Practical wisdom from poets, philosophers and scientists – alongside advice, inspiration, activities, meditations, and much more – to connect you with nature and the seasons on your daily walk. Being outdoors is a balm to the soul, and what better way to experience the wonders of nature in all their seasonal glory than with a daily walk? This thoughtful guide explores what happens to our minds, bodies and spirits when we spend time outdoors and suggests a wide range of beneficial walking activities, meditations, reflections, advice and inspiration to help you connect with nature and get the most out of each season. Whether basking in summer sunshine or crunching golden leaves underfoot, finding joy in springtime blossom or taking solace in winter’s hush, you can enjoy the benefits of a positive mindset, happier social interactions, resilience – and much more! – that the beauty and power of walking in nature can bring.

Discover how all trees can mirror us, teach us and heal us.  As author Alice Peck reflected on the maple tree in her backyard, she began to notice and then study its intricacies and changes. This became her regular meditation and inspiration. In Tree Wisdom, Alice shares what she has learnt from that maple tree, and from the trees all around us. Every tree tells a complete and ongoing story – they evolve along a much more protracted timetable than humans. Alice explores trees from four perspectives: their roots – wisdom and understanding; their branches – symbols and rituals; their leaves – healing and science; and their seeds – transformation and spirituality. All of these elements show us how, although they live outside us, trees offer a path to our inner selves. Filled with insights from botany to poetry, ecology to mythology and herbalism to sacraments, Tree Wisdom explores the ways these grounded yet soaring entities can steady and move us, teach and transform us, inspire and comfort us.

"How can we find what is sublime in our everyday encounters with food? Where is God in the supermarket? Can we see the holy in a strawberry?" from the Introduction

Food plays a remarkable role in the daily routine of our lives. Whether we make time to eat with our families, or hit the drive-through on the way to doing something else, food and how we approach it has the extraordinary power to unite us with others and nurture our connection to the Divine.

Provocative and insightful, the eclectic and beautiful pieces in this book will open your eyes to the awe-inspiring link between nourishment and nirvana. Drawing from many faith traditions and backgrounds including Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, Native American, and Sikh the words in this volume paint a glorious picture of the sanctity waiting to be discovered in a thing so simple and yet so divine as food.

Contributors include: Geoffrey Shugen Arnold, Sensei Wendell Berryi Joan Chittister, osb Ram Dass Marc David Kahlil Gibrani Jane Goodall Thich Nhat Hanh Barbara Kingsolveri Julius Lester Mary Rose O'Reilley Mary Oliveri Grace Paley Omid Safi Kristen Wolfi and many others"

Discover the joy – and health benefits – of walking and seeing the natural world. In this delightful guide, Alice Peck explains how, rather than simply providing a way of getting from one place to another, the simple practice of walking can have huge benefits for us, both physically and mentally, from ageing more slowly to sparking creativity. When we walk mindfully, we can reconnect with our body and the earth beneath our feet and discover a sense of calm. Walking outside also offers us a chance to be in nature, which improves our health and wellbeing, evokes awe and nurtures our soul. With inspiration for ways to walk, including forest-bathing (strolling through trees and wooded areas), earthing (walking barefoot in the mud), embracing friluftsliv – the Norwegian philosophy of enjoying the outdoors, and even a trip round the block, as well as easy meditations to try, Mindful Walking will soon get you on your feet and out of the house to enjoy the healing effects of taking a walk.

Discover some of the world’s most awe-inspiring and holy places, from Stonehenge to Uluru, and Walden Pond to Angkor Wat. Humans have always searched for and created meaning in the world around them, whether in breathtakingly stunning natural features and phenomena, acknowledging the ancient home of a particular faith or movement, or honouring the location of a significant event. In this beautifully illustrated guide, Alice Peck discusses what makes a place spiritual – whether reaches of time, geography, the provision of sustenance or inspiration, or mystery and magic – and then explores 80 such locations around the globe. Rather than a comprehensive travel guide, the description of each one includes a detail or tip – something beautiful, strange, relatively unknown or unfamiliar – to allow readers to deepen their focus and perhaps experience the place in a different way than they might expect. If you are unable to travel at this time, this book will help you plan your next adventure. And if you are trying to limit your carbon footprint, each destination is accompanied by a related meditation, prayer, practice or quotation to help you connect to the spirit of it from your own home.

Chris Grosso invites us to sit in on conversations with beloved luminaries and bestselling authors such as Ram Dass, Lissa Rankin, Noah Levine, Gabor Mate, and Sharon Salzberg to discover why people return to self-defeating behaviors--drugs, alcohol, unhealthy eating, sex, media--and how they can recover, heal, and thrive. In his recovery from drugs and alcohol, Chris Grosso has stumbled, staggered, and started all over again. In an effort to understand why he relapses, and why many of us return to the myriad of other self-defeating behaviors despite our better judgment, he went to bestselling authors, spiritual teachers, psychologists, doctors, and more, and asked them why we tend to repeat mistakes in our lives, even when we know these actions will harm us and the ones we love. In Dead Set on Living, Chris shares these intimate conversations and the practices that have taught him to be more loving, compassionate, and forgiving with himself as well as new meditation and healing techniques he learned through his journey. Unabashedly honest and inspiring, Dead Set on Living is essential reading for anyone seeking a path towards triumph over adversity, understanding the human condition, and rebuilding relationships after promises have been broken.

Explore the place where clean and holy meet and chart
a new course toward discovering sanctity.

