This book is much more than a record of loss. It is a collection of reflections, prayers, and poems of many, many individual souls who collectively tell the story of right now with depth and heart and startling brilliance. On these pages you will find honest testimony of a very difficult time on our planet. Be inspired by these voices and see patterns emerge, feel the pain and longing and hope and faith and frustration and loneliness and transcendence of each contribution. When We Turned Within will help you believe once again that all people share a common humanity, that our souls bind us together, that a better day is possible.
I have books in our house that I'll never donate to the library because they have one page that shines for me. This is a book that ought to be shared, but there's too much in it that I don't want to part with. The concept is a 5, and the content is only a 4, just because it was so uneven. But every collection is uneven, and there can be treasures in a single line. These are some samples, with my two favorites listed last: "But we weren't even that good." (Sussman, on p. 186) "We have acquitted ourselves nobly." (Creditor, on p. 287). "Sing praises for the cycles that carry us through space and time." (In Hallelujah for Every Breath, Fialkoff, pp. 391-392.) "And we who are still here/Will remember you/As if it were still yesterday/And we were all together." (Gould, p. 370) [In an essay by a nursing home chaplain] "A remote memory popped up, a so-called war hero from Russia speaking on TV. 'A hero,' he said, 'it's just staying where you are, no matter what. And sometimes, survival may also happen.' " (Martinas, p. 37) “…and to every wave and wave that approached me, I nodded my head.” (From the Talmud, in Embracing Brokenness in the Midst of the Storm, Kullock, p. 180).