Book description
'And the time came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more
painful than the risk it took to blossom' Anaïs Nin
Elizabeth Lesser shows how it is possible to deal with fearful
change or a painful loss and be reborn, like the Phoenix, to a more
vibrant and enlightened self. In Broken Open she shares
penetrating tales from her own life, the lives of those she has taught
and counselled and the lives of friends and family, tales that explore
the big challenges of death, illness and divorce, as well as the daily
roller coaster rides of relationships, parenting and work.
Woven into these stories are quotations from great poets and
philosophers. And following them is a toolbox of valuable aids,
including meditation, psychological enquiry and spiritual practice.
The result is a book that runs the gamut of the human experience, and
in a style that is genuine, funny, often heartbreaking, but always
inspiring, she shows us how we, too, can allow the pain of adversity
to break us open instead of breaking us down, making us bitter or
closing our hearts.
Elizabeth Lesser is the co-founder of the Omega Institute in
Rhinebeck, New York which offers conferences and workshops attended by
20,000 people a year, and she has been a director and teacher at that
organization. Formerly a midwife, she attended Barnard College and San
Francisco State University and now lives in the Hudson Valley with her
husband and three sons. She is the author of The Seeker's Guide and The
New American Experience.
