if you really want to increase your opportunities for success, it begins with changing your perspectives, decisions and actions-and stacking life’s proverbial deck in your favor. Then, as your enhanced odds begin to play out, others will refer to you as lucky too.

The second life story, “Back To Normal,” is a very different take on 9-11. With the horrible events of that day as a backdrop, this story considers the altered perspectives, decisions and actions in the days immediately following, our ever present need quickly to get past that day (and every other negative event in our life)…and get back to normal-and the resulting missed opportunities we have to learn and grow. Lastly, the inspirational story questions whether the ‘normal’ that we should be striving for isn’t something a little closer to the ‘normal’ our grandparents and great-grandparents knew… in some respects, the kind of ‘normal’ many of us too (for a limited time) begin to appreciate in the days and weeks following that catastrophic day.

Tyler: Would you tell us a little bit more about “Back to Normal”? Did you do any research on how people’s perspectives were altered on 9-11, or is it purely your imagining a change in perspectives? What happens in the story?

D Anthony: By and large, my passages grow out of experiences, observations and a healthy dose of consideration why-or why not, as the case might be. And the same is true for “Back to Normal.” Some months after 9-11, I found myself absolutely captivated by a television program I happened to stumble upon. From her hospital bed, a woman tearfully recounted her very own incredible story from that infamous day-somehow having survived the harrowing catastrophic event, the likes of which we’d never seen…one that few that day were fortunate enough to walk away from. As I listened to her heartfelt, appreciative words, it struck me how changed her perspective and her life, as a whole, must have been.

Separately, I had been feeling somewhat dismayed about what I was witnessing around me. While immediately after 9-11, collectively it was evident that our priorities had changed. Churches were full, business trips were largely eliminated, society’s new role models fought fires and crime and people spoke to each other on the street-and really spent quality time with their children. I had begun to think maybe, just maybe, there was at least some good that we would collectively derive from that horrific day. Merely months later however, and society’s perspectives had seemingly completely regressed.

Those two perspectives would come together-and “Back to Normal” was the result.

Tyler: D Anthony, the book is divided into eight sections. What is the purpose of those divisions?

D Anthony: The eight chapters in the book represent key aspects relevant for enhancing the degree of happiness and fulfillment in our lives-and thus, each chapter represents a grouping of passages that speak to those respective themes. And so, if you are looking for motivational and/or inspirational perspectives on taking greater charge of your life, and being more of a leader, there’s a chapter. As well, there are chapters dealing with topics such as having perspective, passion, gratitude and faith. There is even a very compelling chapter dealing with a topic that we don’t tend to like to think about, or talk about, much…death.

Regardless of the chapter, however, the message is consistent…If we can simply slow the rollercoaster of life down a little, from time to time, and take an honest accounting of who we are and who we truly want to be-we have the power to begin to change our respective perspectives, decisions and outcomes, thus positively altering every aspect of our lives… on a day by day basis. The more we commit to this, the happier and more fulfilled we each have a real potential to be. And it all begins with how we see ourselves-and the world around us.

Tyler: Besides being a short-story collection, what else do you think makes “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me… Once” stand out from other inspirational and motivational books out there?

D Anthony: First, because the new perspectives, recommendations and advice offered are integrated within insightful, compelling, entertaining and engaging passages the book has considerably more of a comfortable story book feel to it than your typical motivational or inspirational book. To be sure, many of the messages in the book are challenging, direct and rather frank. However, the fact that they are delivered via interesting anecdotes and sometimes humorous, sometimes heartwarming real-life experiences serves to provide a more than comfortable setting for perspective to grow.

It’s been fascinating for me to hear how different motivational and inspirational life stories and poems within “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me… Once” have touched, and impacted, different readers in such distinctive and personal ways. And it’s been equally fascinating to hear some of the perspective inducing rituals people have established around the book such as the woman who relaxes with hers only at bath time (enlightened by the perspective and candlelight) and the man that carries his to his daily lunchtime relaxation spot (where the inspiring messages and majestic bird calls, help bring a little more meaning to his workday).

What is most fulfilling however is the direct, and very much tangible, impact the book is beginning to have in readers’ lives. One reader was able to utilize the new perspectives obtained to deal more calmly and effectively with a major medical scare, another is utilizing it in her fight against depression and yet another is eternally grateful for the perspective and solace the book has brought her terminally ill mother. One reader even confessed the remainder of the book would have to wait-because what she’d read had so inspired her and abruptly reawakened her memory to a true passion she’d yet to pursue.

When it’s all said and done, I wrote the book to make a real difference in people’s lives-and it’s absolutely amazing to see that real difference beginning to occur.

Tyler: I understand one of the goals you had in writing the book was to shed light on and even breakdown many people’s long held limiting thoughts, paradigms and psychological crutches. Would you give us an example of such a limiting thought and how the book puts it in a new light?

D Anthony: One example is, often times, because we are not initially successful at something, or witness someone else fail-we tell ourselves (often subconsciously) to steer clear because future attempts will not succeed. Over time, as a result, we begin to accumulate an ever-growing set of limiting thoughts and paradigms that severely limit our decisions, aspirations and potential going forward. It is important to realize that yesterday’s results do not have to define today’s.

I share the example in the book of the adult circus elephant that can be restrained simply by binding one of his legs with a light rope to the smallest of trees or stakes. Why doesn’t the extremely powerful animal easily break away? As it turns out, from the elephant’s point of view he cannot. You see, when the elephant was young he would be tied to a very sturdy tree with a heavy chain. Try as the young elephant might, he learned when his leg was bound he could not break free. Therefore, in the restrained adult elephant, it is his mental confinement, and not the physical, that keeps his tremendous power at bay.

Understand the implications of this and the impact to our happiness and fulfillment-and the limiting thoughts and paradigms quickly become unacceptable. Understand the implications of this and motivating, inspiring, uplifting and persevering thoughts are the only ones you’ll, from that point, endeavor to have.

Tyler: Wow, D Anthony. What brought such wisdom to you? I’m especially impressed by the way you focus on changing our thoughts? Were you influenced by anyone such as Norman Vincent Peale and his message of positive thinking?

D Anthony: Interestingly enough, I was having a conversation with a twelve-year-old recently about one of the passages in the book entitled “The Majesty.” In the passage I suggest we should wonder about things such as how birds know to fly, how trees know to grow and how the seasons know to change. I further indicated that, from time to time, by taking time out away from the multitude of technological trappings of our lives to marvel at some of the intricacies and complexities in ourselves and in the fascinating world around us-we just might come a little closer to knowing the glory of God. Her response was interesting. She said, “I used to wonder about things like why the sky is blue and how birds fly but, based on reactions from other people, I figured it must just be common sense-so I stopped thinking about those things.” Translation… She’d been conditioned not to wonder anymore.

In the book, I mention that I am not a doctor, and I have no such related degree on my wall. I am merely someone who has, from the time I was a child, been blessed with the need always to ask why-and cursed with the need to find at least a somewhat logical answer. So, when it’s all said and done, I guess the real basis of my stories and perspectives is the fact that I simply never bought into society’s conditioning that I should cease wondering.

Motivational and inspirational influences over the years have been Robert Fulghum, Les Brown, Tony Robbins, W Mitchell, Wayne Dyer and Lewis Timberlake (whose much appreciated praise for “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me… Once” includes-”this is a book that needed to be written”).

Tyler: Our reviewer, Richard Blake, said he especially liked the “Mission” Assignments in the book. Will you tell us a little bit more about the purpose of these assignments?

D Anthony: One of the recurring themes in the book is that each of us has the capability to change the world, in some fashion, each and every day. In fact, not only do we have the capability, whether we realize it or not, we are impacting, and therefore changing, the world every day. Big or small, positive or negative, intentional or otherwise, our attitudes, decisions, actions and achievements directly and indirectly impact the people and the world around us-in turn fostering an ever expanding and meaningful ripple effect. As further evidence, one inspirational story in the book highlights the incredible impact an individual can have on the world. Think about the individual who came up with the idea for Post-It Notepads or the individual who first programmed the computer code for ‘Control-Alternate-Delete’… There’s another inspirational story that discusses how a kind word or a simple smile, can monumentally alter the attitude and actions of others-perhaps even, in an extreme case, deterring a suicide and making possible generations of offspring and associated impacts to come.

So with the perspective in mind that each of us can indeed, in a tangible way, change the world, the Missions, at the end of the chapters, represent an immediate and rewarding way readers can begin to actively take some simple, yet meaningful, perspective, attitude, happiness and fulfillment enriching steps to help make ourselves and the world a little better.

Tyler: D Anthony, would you mind telling us a little bit about your mother and how she died and how that event transformed your life?

D Anthony: In the book, one of the many experiences that I recount is a comment my mother would make from time to time that would frustrate me incredibly. She would say-”Well, I’m just going to leave it in the hands of the Lord.” I can almost hear a much younger, very much personally-empowered me, in an exasperated tone questioning-”What do you mean? Do you think the Lord is going to stop everything else he has to do to help you with the individual situation? He’s already blessed you with everything you need… a working brain, arms, legs, hands, feet, etc. You need to fix it yourself.” In time, my mother would become gravely ill. And there was nothing my positive thinking and personal empowerment mindset could do. In my greatest hour of need I realized something… What my mother was talking about was called faith. And when it mattered most, her logic only grew stronger. My mom would pass away.

I was both angry and devastated. I questioned the fairness, the rhyme, reason and purpose of it all and wondered whether, when it’s all said and done, anything in this life really mattered. Because it helped me release some of pain, I began to write. I was surprised to realize that not only was what I wrote cathartic for me-but for others with similar experiences. And slowly, but surely it became apparent that my experiences had served to crystallize a new, empowering perspective in me-which it was my obligation to share. And that new, empowering perspective resonates throughout the motivational and inspirational stories, poems and maxims in the book.

Tyler: Obviously your mother’s death had to be devastating for you, but it also made you who you are today. Do you wish the past had been different or are you grateful for your present?

D Anthony: An interesting question… I’m extremely grateful for my past. I’m equally grateful for my present. And while most days I would gladly give up everything, and begin again if I could have my mother back-that’s not exactly the way life works. So, I’ve come to believe that people come into our lives and things happen for a reason-and if we’re willing to open our eyes, purpose abounds. Thus, I write to impact people’s lives positively in her name. And somewhere out there my guess is she’s looking down on me, telling the other angels- “that’s my son.” And that’s more than enough for me until, one day, I see her again.

Tyler: D Anthony, what advice would you like to give our readers that will help them to unlock their full potentials?

D Anthony: My advice would be that your readers appreciate the fact that the time we do have is both precious and fleeting. So in that time, each of us must endeavor to passionately get engaged, seek our very own intended purpose, strive to be ever more inspired, get off the bleachers and get in the game.

I have a Daily Affirmation I share in the front and back of “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me… Once” that I would like to share with your readers today. It reads:

The SomethingToShare Daily Affirmation

I affirm that on this day I will…

Take the time to listen to the rustling leaves,

And to the passing breeze that made them so,

Marvel at just a bit of the majestic beauty

In the world around me,

And in some way rediscover the innocence of my youth.

I will tell, or better yet show,

A loved one how much they mean to me,

Help someone in need,

Immerse myself in that, which inspires me,

Strengthen my faith in the Almighty,

And strive to be someone in whom

The Almighty can have faith in return.

I will smile each and every chance I get;

And, whenever I can, bring someone else along for the ride.

I will endeavor to be modest as a rule,

But audacious when called for.

I will always know that I am here for a purpose,

And I will respect and appreciate this day

For the blessed and amazing gift it is.

I affirm that the precious time I have this day

Will be spent wisely,

I affirm, this day, zestfully will be the way I live.

My advice is read the SomethingToShare Daily Affirmation, allowing ample time for it to marinate in your consciousness. Then go out into the world and live it. And the next day, begin again.

Dedicate yourself to this on a daily basis and I believe you will be truly amazed… at how much a new perspective can begin to change all aspects of your life.

Tyler: Thank you for joining me today, D Anthony. Before we go, will you tell us more about your website and what further information can be found there about “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me…Once”?

D Anthony: First, to order the book, read excerpts, see inspiring book reviews and get much more detail you can visit . That’s also a good place to visit if your readers would like to provide feedback about this interview. Of course, your readers can visit Amazon.com and search for “The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me… Once” by D. Anthony to see what Amazon.com reviewers are saying-and to order the book there. And finally, I have a blog that includes postings dedicated to the book, the inspirational site I founded some eight years (or so) ago, and some new motivational and inspirational articles as well. Your readers can visit my blog at .

Tyler… I thank you and your audience immensely for investing the time today. I wish you all much happiness and fulfillment in your amazing days to come.

Tyler: Thank you, D Anthony. I hope you continue to be an inspiration to others and to yourself.

Interview With D Anthony, Author of "The Nurse in the Delivery Room Slapped Me, Once"