Eat Pray and Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert

Liz , the author of this wonderful and warm read, is a woman who, after an emotionally crippling divorce, decides to travel. I haven’t read a book yet that really captures that state called Divorce; that dark cave of failure, guilt, loss and neglect. In short, Divorce deserves a capital D and is not as clean cut as you see on Dallas: lip gloss, shoulder pads, Patrick Duffy’s hairy chest and all. Divorce is messy and beats you up. Liz describes these moments in her life so well that we, her readers, are ready to take this journey through the 3 I’s - Italy, India and Indonesia with her. Each place will feed and comfort her, opening her spirit, and eventually touching her and our senses, soul, and heart respectively. Although this is Liz’s journey, we can’t help but feel a shift in our own world. I felt very at peace reading this. I had sincere empathy for Liz’s story and enjoyed her approach to life.

Her first stop is Italy. Why? Because Liz wants to learn the language and eat as much delicious Italian food as she can. This simple idea is such a luxury and one that should be done by all, if money and time permits it. How wonderful to go to a country of choice to simply be in that country awhile. I have done a fair bit of traveling and have lived in several different countries and there is knowledge gained that is unique to the time and effort you put into your stay. You cannot learn about another country and its’ spirit through books, night school or comfortably sitting in front of your TV, watching the travel channel in your underwear. You need to live it on a generous time span so you can open up and melt into it. Liz’s luxurious Italian stay was indeed perfect, filled with thought, food, and the beginning of her transformation. Bravissimo.

Next is India, and instead of sunrise raves in Goa or stories about Mother Theresa swindling the locals, Liz stays put in an Ashram for 3 months to master meditation. In that time, I could hear her fidgeting and could taste the silence. God, we all fidget. My 7 year old is one big wormy squirmy fidget. How can you possibly stay put for longer than; hey let’s be generous and say 15 minutes…without…FIDGETING? AGH… my worst nightmare … but I must confess that lately, I really am curious to find that quiet place so I can say a quick hello to myself… Liz, what a gift you got. It is at this ashram that Liz’s dedication to finding herself begins. She writes very personally about her experience, with a faith that makes any skeptic (ie. yours truly) feel like we’re on the same page. instead of feeling put off, I was compelled. I know, old faithfuls, that I sound like a tree eating solstice nudist, but I feel that in our neon, beeping, multi-sensory world, we have rendered silence unimportant and altogether forgotten the art of listening. However, in the silence, truth is found. Namaste.

Liz’s last destination is Indonesia … Bali to be precise. A healthier stronger woman lands at this airport for sure. Here she discovers her heart again … not only in the form of a Brazilian God, but also in a family. In this world, one thing is universal: wherever you go, if you are appreciated, you will appreciate in return. Some like to think that color, socio-economics, and beliefs divide us (and of course they do) but we are all united emotionally. Every unhappy person breathing in this world is unhappy for the same reasons. Our core emotional structures are fundamentally all the same. In Indonesia, Liz meets a kindred divorcee healer/doctor Wayan and her daughter Tutti. Liz falls in delightedly with them and helps Wayan and her daughter get a new home. In this case, love is not necessarily a romantic adventure, it is a desire to enjoy other people’s happiness. Liz, perhaps unaware at the time, made a lot of people happy in Indonesia. Smile and the whole world smiles with you. The woman in Indonesia is no longer the woman who went to Italy … she is finally content.
Damai.

When you are broken, it is hard to figure out how to put yourself back together again. All you get when you ring all the kings horses and all the kings men is a busy tone or an automated answering machine saying, “Press #1 if your head has fallen off… press #2 if your heart was ripped out… press #3 to become a volunteer.” At the end of the day, we only have ourselves and our own courage. And let’s face it, life requires everyone to have a lot of courage.

Eat Pray and Love is brimming with hot frothy courage like a hot whole milk cappuccino. It’s exotic, and because of it’s antioxidants it helps to cleanse the mind and makes you feel more vigorous, but drunk in excess there’s a risk of heart disease. Before Liz’s journey, she had OD’d on coffee and her heart was in an agitated state of dis-ease. By the end, she knows exactly the right amount of coffee she needs to get the perfect result. Also, coffee might be a very cheap way to attain some of Liz’s near euphoric states without needing to purchase a ticket to India and sit alone in silence for 8 hrs a day! I hear heroin does the trick as well! Your choice.

A favorite album/visual documentary of mine is One Giant Leap. In it, someone says, “I spent some time interviewing dying patients and not one of them regretted not having made more money or worked harder. They regretted not having spent more time with the people they loved, not having traveled enough or connected to the world more.” This I can truly believe. It’s a thought we should all bring into our lives. I’m not telling you to go out and recycle snail shells or save your used chewing gum so you can make your own shoes if ever that time should come, but to take some time for yourself and the ones you love. Show them your love, be thankful, and pursue happiness because time is all we really have. Liz will keep this personal journey with her eternally I am sure. When she is old and gray shuffling along on her zimmer frame, her travels will still be part of her. One thing is sure: her journey through the three I’s has changed her forever… and for the better.

Elizabeth, I loved your pilgrimage. Well done. You should be so proud of yourself. Next time though take me with you!

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