Everyday Sacred: A Woman's Journey Home (Paperback)

by Sue Bender (Author) "I'll never write another word," I thought with relief when Plain and Simple was published..." (more)
Key Phrases: everyday sacred, harsh judge, begging bowl, Cafe Milano, Overflowing Tea, New Yorker (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
When Sue Bender proudly announced to a friend that her first book, Plain and Simple had made it to the New York Times bestseller list, her friend immediately shot back, "But what number on the list are you?" Bender was shocked, realizing that nothing we accomplish seems like enough in our overly pressured world. In Everyday Sacred we follow Bender on her quest to make every moment enough. Cleaning a desk, sipping cappuccino, making computer connections, and appreciating freshly painted walls all become opportunities to satiate one's life with sacred encounters. The end product reads like an Amish quilt--simple vignettes sewn together to create a comfortable lifetime companion.

From Publishers Weekly
The Zen monk's begging bowl is the pervasive image in this author's continuing spiritual journey she began recording in her bestselling Plain and Simple, in which she described her time living among the Amish. Here, she tells how, back home amid the more mundane experience of her daily life, she accepted the challenge of finding meaning by daily proferring the beggar's bowl to be filled with the sacredness of everyday life. The lessons and stories that fill her bowl are related to Bender's life-ordinary events seen with fresh eyes and offered as simple ways for busy people to incorporate reflective periods into their lives. The simplicity that made her earlier book appealing is also evident here. Illustrations. $100,000 ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne (August 16, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062512900
• ISBN-13: 978-0062512901
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #34,508 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A circular route, June 8, 2001

By	atmj (Rochester, NY USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This is an interesting book as the author warns at the begining that there really is no beginning or end. She's right. I found myself while reading the book dutifully from beginning to end, often going back and rereading sections.

THE AUTHOR REVEALS HER INSECURITIES AND THEY ALL SEEM SO FAMILIAR. However, what got me, was that the author was not a young woman. She is in her late 50s, early 60s. So much for outgrowing them. Well, I had hoped. She examined these insecurities and failings in a sense from a view, I had not expected; as if they were assets. Now that's a thought. She had difficulty accepting this notion at first and the book subtly pushes this to the forefront again and again. Fascinating.

THE AUTHOR'S RELATIONSHIP WITH HER ADULT SON IS MARKED WITH MIS-COMMUNICATIONS THAT DOMINATED THEIR PREVIOUS INTERATIONS. However, by turning off the critic to herself, she was more accepting and could "hear" others better. This greatly helped her and her son communicate on a new level. Any parent who has children making that change from child to adult could really use help here. Any help.

THERE ARE PARTS OF THIS BOOK THAT MADE ME LAUGH OUT LOUD AND OTHERS THAT WERE POIGNANT. The author relates a story, where she hires a professional organizer and within moments of this woman starting to do her job, pays her to stop and leave. The author realized that she did not want to have her organization methods changed, but wanted a different outcome using the same methods... Don't we all. Change requires...Change.

THERE ARE SO MANY WONDERFUL POINTS MADE IN THIS BOOK, A REVIEW, SHY OF RECREATING THE BOOK, CAN'T DO THEM JUSTICE. The best a reviewer can say is Read this book, read it slow and think about it. It is very Zen Buddist in philosophy and gives great weight to the day to day things. However, unlike "Sweeping changes" a book centered in Zen philosophy around house cleaning and maintenance, this book does not focus so much on day to day activities directly, but the philosophies of day to day relationships with people. The word Synchronicity comes to mind here.

I PLAN TO RE-READ THE BOOK IN A MONTH OR SO. Books like this change in time. Next time I could write an entirely different review because different things will catch my eye. It is hard to write a book you can come back to over and over and in this the author has done a magnificent job.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple *and* Powerful!, August 21, 2000

By	shootingstar "shootingstar" - See all my reviews

This book is excellent. Sue Bender has an intimate way of writing--you feel like you're hearing from a good friend. I especially appreciate how she takes you through her thought process. She doesn't just serve up her insights--she shows you how she got there and in doing so takes you along for the ride. So you get to arrive at the same insights with the author; rather than just listening, you get to participate. This is warm, inspiring, lovely writing. Reading it was both illuminating and calming, and a true pleasure. I plan to share this great little book with all my friends.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes you can tell a book by its cover, February 17, 2002

By	"aubrigail" (Lawrence, KS United States) - See all my reviews

What can I say? I love the cover of this book! The cover art is so beautiful in a simple way. Just looking at this book brings me joy, which is why I don't have the heart to line it up on a bookshelf!
Fortunately, I controlled my love for the cover design enough to actually open the book. The words and stories match the simple beauty portrayed on the cover (or is it the other way around...forgive my photographer biases) Sue Bender writes in an open and friendly way. Her stories are beautiful and inspirational. I believe that any reader would be able to find themselves somewhere among the pages.
While reading, I felt like I had made a new friend. I also appreciated the wisdom and experience that comes with her age. I am used to reading younger authors, but when I read Bender's work I couldn't help but think that "this lady knows what's going on."
Her desire for self knowledge and exploraiton are also very inspiring.
I would recommend this book for anyone who has found their way to this page, and I'm greatly looking forward to reading Stretching Lessons (I'll let you know what I think of that one, too!)