In Between the Mud and the Pink Lotus

"Toni Taylor is a funny, irreverent truth-teller. These stories are always full of delightful surprises."-Laura Davis, author of The Courage to Heal and The Burning Light of Two Stars

A Journey of Pain, Acceptance, and Compassion Lies Between the Mud and the Pink Lotus

There is a Buddhist belief regarding suffering and happiness: there is no lotus without mud. Our suffering is represented by mud, which lotus flowers need in order to grow and bloom. Most people don't want the mud, just the flowers, but we can't have one without the other.

In Between the Mud and the Pink Lotus follows the author's evolution from the day the blind stork delivered her to a mother who fed her "I'm no good" breast milk through a journey of discovery and change that embraces the Buddhist principle of acceptance.

Woven through a tapestry of personal reflections and storytelling is the idea that we need to learn to accept what is, rather than what we prefer, and pay attention to the unexpected nature of life. Though these stories that explore, illuminate, and celebrate the connection between the lotus and the mud-the happiness and the suffering that lies underneath-we can understand our own pain and consequently develop compassion in an extraordinarily complex world.

The illustrations in the paperback are black & white and the illustrations in the hardcover book and eBook are full color.