The Alchemist

Classic. All the reviews you've read about this masterpiece are correct. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho is daring, simplistically complex (you know if you know), funny; the kind of read that causes the rare occurrence of your heart and mind and gut to Ahaa! all together at a universal truth you had only shallowly conceived prior …

Advertisement

The Slow Way

It's the simple pleasures, isn't it? One of my favorite little joys is opening a Yogi tea bag, plopping the leaves into steaming water, and following the string to cup the tag and read the short quote printed on one side. (It's almost like cracking open a Chinese fortune cookie, but you don't feel uncomfortably …

26 Reflections on Silence

I "checked myself in" for a 3-day private Silent Retreat at a Benedictine Monastery this week. Nestled into the San Bernardino mountains in Southern California, St. Andrew's Abbey is not necessarily a beautiful location. But the prayers and reverence for God that cover the small acreage bring a tangible peace for retreatants. As I clipped …

Discovering Tuscany: Florence Edition

The guidebooks were correct on one thing: Florence is overflowing with tourists. I heard more English or German being spoken than I did Italian in this city of over 360,000 locals. If tourists are swarming, it must be for good reason. I almost didn't go because of low expectations and a lingering tiredness from the …