PRAISE FOR TINY BUDDHA
“How can we find happiness and peace—right now, right here? In her engaging, thought-provoking book Tiny Buddha, Lori Deschene explores this enormous question to help readers grapple with challenges like money, love, pain, control, and meaning, in order to find greater happiness.”
—Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project
“Lori is one of a kind. Her amazing heart and wisdom shine through in everything she writes! I am a HUGE fan of Tiny Buddha, and I'm constantly inspired by Lori and her work.”
—Mastin Kipp, founder of The Daily Love (thedailylove.com)
“There's nothing tiny about the extra-large dose of awesome stuffed into Lori's writing. Read it and feel good about the world.”
—Neil Pasricha, founder and author of 1000 Awesome Things and The Book of Awesome
“Few people in our time have more passionately or more creatively applied wisdom teachings to a new digital generation than Lori Deschene. I am continually inspired by her writing, and also by her sincere dedication to learning, growth, and wisdom. I feel tremendously fortunate to have had the chance to get to know her work through Tiny Buddha, and to know her as a person. Both embody the same essential truths.”
—Soren Gordhamer, founder and author of Wisdom 2.0
“Lori Deschene doesn't claim to be anybody's guru. But it's that lack of pretense and her total candor—how she tells her own often-wild story without flinching—that is so magnetic, inviting a sense of ease with our own wrinkles, too, and fostering a sense of personal possibility. As she asks: Are you ready to be free?”
—Margaret Roach, author of And I Shall Have Some Peace There
“I spent months retweeting posts from a mystery handle called @tinybuddha. I wasn't the only one: Hundreds of thousands of people followed the daily messages. I was intrigued and made it a point to meet the woman behind the message. Today, Lori Deschene is a friend and fellow author who spreads truth and inspiration throughout the twittersphere, her blog, and now her new book! Lori has shifted the energy of the Internet with her loving daily posts and now she is sharing more with the world through her incredible book!”
—Gabrielle Bernstein, author of Add More —ing to Your Life and Spirit Junkie
“Tiny Buddha is a moving and insightful synthesis of evocative stories and ancient wisdom applied to modern life. A great read!”
—Jonathan Fields, author of Uncertainty
First published in 2012 by Conari Press, an imprint of
Red Wheel / Weiser, LLC
665 Third Street, Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94107
Copyright © 2012 by Lori Deschene
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Red Wheel / Weiser, LLC. Reviewers may quote brief passages.
Certain names and defining characteristics have been changed here to protect people's privacy. ISBN: 978-1-57324-506-7
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Deschene, Lori.
Tiny Buddha, simple wisdom for life's hard questions / Lori Deschene.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-57324-506-7 (hardback)
1. Mind and body. I. Title.
BF161.D453 2012
158—dc23
2011036925
Cover design by Nita Ybarra
Interior by Maureen Forys, Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Typeset in Perpetua Regular with Formata Bold and Rosewood Fill.
Printed in the United States of America
MAL
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1992 (R1997).
www.redwheelweiser.com/newsletter
DEDICATION
In loving memory of Henry “Grandpa Joe” Santoro. This one's for you, too!
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
In March of 2007, when Twitter exploded at the South by Southwest Festival, more than 60,000 tweets addressed the question, “What are you doing?” At the time, I was certain I'd sooner post my organs for auction on eBay than choose a Twitter handle. I didn't see any benefit in using technology to narrate my life as it happened. Why would I want to update my social circle—let alone strangers—on my most mundane daily activities? I assumed that if I joined, I'd bore my friends with TMI and have less to discuss when I saw them in person—they'd already know I ate a Rice Krispies Treat at ten, practiced yoga at lunch, and seriously considered cutting my bangs at four. I thought I couldn't live mindfully if I traced my steps with a digital bread-crumb trail. If I did use the web to share random details about my everyday life, I'd want to answer a far more interesting question than, “What are you doing?”
In 2008 I realized how badly I'd underestimated that question. What was I doing? I was writing for a series of websites that didn't mean anything to me on a personal level.