Here: A Spirituality of Staying in a Culture of Leaving

A contemplative guide to finding satisfaction right where you are, understanding what it is within us leading to dissatisfaction, and find long-lasting fulfillment--inspired by the ancient Christian tradition of Benedictine stability

Lydia Sohn was a serial burn-it-down-and-make-a-fresh-start girl, until she encountered the ancient Benedictine vow of stability in her late 20s, and her world was transformed. Sohn took a pause and evaluated what she wanted out of life--identity, purpose, community--and had a lightbulb moment: everything she needed to live the life she desired was already within her reach.

In Here, Lydia pushes back against our age of constant reinvention and the cultural message that we should do whatever it takes to get where we want to go. Instead, her message is the opposite: stay. Stay right here and cultivate the immense potential and beauty that lies within your current circumstances. 

Sohn understands the allure of nomadism. She says that kind of nomadic life would protect us from the pain and stress of relational conflicts that inevitably arise when we’re embedded in intricate webs of relationships and commitments. But time and time again that the restlessness, FOMO, and disappointment we’re trying to escape always comes along for the ride. That’s because they’re not the result of our circumstances; they reside within us. 

Drawing on a variety of spiritual teachers across different faith traditions, Here inspires readers to work to both embrace and transform their circumstances with commitment and stability—in order that they might find true contentment right where they are.