What Now?

November 20, 2017
Shy, senior director of the NYU Global Spiritual Life Center, draws from her own experiences to offer meditation advice to 20-somethings in this light, approachable guide. Shy covers familiar ground: teaching the three Buddhist marks of impermanence (impermanence, suffering, no-self), expanding mindfulness practices to everyday life, and “agreeing to let my story of myself as unlovable die, and seeing what happens.” What sets Shy’s offering apart is her candor in revealing her own vulnerability as a young person, including romantic break-ups and peer pressure during college, her struggle to find her spiritual place after being raised Jewish, and a revealing section on entering the job market. When writing about heartbreak or loneliness, she describes a three-part sequence of reactions—being overwhelmed, turning a mindful eye to her body-mind, and developing a healthy relationship to her emotions—that serves as a model for practicing meditation. For Shy, meditation is not just not learning how to take deep breaths, but a process of “becoming familiar with life” and “coming home to ourselves” by “growing ever more expansive and loving toward all of the darkness within.” This easily digested, insightful book will be welcomed by her target audience.