Unexpected Awakening: 22 Days at a Buddhist Monastery Freed Me from Abuse

A true story of conflict, compassion, self-discovery, love, and loss.

At forty-three years old, Laurie Jacobson found herself trapped in a painful marriage and thought her life was over. The man she once loved and admired had devolved into a cruel, emotionally abusive husband who embraced anti-Semitic rhetoric. To make matters worse, she happened to be Jewish.

Isolated in a ramshackle farmhouse in the rural Pennsylvania mountains and desperate to escape her misery, Laurie decides to attend a weeklong silent retreat at a Buddhist monastery. The Buddha's path promised an end to suffering, and she was hoping for a miracle.

After countless hours of silent meditation and a string of inexplicable coincidences, Laurie experiences blissful shifts in consciousness, and is astonished by visions of otherworldly beings. But when an immobilizing snowstorm prolongs her stay at the monastery, the unexpected happens. Seemingly magical events, coupled with the kindness and wisdom of Charles, the monastery cook, transforms her life in ways she never dreamed possible.