Difficult People: A Gateway to Enlightenment Hot

At first glance I thought this was another skim-the-surface self-help book, one about how to deal with difficult people, perhaps at your office, or in your book club. I don’t know any difficult people, I thought, at least not intimately enough to be interested in reading this. I love being pleasantly surprised.

Difficult People recounts the author’s practice of being “present,” even when faced daily with one of the most difficult people one can imagine, in her role as caregiver to an Alzheimer’s client. More so, it is a book that brings light to how culturally we are unconsciously conditioned, in varying degrees, to repeat the patterns and mechanics of mental chaos—aka known as resistance to “what is”—the core cause of suffering and discontent. As long as we are resisting the present moment, in all of its guises and permutations, then we become one of those difficult people (DP) whether we project our frustrations, angst, or aggravating habits onto others, or direct them inwardly. And such mental resistance blocks spiritual growth from occurring.
Lisette Larkins’ words do not just point us to the experience of “chronic well being” that she was able to attain through repeated commitment to stilling her noisy mind, but they infuse us with the process and experience through which we too can enter into the present moment. Highly recommended.