Here
A Spirituality of Staying in a Culture of Leaving
Lydia Sohn
- **A
- contemplative
- guide
- to
- finding
- satisfaction
- right
- where
- you
- are,
- by
- understanding
- what
- it
- is
- within
- us
- that
- leads
- to
- dissatisfaction
- and
- creating
- long-lasting
- fulfillment—inspired
- by
- the
- ancient
- Christian
- tradition
- of
- Benedictine
- stability.“A
- challenging
- spiritual
- invitation—one
- that
- we
- definitely
- need.”—Shannon
- K.
- Evans,
- author
- of
- The
- Mystics
- Would
- Like
- a
- Word**Lydia
- Sohn
- was
- a
- serial
- burn-it-down-and-make-a-fresh-start
- girl
- until,
- when
- in
- her
- late
- twenties,
- she
- encountered
- the
- Rule
- of
- St.
- Benedict
- with
- its
- vow
- of
- stability,
- and
- her
- world
- was
- transformed.
- Sohn
- took
- a
- pause
- to
- consider
- what
- she
- wanted
- out
- of
- life—identity,
- purpose,
- community—and
- had
- a
- lightbulb
- moment:
- Everything
- she
- needed
- to
- live
- the
- life
- she
- desired
- was
- already
- within
- her
- reach.Here
- pushes
- back
- against
- our
- age
- of
- constant
- reinvention
- and
- the
- cultural
- message
- that
- we
- should
- do
- whatever
- it
- takes
- to
- get
- wherever
- we
- want
- to
- go.
- Instead,
- Sohn’s
- message
- is
- the
- opposite:
- stay.
- Stay
- and
- cultivate
- the
- immense
- potential
- and
- beauty
- that
- currently
- lies
- dormant
- within
- your
- circumstances.Sohn
- understands
- the
- allure
- of
- nomadism.
- A
- nomadic
- life
- would
- protect
- us
- from
- the
- stress
- of
- relational
- conflicts
- that
- inevitably
- arise
- when
- we’re
- caught
- in
- the
- intricate
- web
- of
- commitments.
- But
- the
- restlessness,
- FOMO,
- and
- disappointment
- we’re
- trying
- to
- escape
- always
- come
- along
- for
- the
- journey.
- That’s
- because
- they’re
- not
- the
- result
- of
- our
- circumstances;
- they
- reside
- within
- us.Braiding
- personal
- narrative
- and
- spiritual
- reflection,Here
- inspires
- readers
- to
- both
- embrace
- and
- transform
- their
- circumstances
- through
- commitment
- and
- stability—in
- order
- that
- they
- might
- find
- true
- contentment
- right
- where
- they are.
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