Jarem Sawatsky

Jarem Sawatsky is a man of incredible gifts: not least of suffering that leads to deep learning about being human. A Greek saying from antiquity goes: mathein pathein - to learn is to suffer. Jarem has learned much from his living with a terminal illness, and is a deeply wise teacher.

My wife and I just had the rare privilege of spending 8 weeks in Rwanda, May 18 - July 12, 2018. We saw firsthand the incredible power of a nationwide commitment to finding a way of "healing justice" in response to unspeakable horror: the 1994 genocide that saw murdered more than a million Tutsis, and left the entire society deeply traumatized.

Jarem Sawatsky's newest book captures repeatedly the elusive essence of the kind of healing justice we saw repeatedly throughout Rwanda.

Like all his writing, whether in books or online, Jarem has a great amount to teach us, if we have the eyes to see, the ears to hear, and the patience to learn. Learning from direct suffering may be profoundly supplemented by learning from those who have suffered and yet embraced a healing justice. Jarem is one such teacher, who in turn in this beautiful book introduces us to so many others, and their communities.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! to Jarem.… (altro)

I read an advance reader copy, and I've been trying to figure out what to say about it since.

The amount of wisdom contained in this book is unbelievable. Jarem interviewed Jon Kabat-Zinn, Patch Adams, Lucy Kalanthi (wife of Paul Kalanthi who wrote When Breath Becomes Air), Jean Paul Lederach, and Toni Bernhard about living with chronic illness. He comes from a Christian background, but is heavily influenced by the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh. It's a unique spirituality that makes this book just that much more special.

His story of living with Huntington's Disease as a family member (it is genetic) and after he received the diagnosis he had expected to get is not sad or sentimental in any way. You don't feel sorry for him in any way when reading this narrative. He "transformed fear into joyful dancing."

The cover is one of the most fun I've ever seen. I would never have considered dancing with elephants as a way of going through, but Jarem not only makes it seem bearable, but a love-filled joy.

If you need some encouragement in living with joy, read this book. It will change your perspective on everything. Even if you don't have a chronic illness, I recommend this book. It's one that will stay with you and teach you something new with every page.

I love his poetry as well. It enhanced the prose in a way that blessed me.… (altro)