There Are No Mistakes

Book excerpt: There are no mistakes -- there are only choices. That is the simple premise of There Are No Mistakes, which Eleanor Wiley has learned in twenty-five years of sobriety as a mediator, an artist, and a teacher. This astoundingly candid and simple book is illustrated with personal stories from the author and people she has encountered on her path, along with specific and simple exercises to do at the end of each chapter. Wiley acknowledges that you won't be perfect and you may not be happy all of the time, and you may not be rich or amazingly enlightened, but you will be okay. And, the thing about okay is that it's really a great thing--it's about moving through the world with a sense of grace and ease. Eleanor Wiley is a former speech pathologist and gerontologist who began her prayer bead practice at age fifty-eight. She teaches workshops on making prayer beads as a spiritual practice all over the world; her pieces have been worn by Ram Dass and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. She is the author of A String and a Prayer. Her own spiritual practice includes beading, sitting meditation with both Christian and Buddhist communities, and practicing yoga and the Twelve Steps. Wiley's prayer beads are available through her website.