“Be here. Be all of you. Be present. And if you’ve had trouble with this in the past? That’s okay. That’s the nice thing about the present. It keeps showing up to give you a second chance.”
Written by an American ‘marketer and entrepreneur’, this isn’t the most traditional author to find in a Quiet Garden, yet this small book creatively presents a range of simple universal practices for finding peace in ‘modern life’ and will be relevant and engaging for many readers, perhaps especially those not accustomed to being in a Quiet Garden.
In three sections, Mind, Soul and Body, the book uses historical anecdotes and figures from politics, commerce, sports, and history, as well as religions, to explore ‘stillness’ and how it can be cultivated in our lives. It is an engaging and accessible resource for those new to contemplation and the practices of stillness and silence, making it a great gift for someone in need of finding calm, and also a worthy addition to a book shelf for visitors to a Quiet Garden to dip into.
Matt Freer, Former Quiet Garden Trust Project Manager
Stillness is the key – An ancient strategy for modern life is published by Profile Books (2019)