Book excerpt: “I’m not a yogi from the Himalayas, a preacher from the pulpit, or a guru with dollar signs in my eyes,” says Chris Grosso. “The truth is, as a result of years of heavy drug and alcohol addiction, I’ve been to some extremely dark places that resulted in a literal life-or-death search for something more.” With Everything Mind, this emerging voice of the spiritual counterculture presents a riveting and insightful book about meditation, the search for deeper meaning, and the life-changing (and life-saving) process of waking up. “Everything Mind” means it’s all part of the path—dark and light, sacred and profane, serious and goofy, tragic and joyous. Each experience is unique, each has something profound to teach us if we open ourselves and let it in. Sharing hard-won wisdom and the spiritual practices that helped him through his darkest times, Chris invites you to discover: • Spirituality—how something that doesn’t fix your problems or change who you are can still revolutionize your life • Why well-worn ideas like “love everyone” and “anything is possible” are much more than just wishful bullshit • The perils of railing at fundamentalism—how to put down the pitchfork and practice compassionate spiritual discernment • The mystery of “interbeing”—convincing your head, heart, and gut that you’re actually connected to everything • Expressing your truth through service, meditation, sports, relationships, punk rock, skateboarding—or just about anything done with love Finding our own spirituality is both liberating and terrifying. Liberating because we no longer have to be tied down by dogma or march off to war just because a guy in a fancy hat says so. Terrifying because it’s now totally on us to find out what’s true, what’s holy, what really matters to each of us. “Cultivating a spiritual lifestyle may be the most challenging undertaking you’ll ever face,” says Chris Grosso. “But if you stick with it, you can learn to meet allof life with an open heart—which, when you get down to it, is pretty fucking amazing.”