I ve always sought solace in cleaning.... As my husband and I packed up our apartment and cleaned the profound dust of the Twin Towers from our books and pillows, we used this shared ritual as an opportunity to reflect and heal. As my neighbor once said, Cleaning house is my church. from the Introduction

Be they our kitchens after a meal or our communities after a crisis, we all face the times and opportunities when we must clean up. Through a beautiful, diverse and eclectic array of personal narratives, fiction, sacred texts and verse, this inspiring book offers new perspectives on the unique ways we can reach out for the Divine within the simple acts of washing the dishes, doing the laundry, making a home and more. Giving the process of cleaning house depth and resonance, these writings will speak to your heart and allow you to see beyond the task at hand and into a greater undertaking to realize the sacred in all that we do.

From sweeping the home, to organizing the office, to cleaning up the more daunting Big Messes in our communities, this engaging book touches upon every facet of our lives.

"How can we find what is sublime in our everyday encounters with food? Where is God in the supermarket? Can we see the holy in a strawberry?" —from the Introduction Food plays a remarkable role in the daily routine of our lives. Whether we make time to eat with our families, or hit the drive-through on the way to doing something else, food and how we approach it has the extraordinary power to unite us with others and nurture our connection to the Divine. Provocative and insightful, the eclectic and beautiful pieces in this book will open your eyes to the awe-inspiring link between nourishment and nirvana. Drawing from many faith traditions and backgrounds—including Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, Native American and Sikh—the words in this volume paint a glorious picture of the sanctity waiting to be discovered in a thing so simple—and yet so divine—as food. Contributors: Diana Abu-Jaber • Diane Ackerman • Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya • Barbara Tanner Angell • Geoffrey Shugen Arnold, Sensei • The Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows • Michael Benedikt • Wendell Berry • Brother Lawrence • Edward Espe Brown • Martin Buber •Elias Canetti • Lynn L. Caruso • Joan Chittister, OSB • Laurie Colwin • Amanda Cook • Mary Beth Crain • Lama Surya Das • Ram Dass • Marc David • Zen Master Eihei Dogen • Meister Eckhart • Rick Fields • Betty Fussell • Kahlil Gibran • Bernard Glassman • Jane Goodall • Julia S. Kasdorf • Karyn D. Kedar • Haven Kimmel • Barbara Kingsolver • Jacqueline Kramer • Rabbi Irwin Kula • Julius Lester • Alison Luterman • Jalal ad-Din ar-Rumi • Sister Miriam Therese MacGillis • J. B. MacKinnon • Sara Miles • Helen Nearing • Bich Minh Nguyen • Vanessa L. Ochs • Mary Oliver • Mary Rose O’Reilley • Grace Paley • Lawrence Raab • Omid Safi • Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji • Rabbi Zalman M. Schachter-Shalomi • Lynne Meredith Schreiber • Rabbi Rami Shapiro • Guru Gobind Singh • Alisa Smith • Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki • Jessica Swift • Nancy Willard • Kristen Wolf

Explore the place where clean and holy meet—and chart a new course toward discovering sanctity. "I've always sought solace in cleaning.... As my husband and I packed up our apartment and cleaned the profound dust of the Twin Towers from our books and pillows, we used this shared ritual as an opportunity to reflect and heal. As my neighbor once said, 'Cleaning house is my church.’" —from the Introduction Be they our kitchens after a meal or our communities after a crisis, we all face the times—and opportunities—when we must clean up. Through a beautiful, diverse and eclectic array of personal narratives, fiction, sacred texts and verse, this inspiring book offers new perspectives on the unique ways we can reach out for the Divine within the simple acts of washing the dishes, doing the laundry, making a home and more. Giving the process of cleaning house depth and resonance, these writings will speak to your heart and allow you to see beyond the task at hand and into a greater undertaking—to realize the sacred in all that we do. From sweeping the home, to organizing the office, to cleaning up the more daunting “Big Messes� in our communities, this engaging book touches upon every facet of our lives. Contributors include: Louisa May Alcott • Gaston Bachelard • James Baldwin • Andrea Barrett • Mary Catherine Bateson • Jeannette Batz • Sue Bender • Stephen Vincent Benét • Henri Bosco • Sarah Ban Breathnach • Gwendolyn Brooks • Brother Lawrence • Dominique Browning • Yitzhak Buxbaum • Lydia Maria Child • Joan Chittister • Billy Collins • Amiya Corbin • John Crawford • Dorothy Day • Shoghi Effendi • Rick Fields • Sir James George Frazer • Tess Gallagher • Mahatma Gandhi • Allen Ginsberg • Bernard Glassman • Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb • Tenzin Gyatso • Thich Nhat Hanh • Nathaniel Hawthorne • Homer • Ashley Isaacson • Martin Luther King, Jr • Dorianne Laux • Ursula K. Le Guin • Eric Leigh • Jarvis Jay Masters • Cheryl Mendelson • Mother Teresa • Pablo Neruda • Marsha Norman • Gunilla Norris • Kathleen Norris • Kakuzo Okakura • Marc Poirier • Louise Rafkin • Otagaki Rengetsu • Rainer Maria Rilke • Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche • Marilynne Robinson • Taigu Ryokan • Hannah Whitall Smith • Starhawk • Henry David Thoreau • Gary Thorp • Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe • Booker T. Washington • Jessamyn West • Richard Wilbur • Virginia Woolf • Anzia Yezierska

A repo man with a degree in criminal justice and a background in grand theft and B&E, Brocston Harley has never tried to avoid his black sheep label or his father's ire. His little brother, Drew, was the golden boy. The favorite son, heir to the Harley real estate fortune, and recently engaged, Drew had everything a young man could want. When he's found dead of an apparent suicide, Brocs knows in his gut it has to be murder. When the police come to the same conclusion, Brocs finds he's the number one suspect. It will take all of his skills to stay out of prison, unearth an ugly family secret and discover who murdered his brother and why.