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The Hidden Beauty of Everyday Life
Kent Nerburn completes the trilogy he began with his inspirational works Simple Truths and Small Graces . This beautifully written collection contains some of his most touching stories yet. By examining the seemingly insignificant incidents of life — a chance encounter with a boy on a bicycle, a visit to a local school to watch a young girl’s graduation — he shows readers how to look below the surface and find deeper meanings. He calls on readers to listen for the quiet spiritual messages of everyday existence that he calls "God’s whispers." Crafting stories from common experiences, Nerburn reveals lessons for the soul and opens windows to the heart. Few writers are so capable of moving gently over deep waters. And few give such poignant glimpses into the hidden grace of ordinary days.
- GenresNonfictionInspirational
112 pages, Hardcover
First published May 5, 2006
5 people are currently reading
167 people want to read
About the author
Kent Nerburn
37 books468 followersI'm a child of the 60's, a son of the north, and a lover of dogs.
Grew up in a crackerbox post-war bungalow outside of Minneapolis with my mother and father, two younger sisters, various dogs and cats, and a neighborhood full of rugrat kids playing outside until called in for the night.
Studied American Studies at the University of Minnesota, Religious Studies and Humanities at Stanford University, received a Ph.D. in Religion and Art in a joint program at Graduate Theological Union and the University of California at Berkeley. Lots of learning, lots of awards. Phi Beta Kappa. Summa cum Laude. Lots of stuff that looks good on paper.
But just as important, an antique restorer's shop in Marburg, Germany; the museums of Florence; a sculpture studio in the back alleys of Pietrasanta, Italy; an Indian reservation in the forests of northern Minnesota; and, perhaps above all, the American road.
Always a watcher, always a wanderer, perhaps too empathetic for my own good, more concerned with the "other" than the "self", always more interested in what people believed than in what they thought. A friend of the ordinary and the life of the streets.
Twenty years as a sculptor -- over-life sized images hand-chiseled from large tree trunks -- efforts to embody emotional and spiritual states in wood. Then, still searching, years helping young people collect memories of the tribal elders on the Red Lake Ojibwe reservation in the Minnesota north. Then writing,
always writing, finding a voice and even a calling, helping Native America tell its story.
A marriage, children, a home on a pine-rimmed lake near the Minnesota-Canadian border.
Book after book, seventeen in all, ever seeking the heartbeat of people's belief. Journeys, consolations, the caring observer, always the teacher, always the learner. Ever mindful of the wise counsel of an Ojibwe elder, "Always teach by stories, because stories lodge deep in the heart."
Through grace and good luck, an important trilogy (Neither Wolf nor Dog, The Wolf at Twilight, and The Girl who Sang to the Buffalo), a film, Minnesota Book Awards, South Dakota book of the year, many "community reads," book sales around the world.
In the end, a reluctant promoter, a quiet worker, a seeker of an authentic American spirituality, more concerned with excellence than quantity. Proud to be referred to as "a guerilla theologian" and honored to be called "the one writer who can respectfully bridge the gap between native and non-Native cultures". But more honored still to hear a twelve-year-old girl at one of my readings whisper to her mom, "He's a really nice man."
At heart, just an ordinary person, grateful to be a father and a husband, more impressed by kindness than by power, doing what I can with the skills that I have to pay my rent for my time on earth. And trying, always trying, to live by Sitting Bull's entreaty: "Come let us put our minds together to see what kind of lives we can create for our children."
And petting every dog that I can.
Grew up in a crackerbox post-war bungalow outside of Minneapolis with my mother and father, two younger sisters, various dogs and cats, and a neighborhood full of rugrat kids playing outside until called in for the night.
Studied American Studies at the University of Minnesota, Religious Studies and Humanities at Stanford University, received a Ph.D. in Religion and Art in a joint program at Graduate Theological Union and the University of California at Berkeley. Lots of learning, lots of awards. Phi Beta Kappa. Summa cum Laude. Lots of stuff that looks good on paper.
