Latest Read: When Breath Becomes Air

“Human knowledge is never contained in one person. It grows from the relationships we create between each other and the world, and still it is never complete.” 

One of my goals post-college and moving to Shanghai is to read more books. I have always loved reading, but college took it’s toll on my personal reading given I had dozens of books and textbooks to read every semester (especially when I had an English class which was often). The first week I was in Shanghai, I found a great foreign book store near People’s Square and have frequented it numerous times since. Sometimes I just go and read a book in the store, however I have splurged on four books so far, one of which I have completely finished and ADORE. The latest book that I finished is “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanith which is about Paul’s journey as neurosurgeon who is diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. Paul wrote this book as he was dying and it is filled with such profound lessons about life, love and following your passions. I had not doubt in my mind that I would move to China and teach English. However, I would recently learn that this decision I made would come with unexpected heartbreaks.

Continue reading

The Book of Secrets: Deepak Chopra

img_5104

“Sitting up in bed, I had the strange sensation that it was no longer important that a dream isn’t real. Being awake is more real than a dream only because we have agreed that it is.”

I recently finished a deeply insightful book called The Book of Secrets by Deepak Chopra. I loved every page and gave it to a dear friend to read it after I finished it. That is the beauty of a physical book (opposed to a Kindle), you can hold it in your hands, read it by the pool, in the bathtub and flip the pages one by one, savoring the text. This book reminded me a lot of Radical Acceptance (which I have yet to finish)…only way more enjoyable…hence I finished it. Everything is so connected in this life and this book helped put it all in perspective.

Continue reading