Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The Universe holds us and tosses us about, only to hold us again.
With Things That Join the Sea and the Sky, Mark Nepo brings us a rich and compelling resource of short prose reflections to turn to when we're struggling to keep our heads above water--and to help us surface and breathe into all of our sorrows and joys.
Readers explore 145 offerings from the acclaimed poet and teacher, gathered into 17 themes, intended to be entered individually or as an unfolding sequence. Here, Mark's own personal accounts of "sinking and being lifted" serve as the seeds for each selection, each unfolding insight relevant to our own lives.
For those inspired, this collection also includes a guide to the practice of daily writing, with 100 compelling journaling questions to get us started.
Synopsis
A Reader for Navigating the Depths of Our Lives
The Universe holds us and tosses us about, only to hold us again. With Things That Join the Sea and the Sky, Mark Nepo brings us a compelling treasury of short prose reflections to turn to when struggling to keep our heads above water, and to breathe into all of our sorrows and joys.
Inspired by his own journal writing across 15 years, this book shares with us some of Mark's most personal work. Many passages arise from accounts of his own life events--moments of "sinking and being lifted"--and the insights they yielded. Through these passages, we're encouraged to navigate our own currents of sea and sky, and to discover something fundamental yet elusive: How, simply, to be here.
To be enjoyed in many ways--individually, by topic, or as an unfolding sequence--Things That Join the Sea and the Sky presents 145 contemplations gathered into 17 themes, each intended to illuminate specific situations.
The themes include: Unraveling Our Fear, Beyond What Goes Wrong, The Gift of Deepening, The Practice of Relationship, What Holds Us Up, Right-Sizing Our Pain, The Reach of Kindness, Burning Off What's Unnecessary, How We Make Our Way and many more.
For those interested in either beginning or expanding their own journaling explorations, this reader also provides a guide to the practice of daily writing, with 100 compelling questions to get us started. "Joy is the sea that holds all," writes Mark, "the Unity of Being where feelings don't separate, but surface like waves to remind us we are alive."
Here, he helps us swim in those waters until we are held in the mystery of their buoyancy.
Synopsis
A Reader for Navigating the Depths of Our Lives
"When we can open our hearts and work with what we're given, loving what's before us, life stays possible. Then, through effort and grace, we do what we can with what we have. And when exhausted by all that's in the way, we're faced with the chance to accept and love what's left, which is everything. This is how we discover that Heaven is on Earth." --Mark Nepo
The Universe holds us and tosses us about, only to hold us again. With Things That Join the Sea and the Sky, Mark Nepo brings us a compelling treasury of short prose reflections to turn to when struggling to keep our heads above water--and help us breathe into all of our sorrows and joys.
Inspired by his own journal writing across 15 years, the book shares with us some of Mark's most personal work. Many passages arise from accounts of his own life events--moments of "sinking and being lifted"--and the insights they yielded. Through these passages, we're encouraged to navigate our own currents of sea and sky, and to discover something fundamental yet elusive: how, simply, to be here.
To be enjoyed in many ways--individually, by topic, or as an unfolding sequence--Things That Join the Sea and the Sky presents 145 contemplations gathered into 17 themes, each intended to illuminate specific situations.
The themes include Unraveling Our Fear, Beyond What Goes Wrong, The Gift of Deepening, The Practice of Relationship, What Holds Us Up, Right-Sizing Our Pain, The Reach of Kindness, Burning Off What's Unnecessary, How We Make Our Way, and many more.
For those interested in either beginning or expanding their own journaling explorations, this reader also provides a guide to the practice of daily writing, with 100 compelling questions to get you started.
"Joy is the sea that holds all," writes Mark, "the Unity of Being where feelings don't separate, but surface like waves to remind us we are alive." Here, he helps us swim in those waters until we are held in the mystery of their buoyancy.