Lamanai Maya ruins, Belize

Destination: Belize

Book: The Possibility of Everything by Hope Edelman

UPDATE: LIBRARY THING INTERVIEW WITH HOPE EDELMAN

A Guest Blog by Julia Drake

“The Possibility of Everything — Search for a truer self”

The Possibility of Everything, acclaimed author Hope Edelman writes, “A person in the act of traveling from one place to another is a person stripped down to her very essence, perhaps the truest self that can exist.”

Our travels take us away from home, our familiar surroundings, our familiar self. For Hope, her familiar self was the eternal skeptic. A “card carrying member of the Church of the Senses,” she had to see to believe. But when her 3-year old daughter Maya develops a mysterious imaginary friend, named “Dodo,” whose presence becomes increasingly disturbing, Hope and her husband make the unlikely choice to take their daughter to Mayan healers deep in the rainforests of Western Belize. In the process of this journey, Hope transforms from a woman, who only believed in the “visible” and “proven,” to someone, open to the existence of larger, unseen truths––a leap of faith that heals both her and her family.

Publishers Weekly called the Possibility of Everything, “equal parts a meditation on the trials of motherhood and marriage, a travelogue and an exploration of faith.” That’s where the power of this book lies for me. It explores life in all its facets, traveling being an essential ingredient in the quest for a larger truth, a larger self.

Steeped in the ancient culture of the Maya, a world where body, mind and spirit, are tightly intertwined, Hope starts to question the truths she built her life on and opens her heart and mind to the possibility of everything.

In Western culture where many parents resort to the next best prescription drug to ensure the “normality” of their child, I cheered Hope’s leap of faith to a more holistic approach to her daughter’s condition––not out of a romanticized Western desire to dabble in the voodoo magic of third world cultures, but to try to be the best mother she could be, to do anything for her child.

Beyond Hope’s personal story, her detailed descriptions of Belize, the poverty, yet generosity and warmth of the people she befriends, the untouched beauty of the countryside, and the continuing presence of ancient Maya Civilization in the life of people in Belize, put a trip to Belize at the very top of my travel list.

The book is ripe with Mayan history, cosmology and accounts of a visit to Tikal National Park (Guatemala), one of the most fascinating archaeological remains of the ancient Maya Civilization. On her journey, Hope also stayed in some beautiful places worth checking out. In fact, the book website provides Hope’s itinerary and resources to accommodations and must-see sites.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone with an open mind and heart, and a sense of adventure.

For more info on the book, visit the book’s web site.

Julia Drake was born and raised in a small town in the Black Forest, Germany. Julia left her home at the age of 19 to pursue screenwriting in Los Angeles. A graduate of UCLA film school as well as the American Film Institute, she finally followed her addiction to culture shocks and wanderlust into freelance writing with a focus on travel and holistic living. She lives in the secluded canyons of Topanga, California, with her husband, filmmaker Jared Drake.

Photo by Harry Kikstra, WorldOnABike.com

Thank you so much, Julia, for bringing us this unusual travel book that inspires as well as guides us to Belize.  Going to other country’s for healing seems to be a growing reason for travel.  Reader, have you or others you know gone to another country to try that culture’s approach to healing?  Please add your experiences in the comment section.

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©2012 A Traveler's Library. All Rights Reserved.

Hey, don't forget us turkeys

Destination: Guatemala

Sponsor: Heifer International

Books: See List Below

Today I would like to issue a challenge. But first, a little explanation.

My favorite charity, Heifer International, fights hunger around the world by providing goats, sheep, chickens, honey bees, and, yes, heifers, to farmers so that they can begin to be self-sufficient and feed their families. Besides training people to provide for their own families, Heifer sponsors Study Tours to many of the 59 countries they work in.

I talked to Sara Drew, Program Coordinator to find out more about the Study Tours.

Of course the Traveler’s Library wanted to know, “Do you give travelers a list of books to read about the country they visit?”

“Yes,” she said, and she provided me with the list for their tour to Guatemala.

Groups, limited to 8-16 people are housed in the best accommodations available in the country. An employee of Heifer who is a native of the country accompanies the group, and in addition to seeing Heifer at work, travelers visit tourism spots, like Tikal in Guatemala. Although they are not asked to roll up their sleeves and work during the trip, Heifer asks that they share their new-found knowledge when they get home by telling friends, speaking to groups, or working with their local Heifer organization. (Check with your accountant, but the trips are at least partially tax deductible.)

Besides articles, the reading list for Guatemala includes regular guidebooks, a bird watching book, an ethnography of the Mayan people, and four examples of travel literature: a memoir, two histories and a book of local literature.

I, Rigoberta Menchu, by Rigoberta Menchu, tells the story of a Guatemalan woman and leader, winner of the 1992 Nobel Peace Prize.

Lost Cities of the Maya by Claude Baudez, tells the history of the discovery and restoration of Mayan Temples by European and American explorers.

Unfinished Conquest: The Guatemalan Tragedy by Victor Perera. More recent history of human rights struggles and revolutionary movements.

Clamor of Innocence: Central American Short Stories, edited by Barbara Paschke

Sara wanted me to be sure to tell you that, besides Guatemala, you can still sign up for several trips in 2009: The Baltics: Estaonia and Latvia; Carpathian Mountains, Tanzania, Armenia and Georgia, Ecuador, Nepal, Vietnam and the United States.You can find more information at Heifer International Study Tours.

So here’s the challenge: Go to Heifer International’s web site and browse around a bit to see how your donation can help send farm animals and training to families that need help.

Find the place where you can donate, and send Heifer the price of the last book you bought for yourself. My most recent purchase, Blue Highways, cost $9.10, so I’m going to round up to $10.00. That’s a very small amount, but it can mean a lot to a hungry family.

How much do you think that the readers of A Traveler’s Library can raise for Heifer International? Please come back and tell us if you have decided to take a Study Tour, or make a donation to Heifer. And THANK YOU!!

Photograph courtesy of Heifer International

This content is a post from: A Traveler's Library To comment on this post or search for related information, click on the link to A Traveler's Library. We'll leave a light on for you.

©2012 A Traveler's Library. All Rights Reserved.