But just as important, an antique restorer's shop in Marburg, Germany; the museums of Florence; a sculpture studio in the back alleys of Pietrasanta, Italy; an Indian reservation in the forests of northern Minnesota; and, perhaps above all, the American road.
Always a watcher, always a wanderer, perhaps too empathetic for my own good, more concerned with the "other" than the "self", always more interested in what people believed than in what they thought. A friend of the ordinary and the life of the streets.
Twenty years as a sculptor -- over-life sized images hand-chiseled from large tree trunks -- efforts to embody emotional and spiritual states in wood. Then, still searching, years helping young people collect memories of the tribal elders on the Red Lake Ojibwe reservation in the Minnesota north. Then writing,
always writing, finding a voice and even a calling, helping Native America tell its story.
A marriage, children, a home on a pine-rimmed lake near the Minnesota-Canadian border.
Book after book, seventeen in all, ever seeking the heartbeat of people's belief. Journeys, consolations, the caring observer, always the teacher, always the learner. Ever mindful of the wise counsel of an Ojibwe elder, "Always teach by stories, because stories lodge deep in the heart."
Through grace and good luck, an important trilogy (Neither Wolf nor Dog, The Wolf at Twilight, and The Girl who Sang to the Buffalo), a film, Minnesota Book Awards, South Dakota book of the year, many "community reads," book sales around the world.
In the end, a reluctant promoter, a quiet worker, a seeker of an authentic American spirituality, more concerned with excellence than quantity. Proud to be referred to as "a guerilla theologian" and honored to be called "the one writer who can respectfully bridge the gap between native and non-Native cultures". But more honored still to hear a twelve-year-old girl at one of my readings whisper to her mom, "He's a really nice man."
At heart, just an ordinary person, grateful to be a father and a husband, more impressed by kindness than by power, doing what I can with the skills that I have to pay my rent for my time on earth. And trying, always trying, to live by Sitting Bull's entreaty: "Come let us put our minds together to see what kind of lives we can create for our children."
And petting every dog that I can.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 5, 2018
This is a quick and easy read of Short little stories of inspiration and encouragement. Each story is meant to be savored and given reflection. It is a book whose stories you can return to again and again. I would love to re-read some of these stories again very soon.
January 30, 2025
I loved it. I was emotional from the first page. I also love that through all the beauty he sees, he remains detached, grateful but aware that it doesn’t belong to him and he is grateful to experience it. Brilliant.
November 16, 2017
A master teller of Spirit in our lives gives us a blessed gift in this book - Spirit is with everyone, everywhere.
July 30, 2018
This is a good little spiritual book to open your eyes for mindfulness.
August 14, 2024
Love all things Kent Nerburn!!! This is another great source of inspiration and wisdom. A great gift idea, too!! Words to ponder, absorb, reflect upon. Highly recommend.
February 25, 2013
A wonderful short read about paying attention to the beauty, the meaning,
the messages, the cultivation of awareness, the epiphanies and the
lessons to be learned in the details and moments of daily life.
the messages, the cultivation of awareness, the epiphanies and the
lessons to be learned in the details and moments of daily life.
August 27, 2016
Perfect for a rainy day filled with only the quiet sounds of calm.
Kent Nerberg reminds us to pay attention to the little things. His stories are hauntingly simple and in each one he shares a bit of his life, his humanity - and leaves space for us to find ours.
Kent Nerberg reminds us to pay attention to the little things. His stories are hauntingly simple and in each one he shares a bit of his life, his humanity - and leaves space for us to find ours.
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December 12, 2016IF viewed from a believer's (in Christ) perspective these are very thoughtful vignettes of life -- IF taken from a "all is good" perspective then I'm actually scared of a person's reaction to them ...
November 12, 2007
Nerburn's simple, elegant book reads like a devotional. It's an easy read with a central theme: enjoy, experience, all of life. A fine, thoughtful, book.
April 6, 2010
Easy, thoughtful book.
October 7, 2015
I read this book recently as well. The stories were well written and very relevant to my life. I liked connecting to God and seeing him in ordinary places in these stories.
July 19, 2008
This was just ok. The first 2 chapters were good, but then not so much. . .
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews