Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia is a book about self discovery. After a divorce and a bitter follow-up relationship, Gilbert decides that she needs to travel and get away from her current life and decides to spend several months in Italy, India and Bali. The "Eat" chapter focuses on Italy and her learning to open herself to new friends. "Pray" takes place in India where she travels to an quiet Ashram where she studies with a local guru. (And to my surprise, my favorite section.) And "Love" takes place in Bali where she starts a relationship with someone new.
When I started this book - I did not necessarily like Gilbert. And you need to like her or empathize with her, to care about her journey. I read the first section and then stopped. I picked the book up again several months later and gave it another try. This time, I was much more receptive to her and her tale of self discovery. So give the book a chance if you have a hard time getting into it. It really is true that there is "the right book at the right time" for you to read. So if you are in an introspective mood, or coming out of a bad relationship - this may be the right book for you.
Here's something from my favorite section - which was "Pray". There is a lot of food for thought in these chapters...
When talking to a fellow yogi about the man she thought was her soul mate - he replies -
"He probably was. Your problem is you don't understand what that word means. People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that's holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But to live with a soul mate forever? Too painful. Soul mates come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then they leave. In this case, you can't let go. His purpose was to shake you up, drive you out of that marriage that you needed to leave, tear apart your ego, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so new light could get in, make you so that you had to transform your life....That was his job."
So, something to think about and ponder. Try the book - maybe you will like it too. At the very least, the "Eat" section will make you crave good Italian food!
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