As humans we have the exceptional abilities to learn and to choose. This book is filled with insight and encouragement: to be kind, to be ethical, to be forgiving, to be loving. A slight shift in perspective takes us from despair to hope; a slight alteration in outlook, and the world changes. We have the potential to grow beyond our greatest aspirations. This gentle book provides the peace, solace and support for living joyfully in our current world. It reminds us that hope is never far; we can find it within ourselves. With each passage, we are invited to enter a life of joy, and to sometimes shift perspectives. With each passage, readers are given a vantage point to allow us to break free from our dead ends. A collection from renowned Buddhist teacher, Zhen-Ru, these short passages and musings invoke the stillness needed for everyday contemplation. Available for the first time in English, each of these passages is offered with the goal of helping the reader access the compassion, understanding and gratitude that is needed to hold space for each other, and for the earth. Selections in translation for over six years, the Amrita Translation Foundation of Buddhist monks and nuns, who hope to preserve the essence of Zhen-Ru's teachings, conveying her insights to the everyday applications of readers.