Now that it’s porch sitting weather (at least here in the south), I’ve been craving the moments and sometimes hours during the day when I can sit on the front porch swing, surrounded by our newly potted herb plants and budding landscape to soak in some stories, some lilac scented breezes and sun filled moments. We’re in the sweet spot in Richmond now where it’s just perfect to be outside before the mosquitoes come in droves to eat us alive. I’m taking advantage of every minute. While spring emerges, I’ve been spending intentional time clawing my way out from the humdrum pit of winter hibernation and full blown uninspired mode. I’ve been reaching for books and people/authors that have some insight, some uplifting personal saga or reinforced notion that we can snap out of ourselves for a while for awesome things to flow through and out of us. And I’ve certainly found a few…
For the Body:
The Path of Practice; A Women’s book of Ayurvedic Healing – It’s no secret that I adore Maya Tiwari and all of her books and practices. I’ve mentioned several of her books in previous Book Nook posts, but surprisingly I had not read The Path of Practice until this very month! This book I know will be an ever serving ally for me as a practitioner, because I can sometimes get a little too methodical (and crunched for time) in developing my treatment plans that I lose sight of the foundational, spiritual and rhythmic undertones of the medicine. This book is the core essence of an Ayurvedic healing path and journey, and I’m so inspired reading her story and how she developed (and shares!) her path of practice with daily rituals, nourishing foods, spiritual connection and ancient wisdom.
Mastering the Art of Fermentation – When the weather starts to warm up, I basically want to ferment everything and eat it all day long. There’s something about the sweet, salty vinegary goodness of fermented foods I can’t seem to get enough of in the spring and summer, and this book is loaded with unique recipes and tips to master my (sometimes lazy and unsuccessful) fermentation technique.
For the Mind:
The Tree – A natural history of what trees are, how they live and why they matter. Because I’m a tree obsessed nerd and love learning about different genus and species of trees and how they exist in the world. I used to be ridiculously good at tree ID (thanks undergrad degree in Horticulture!) but I’ve fallen out of it since grad school so I need to brush up on my tree acquainting skills. Also, I need to constantly keep up with my tree obsessed nerd fiancé, an arborist, who is always quizzing me on the trees that we pass by…everywhere we go…
For the Soul:
Meditations – This is the journal of Marcus Aurelius, Emperor of Rome from 161-180 and before you yawn with historical blasé read.this.book. I’ve always loved this rich, geographic part of history and I stumbled upon his Meditations in a used book store up in Pennsylvania several months ago. It’s jam packed with simple and profound truths, how to examine life, emotions, dealings with other people, and how to be abundant and grateful on an ever generous (and also tumultuous) earth. Wise words, and some profound sutras flowed from his brain, and I’ll definitely be reading this over and over and over again.
What’s on your nightstands this spring season? I’d love to hear your book recommendations and what’s inspiring you right now!
