January/February 2012 Conscious Media
Reader's Choice
Planetary Healing: Spiritual Medicine for Global Transformation, Nicki Scully and Mark Hallert, Bear & Company, 2011, $18
Planetary Healing is more than a book, it’s a commitment. Or, as the Eugene-based authors, shamanic healer Nicki Scully and visionary Mark Hallert, say, “This book is a do rather than a read.” In this case, “do” means changing our consciousness in order to heal Earth. Interspersed with a readable text recounting the authors’ experiences and the need for change, imaginative guided meditations help create medicine for healing. The visualizations transport the seeker to the inside of a volcano, a cave full of bats, a fungal fairy ring, and, eventually, the heart of the universe. They are designed to open new paths of perception, spark epiphanies and set the stage for creatively helping to heal global crises such as cultural dissonance, materialism, environmental degradation and pollution, as well as illnesses like cancer. The basis of the work is the heart breath, a centering meditation that can also be found on the accompanying CD. Intense, powerful and sustained, Planetary Healing offers an antidote to despairs over the state of Earth. Global transformation is a considerable undertaking but one the authors say is crucial to save our planet and ourselves.
— Fran Gardner
Artwork from the Void, edited by Quinn Zepeda, Graham Talley, Ashkahn Jahromi and Christopher Messer, Write On, 2011, $47.95
Artwork from the Void explores art inspired by the removal of all external stimuli — no light, no sound, no gravity. Produced by Float On, a float tank center based in Portland, 150 artists experienced sensory deprivation and then created these unique pieces of art. Float tanks are sound-proof, light-proof tubs containing 200 gallons of water kept at body temperature. Nearly 850 pounds of Epsom salt is dissolved inside each tank, making them more buoyant than the Dead Sea. A beautiful view into the creative process, the resulting images are ethereal, playful, and well, floaty.
— Vicky Thompson
Opposites Attract: How to Use the Secrets of Personality Type to Create a Love That Lasts, Renee Baron, HarperOne, 2011, $17.99
Long-time marriage and family therapist Renee Baron uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to educate her clients on how personality type, or preference, affects relationships. In Opposites Attract, she uses a strong sense of humor to help readers figure out the often confusing world of relationships. Baron says, “In our relationships, especially our intimate ones, we often are attracted to people who are different from us.” To help us understand those differences, we can use the MBTI to determine our own as well as our partner’s type and the traits and characteristics that go along with those types. Opposites Attract uses quizzes, comics and checklists to explain the four MBTI types, plus offers advice on how to communicate with each type and what to look for in yourself to make communication more effective. A fun read with humor that might just make you laugh at yourself and help improve your relationships.
— Kristy Musalo
Earth Alchemy: Aligning Your Home with Nature's Energies, Anne Z. Parker and Dominique Susani, Findhorn Press, 2011, $17.95
Anne Parker teaches classes in environmental studies and environmental leadership, and currently lives in Boulder, Colo. Dominique Susani, teacher and French master of the ancient art of stones, menhirs, dolmens, cromlechs, labyrinths, sacred sites and earth energies, currently lives and teaches in France. Together they combined their knowledge of earth energies to provide a wonderful, illustrated guidebook to assist humanity in working with the land, trees, stones and underground water sources. They give practical and clear advice, using step-by-step instructions that anyone can follow to create harmonious and positive changes in our current situation on Earth. Even if you have had no prior experience in feng shui or dowsing, you still can learn how to tune into water lines, align stones, feel vortexes, harmonize furniture and much more.
— Jelina Vance
Traveling at the Speed of Love, Sonia Choquette, Hay House, 2011, $14.95
Sonia Choquette masterfully crafts this literary work of inspiration. The book is written about life’s journey from the perspective of traveling on an airline or “flying” through life. Choquette takes you through flying lessons designed to connect you with divine flow. She uses analogies such as traveling lightly, baggage, security, turbulence and hijackings to compare life’s journeys with airline travel. She uses her own experiences and amusing stories to illustrate and make these comparisons: “I can honestly say the only thing we take with us and the only thing we leave behind is the love we received, lived, expressed and shared. Our physical life is temporary. The love we accept, choose and share while traveling is not.”
— Annette Epifano