“We realize that all the ways we’ve kept ourselves asleep have led nowhere.” – Sakyong Mipham

When I first tried to sit down and draw something again, since not trying to draw anything since high school, I drew a statue of the Buddha that I have. Drawing it just made me very happy.

I have some books, many of them with a Buddhist bent,  that I always turn to in times of trouble or depression or even just moments of feeling lost. Suddenly, while looking at my bookshelf, it occurred to me that I should share some of that list here, with the idea that we’re all looking for good books that can serve as a guide when things get rough or even if it’s just a particularly bad day.

Turning the Mind Into an Ally – Sakyong Mipham
Running With the Mind of Meditation – also by Mipham

The Not So Big Life – Sarah Susanka

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running – Haruki Murakami
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – also by Murakami

A Buddha Walks into a Bar –  A Guide to Life for a New Generation – Lodro Rinzler

The 6.5 Practices of Moderately Successful Poets: A Self-Help Memoir – Jeffrey Skinner (I just discovered this and it’s a fantastic book – if you’re not a poet, like me,  just put in a different word for whatever kind of art or venture you’re engaged with and it still all makes sense.)

Just Kids – Patti Smith

The Freedom Manifesto – Tom Hodgkinson (kind of silly but also a breath of fresh air)