Places That Scare You

Published UK, 2001
We can let the circumstances of our lives harden us so that we become increasingly resentful and afraid, or we can let them soften us and make us kinder and more open to what scares us. We always have this choice.

This book teaches us how to awaken our basic goodness and connect with others, to accept ourselves and others complete with faults and imperfections, and to stay in the present moment by seeing through the strategies of ego that cause us to resist life as it is. 'When fear, anger or anxiety has a grip on you,' Pema Chodron writes, 'don't turn away, have a drink, a snack, a smoke, or switch on the TV. Instead, look your fear straight in the eyes - and see it for what it really is.' In this spirit, she offers this guide on the training of the compassionate warrior. 'May it help us move toward the places that scare us,' she advises. 'May it inform our lives and help us to die with no regrets.'

Pema Chodron is the author of four bestselling books.
Paperback. 221 pages