Advance reviews of the book

The Well of Being, my first book, took a few turns before I found its purpose. I began by creating a pictorial catalog of my self-doubts, my confusions and longings and victimhood. Seeking a fuller, more truthful description, I included my moments of spontaneity, contentment, and joy. The images effectively formed two piles; one that expressed feelings of well-being, and one illustrating our alienation from it. The book took further shape; it became a tale for those who long for well-being - a well-being that is only dimly remembered and scarcely believed in. 

Using images to tell the story the narrative guides the reader to discover that well-being is grounded in self-acceptance, and that more often than not we lose it on the road to adulthood. Yet, it may be recovered.  

Through illustrations and a minimalist text, we learn that thoughts acquired in childhood are what estrange us from ourselves. They are thoughts that we're not smart enough, talented enough, good enough, or thin enough. They're patterns of thinking which tell us who we are and how our world works. They put us in a corner. 

These patterns lead us to look at the world as through the distorted windows of a bus we don't know we're on. Through its smudged windows, we look upon a world where joy depends on circumstances, on what happens outside of us. 

We organize our circumstances so that they reinforce stories we picked up along the way and carry within us. 

They are stories about who we think we should be.

Or think we are.

There's a simple path through the thicket of these habitual thoughts. It's one that promises renewed clarity and gratitude for being alive.

 

Thanks to the Kickstarter community for generously supporting my project. To my son, Emmanuel, for creating the video and formatting; to Bira, my nephew, for lending his voice and sound; to Margaret Osburn, for editorial assistance; to Saul Steinberg, for showing me how imagery approaches written language.

What you get

      Gift cards

      Book