I feel very fortunate to participate in this very first Green Books Campaign. Today at 1:00 pm Eastern time 100 bloggers will be posting their reviews of 100 different "green" books. The common thread is that each book is printed in an eco-friendly manner.My book choice was influenced by yoga-guru and longtime blogging friend, Jenclair. I only have a rudimentary knowledge of yoga but have been interested in her studies and training which she talks about occasionally on her blog, A Garden Carried in the Pocket.
I discovered, after receiving An Offering of Leaves by Ruth Laurer-Manenti, that it is not about yoga but rather a collection of stories "Lady Ruth" shares with her yoga students. The stories are based on her personal experiences and represent the yogic commitments to non-violence, compassion, and service. Ruth's stories gently infused my soul with an increased understanding of the philosophy of yoga.
One of my favorites was the story of quiltmaking - Handmade Perfection. She tells of the beauty and perfection of a quilt. My mother makes beautiful quilts and I have enjoyed making a few quilts myself. Perhaps this is why I liked this story so much, but I think the concept will resonate for most of us.
When you look at these quilts, you would never think that because one square is different from the rest, these quilts aren't perfect. They're complete. Nothing is missing. They're stunning. All the hardship, resourcefulness, and love that is in these women is woven into these quilts. They're handmade. They reflect depth of chara ter and depth of life.
I think sometimes we have a conditioned idea of what perfect is. Perfect would be like every square being the same, or having exactly the right amount of fabric. But in thiss case, the perfection of these quilts, just like our perfection, is large enough to contain imperfections, irregularity, or surprise.
An Offering of Leaves is published by Lantern using FSC certified paper. FCS stands for Forest Stewardship Council, which is an independent, non-governmental, not-for-profit organization established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests. Established in 1993 as a response to concerns over global deforestation, FSC is widely regarded as one of the most important initiatives of the last decade to promote responsible forest management worldwide.
The Green Books Campaign has been organized by Eco-Libris and aims to encourage both publishers and readers to get greener and make sure books are printed responsibly. Visit this page of the Eco-Libris blog to see the entire list of books being reviewed all at the same time, as well as a list of all the bloggers participating.
6 comments:
My mother, who has taken more yoga classes than anyone I know, would love this book! She began in the 60's, and now at age 74, remains the most healthy woman I've ever seen. No Twinkies and sitting on the couch for her! Thanks for the great review.
I think this book sounds very very interesting!! It's a bonus that it was published in a green manner!!
Love the quote.
I haven't one yoga in ages, but this is a good reason for me to get back into it. thanks for the green book review.
This was one of the books that I was "maybe" interested in when looking through the book list. I'm glad to read your review, and will now add it to the "want to read" list. ;)
I have been really interested in all the posts coming from The Green Book Campaign, and this one sounds like something I would love. I have been trying to find somewhere to practice yoga near my home for quite some time and I think this would be a really interesting read. I am going to be investigating this book a little further, thanks!
Post a Comment