The Empty Bowl
Pursuing Truth in a Messy World
Rikki West
- Perfect
- for
- readers
- who
- seek
- understanding
- of
- how
- they
- fit
- into
- the
- universe,
- Rikki
- West’s
- vibrant
- memoir
- follows
- her
- journey
- of
- confronting
- hidden
- assumptions
- and
- childhood
- trauma
- on
- the
- way
- to
- finding
- her
- life’s
- vibrant,
- living
- truth.At
- seven,
- Rikki
- West
- begs
- a
- mysterious
- God
- for
- help,
- praying
- that
- her
- drunk
- father
- won’t
- harm
- their
- family
- and
- that
- he
- won’t
- be
- sent
- to
- hell.
- But
- when
- nothing
- seems
- to
- happen,
- she
- worries:
- Is
- anyone
- up
- there
- really
- listening?This
- question
- triggers
- a
- lifelong
- search
- for
- the
- great,
- loving
- being
- she
- imagines
- her
- prayers
- might
- reach.
- Delving
- into
- Catholicism,
- psychedelics,
- transcendental
- meditation,
- yoga,
- AA
- and
- Buddhist
- chanting,
- she
- explores
- every
- available
- path.
- She
- studies
- genetic
- science
- at
- UC
- Berkeley
- and
- humanities
- at
- San
- Francisco
- State,
- combing
- through
- the
- knowledge
- they
- offer
- for
- answers
- to
- the
- big
- questions.A
- single
- lesbian
- mom,
- Rikki
- soars
- in
- her
- Silicon
- Valley
- career
- until
- the
- dot-com
- bust
- leads
- to
- the
- loss
- of
- opportunities.
- At
- age
- 56,
- she
- finds
- herself
- barely
- employable.
- Yet,
- with
- bills
- to
- pay
- and
- the
- drive
- to
- earn
- her
- own
- way,
- Rikki
- seeks
- whatever
- odd
- jobs
- she
- can
- patch
- together,
- from
- barista
- and
- gardener
- to
- deck
- builder,
- proposal
- writer,
- newspaper
- deliverer,
- and
- substitute
- teacher.Along
- the
- way,
- she
- keeps
- up
- her
- questioning
- of
- the
- universe.
- But
- it
- is
- only
- when
- she
- throws
- overboard
- all
- her
- notions
- of
- God
- and
- truth
- that
- something
- unexpected
- and
- wonderful
- blossoms
- in
- her.
- At
- the
- age
- of
- seventy-one,
- Rikki
- recognizes
- her
- answer—in
- the
- most
- surprising
- place.The
- place
- called “I.”
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