Susyn Reeve - The Wholehearted Life: Big Changes and Greater Happiness Week by Week

Praise for The Wholehearted Life

I revel in the Heartfulness of Susyns creation. The Wholehearted Life is a book to be cherished, savored, devoured

Susyns point of view is a beautiful tapestry of personal experience and practical wisdom, a hallmark of the exquisite romance between human and divine. She speaks with utter devotion to the intuitive knowing, joyfulness and bliss residing in all of us, and gently invites it, each day, with each page, to come play. Her words are ignited with her very heartbeat, so that we, in turn, can hear the rhythm of our own sacred song. I cherish Susyns willingness to be so generously herself. And I thank her, with all my heart, for creating something so beautiful, and with such vigor, and love.

Tatyana von Knobelsdorff, author of I Am the Sigh of a Woman Well Pleased: The Autobiography of Loves Evolution as Woman

Susyn Reeve gives us a map to peace and happinessto truly BE peace and happiness. With her guidance this is possible, no matter what your situation may be. Allow this marvelous book to show you the way.

Sandy Vilas, CEO of CoachInc.com and author of Power Networking

Simple directives bring profound results. Follow the guidelines in this wonderful book!

Eve Eliot, author of Attention Shoppers!

There is so much offeredit could even be the basis for a musical!

Richard Adler, lyricist and composer; Broadway shows include The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees

Copyright 2014 by Susyn Reeve.

All rights reserved. Except for brief passages quoted in newspaper, magazine, radio, television, or online reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in the United States by Viva Editions, an imprint of Cleis Press, Inc., 2246 Sixth Street, Berkeley, California 94710.

Cover design: Scott Idleman/Blink

Cover photograph: iStockphoto

Text design: Frank Wiedemann

First Edition.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

E-book ISBN: 978-1-63228-002-2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Reeve, Susyn.

The wholehearted life : big changes and greater happiness week by week / Susyn Reeve. -- First edition.

pages cm

1. Peace of mind. 2. Happiness. 3. Conduct of life. 4. Spiritual life. I. Title.

BF637.P3R443 2014

158.1--dc23

2014014061

To Maya, the daughter of my heart.

And to each person committed to being a mighty expression of Love in the world, this book is dedicated to you.

table of contents

What is a wholehearted life? I knew I couldnt write this foreword until I could answer this question. But as I asked it of myself the first few times, I realized, oh, wait a minute, this is one of those questionsone of those big, deep, soul-activating questions that, once asked, will not leave us alone. And a quick superficial answer that might have once put smug, self-satisfied smiles on our faces will no longer do. The soul wants to know: What is a wholehearted life?

I picked up my soul-writing journal and wrote across the top of a page: What is a wholehearted life? The answer was swift: When I live a wholehearted life, all of me shows up: all my love, all my desires, all my gifts, my strengths, my service, my energy, all my courage, and, yes, even all my weaknesses and fears. I am presentnot little Janet, big Janetthe whole me, the human me, the divine me, the heart me, the soul me; all of me is present.

I thought that was a pretty good answer, but as so often happens in soul writing, the answer just triggered another question: Why does a wholehearted life matter? Oh, I thought, now theres an important question. The answer surprised me a bit: Your heart is yours, but not only yours. You belong to the whole. Your whole heart is not just for you; it is in service to all. When you show up with your whole heart, you are a conduit for the great heart, the one heart, the only heart, and you heal the world.

Oh my. Suddenly Susyn Reeves book felt truly holy in my hands. I always ask myself when I write a book or read a book, Does this matter? And the answer for The Wholehearted Life is clearly, Yes, oh yes, oh yes.

I thought I was finished on the page, but one final question popped up: How can we live a wholehearted life? I laughed. Susyn Reeve has the how covered! Fifty-two weeks of how. Three hundred sixty-five days of little digestible nuggets of how. But dont take my word for it. Dive into this book and discover for yourself what happens when your wholehearted self begins to show up.

Janet Conner

author of Writing Down Your Soul, The Lotus and The Lily, and Soul Vows: Gathering the Presence of the Divine in You, Through You, and as You

The whole of my heart is filled with gratitude for my family, friends, colleagues, and the strangers whose wholehearted Love, support, expertise, and presence contributed to the birth and blossoming of this book.

To my wonderful friends who opened their homes to me, providing me loving writing sanctuaries in heavenly settings: Calla Crafts and Fred Finch, Eve Eliot, Suzi Higgins, Drew and Lynn Neidorf, and June Umanoff and Bo Parsons.

To the people who believe in me over and over and over again, and whose Love gives me the courage to be the best me and express that through the words on the pages of this book: Maya and Kevin Baker, David Rattiner, Robin and Mark Neiman, Lorraine Simone, Sheryl Hastalis, Ryan Weiss, Josie Thompson, Lynn Geiger, Rikk Hansen, Lisa Carvill, and The LadiesCalla Crafts, Johanna Chase, and Judith Noel (thirty-five years, and counting, of pajama parties!).

This book would not have been possible without the extraordinary team at Viva Editions. Brenda Knight, you are the publisher that an author dreams of. Your commitment to allowing me to express myself so authentically and to midwife a beautiful book was priceless. Felice Newman, Kara Wuest, Sara Giusti, and Eileen Duhn, my heart is happy that you are my Viva cheerleaders. And of course, Elizabeth Smith for your superb copyediting and Scott Idleman for a cover design that warms my heart.

Janet Conner, that you made the time in the midst of completing the editing of your new book to write the foreword for this book is something I will forever be grateful for. Thank you for clearly writing down the soul and capturing the very heart of this book.

I have a depth of gratitude to the public libraries in East Hampton, New York, and Hampton Bays, New York. I have loved libraries since I was six years old and was able to print my name clearly enough to get my first library card. When the distractions of my office were vying for my attention, these libraries were the antidote.

I am eternally grateful to The Thought Spiritual Community of Eastern Long Island. Thank you for all the ways you support me. A special heartfelt hug of gratitude goes to Nick Rutherford, who invited me to speak and deliver the Sunday message four years ago.