Clinical psychiatrist, psychoanalytical teacher and lecturer -- as well as furniture designer and woodworker -- Harvey L. Rich, who splits his residency between Washington, D.C., and Paris, France, began working on In the Moment, which examines the necessity of being aware of life's everyday moments, prior to the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001. And, thus, his introduction begins with his second thoughts and hesitations about continuing to work on the book, thinking the topic trivial in the wake of the devastation that had just rocked our nation. But, through encouragement from friends and patients alike, Dr. Rich soon realized that the topic of the book was even more relevant after such a tragedy -– that the celebration of life’s moments provides us with what is of true value about our individual and collective existences.

From the first chapter, where Rich begins by sharing fond remembrances of his mother and how she touched so many lives by simply opening her heart and her home to anyone who had a need, to the last chapter, entitled “A Legacy of Celebration,” which opens with a quote by Gilda Radner:

“I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next.”

“Create a legacy of celebration. Celebrate yourself in a way that affirms your identity, your history, your presence, and the possibility you envision for your life. Celebrate others in the same way. The large life is not determined by the size of a bank account, the prefixes or suffixes attached to a name, the stamps on a passport, or by lengthy résumés, as some would have you believe. The largeness of a life is determined by the focus we bring to the moments of our life and our willingness to create a legacy of celebration for those whose lives we touch.”