It is our nature to transform ourselves from time to time; to cling to old ways is to resist a fundamental law of nature- death before rebirth. In Paths to Transformation, Kate Burns traces this process, correlating it with rituals of initiation and amplifying the stages with a rich collection of images, dreams, and case studies. Historically, the passage from adolescence to early adulthood was supported by extensive rites, and we now know that the absence of such rites in modern life has cast youth adrift and rendered them immature and dependent beyond their years. Similarly, our ancestors venerated aging, including its mortal goal, as a summons to wisdom rather than a horror to be resisted by every possible means. During the expanding years between youth and death, the question of how an individual is to find a personal path worthy of the soul becomes most pressing in our postmodern world. Kate Burns is a Jungian analyst with a private practice in Houston, Texas. With an undergraduate degree in mathematics, she worked as a geophysicist until a downturn in the oil industry sent her back to school for an MBA from Rice University. A desire to explore spiritual issues led her to pursue a master's degree in counseling, followed by studies at the International School of Analytical Psychology, Zurich. She has taught classes at the Jung Center in Houston since 2005 and has devoted herself to the practice of yoga since 2000. She serves on the board of directors for Jungians in Training Zurich, an organization raising awareness about C. G. Jung, his life and work. "This book is both healing wisdom and a guidepost. Kate Burns lucidly shows us how numinous events invade our settled and crafted worlds and challenge us to enter into deep dialogue with the psyche, beckoning us to let go of the old and worn out and go forward into adventure, renewed life, and liberation from social conformity. She speaks with a sage voice that is at once profound and humble. So illuminating are her insights, and so alive her discussions, that I found it difficult to put the book down." -C. Michael Smith, PhD, author of Jung and Shamanism in Dialogue: Retrieving the Soul/Retrieving the Sacred "Kate Burns brilliantly illumines the difficult passages which occur in the lives of all of us. Sharing personal stories, case studies, and the insights of depth psychology and anthropology, she defines the various stages of transformation and reveals how one can participate more knowingly in the process of personal growth." -James Hollis, PhD, Jungian analyst and author of Hauntings: Dispelling the Ghosts Who Run Our Lives and What Matters Most: Living a More Considered Life

Julia and her family may have escaped the rent trap...but curiosity has drawn a predator home. @When Julia Henry@s former neighbour plunges eight stories to her death in the snow, she@s convinced her previous landlords harassed the woman to suicide. But when she investigates, another dead girl turns up. @The half-empty building is hemorrhaging tenants, the girl@s boyfriend comes complete with a wife and daughter, and the best friend overdosed days after giving police their only description of a serial rapist. @Now it seems someone wants Julia buried under the heaviest blizzard in thirty years. But when one of her daughters narrowly escapes a brutal rape steps from home, two nightmares converge and Julia goes from shaken to livid. @The only way she can protect her girls and still live to see the snow melt is to expose the wrenching truth behind the rapes, the deaths, and the strangest absentee landlord ever.

Books in this anthology series focus a wide range of viewpoints onto a single controversial issue, providing in-depth discussions by leading advocates. Articles are printed in their entirety and footnotes and source notes are retained. These books offer the reader not only a full spectrum of dissent on the subject, but also the ability to test the validity of arguments by following up on sources used as evidence. Extensive bibliographies and annotated lists of relevant organizations to contact offer a gateway to further research. This series provides a quick grounding in the issues, a challenge to critical thinking skills, and an excellent research tool in each inexpensive volume.

Contains over twenty essays that offer varying perspectives on controversial issues related to rap music, such as if it is a significant American cultural music and if it harms women.