Is there an art to dying? & if there is what can we do to achieve a good death? We have few special rituals to prepare for death or to mark it & we often fail to help the dying prepare for death. The Art of Dying" contains accounts by the dying & those who have been with the dying in their final hours which help us to understand that death is a process. The experiences suggest that we are looked after throughout the transition from life to death & taken on a journey into love & light by loved ones who come back to take us. Other accounts are from people who have been emotionally close to someone & who unaware that the person they love is dying experience a sudden strong sense of their presence or an intimation of their death. Rational scientific explanations for these experiences are hard to find & it is almost impossible in the face of them to sustain the current scientific view that our consciousness is entirely brain-based & that it is extinguished at the moment our brain ceases to function. The world is more highly interconnected & more complex than the simple mechanical model we have followed for so long. The evidence suggests we are more than brain function & that something
- soul or spirit or consciousness
- will continue in some form or another for a while at least. We can ensure a "good death" for ourselves & help those we love achieve it too. " The Art of Dying" demonstrates that we can face death with a peaceful & untroubled mind; that death is not a lonely or a fearful journey but an intensely hopeful one."

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Most of us believe that in order to achieve anything worthwhile whether in our careers family life health or even on the sports field we have to work hard & apply a lot of effort. In fact just the opposite is true. In this book Dr. Ingrid Bacci offers evidence that the most productive creative & healthiest individuals are those who practice effortless living. By doing less paradoxical as it may seem they achieve more. In this book the reader meets individuals who have transformed their lives in radically simple ways: The executive whose influence over her colleagues increased dramatically after she began a deceptively simple relaxation. The patient who eliminated 30 years of suffering from migraines after ten training sessions in releasing unconscious muscle tension. The golf player who corrected his golf swing in one brief session using a series of visualization exercises. This book aims to show you how to dissolve conscious & unconscious stress through simple techniques that replace effort with effortlessness. The result should be a more rewarding lifestyle leading to physical vitality increased productivity creative relationships & the freedom to express your best self. ...

The embroidery of Jane E Hall is breathtaking & in this gorgeous book she combines her love of butterflies with her outstanding talent as a textile artist to produce three-dimensional renditions of exquisitely worked butterflies that are almost indistinguishable from the real thing. Using the finest of silk threads & needles Jane lovingly creates her butterflies wings using the tiniest of stitches worked on to silk. They are then carefully cut away & the edges strengthened with hair-fine wire before being attached to the bodies carefully crafted from air-drying modelling medium & brushed with whisper-fine threads to resemble hairs. The butterflies are then placed within a setting of silk leaves & flowers all made with the same painstaking attention to detail & expert skill as the butterflies themselves. This book provides a fascinating introduction to butterflies in nature reflecting Janes love & admiration for these exquisite creatures & goes on to describe the materials & methods Jane uses to produce her incredible creations. Twelve projects each based on a different butterfly including the Painted Lady Small Tortoiseshell & the Brimstone present the finished piece along with the materials Jane used & the photographs swatches drawings & paintings that inspired it. One of the most striking features of this book is the amazing photography of Janes work including detailed close-ups which together with Janes poetic & inspiring text make this a book that anyone who is an artist embroiderer textile artist or simply a lover of beautiful books
- will want to own.
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Gilda Baron combines her love of nature & skills as a textile artist & embroiderer in this inspirational & innovative step-by-step guide. Using painted & dyed backgrounds & hand & machine embroidery she presents a wonderful variety of three dimensional landscape & flower embroideries. A number of techniques are employed when applying colour to the fabric including batik salt discharge & brushing dye into a wet surface. Beautiful pictures are then stitched & built up over the background in easy stages. The feeling of perspective is enhanced by the clever use of scale & colour & all the techniques are explained clearly & demonstrated in a series of stunning projects. This original book is packed with practical advice & information. Anyone interested in pattern texture & colour will discover a wealth of inspiration when they work through the projects. Gildas highly individual designs will encourage beginners & more experienced embroiderers to create their own embroidered flower designs.
- Flowers are a popular subject
- One of the Needlecraft series
- Step-by-step guide


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With this lavish introduction to the centuries-old art of enameling even beginners can effortlessly create imaginative designs. It covers all the popular techniques & 14 fabulous projects. The various styles range from traditional cloisonne to experimental techniques such as firing enamel onto mesh forms. All the well-photographed projects from a vibrantly toned flower ring to an elegant set of buttons with a delicate leaf pattern encourage novices to use their skills & imagination. ...

Begin by making your life a work of art. You dont have to be a super-achiever. You dont have to be unusually creative. You dont have to endure great obstacles. According to success expert Jim Rohn you dont have to do exceptional things at all. Just do ordinary things exceptionally well. Thats The Art of Exceptional Living." There are things you can should & must do to get your life on track of success. You may not be aware of it but they are already in your heart. In " The Art of Exceptional Living " Rohn provides the ideas & inspiration that lead to unstoppable daily progress. Using his exceptional powers of communication he helps you through difficult subject matter & teaches you how to get beyond personal setbacks to begin living according to ypour own rules. Youll begin by following the strategies of exceptional living including: Four major lessons that must be mastered in life The most common self-imposed limitations & how to deal with them How to get a miracle going in your life The foundation of good financial strategy " ...

Beyond his martial arts & acting abilities Bruce Lees physical appearance & strength were truly astounding. He achieved this through an intensive & ever-evolving conditioning regime that is being revealed for the first time in this book. Drawing on Lees own notes letters diaries & training logs bodybuilding expert John Little presents the full extent of Lees unique training methods including nutrition aerobics isometrics stretching & weight training. ...

In this entertaining & enlightening collection David Lodge considers the art of fiction under a wide range of headings drawing on writers as diverse as Henry James Martin Amis Jane Austen & James Joyce. Looking at ideas such as the Intrusive Author Suspense the Epistolary Novel Magic Realism & Symbolism & illustrating each topic with a passage taken from a classic or modern novel David Lodge makes the richness & variety of British & American fiction accessible to the general reader. He provides essential reading for students aspiring writers & anyone who wants to understand how fiction works. ...

A wonderful warm novel from a major new American voice. Henry Skrimshander newly arrived at college shy & out of his depth has a talent for baseball that borders on genius. But sometimes it seems that his only friend is big Mike Schwartz -- who champions the talents of others at the expense of his own. & Owen Henrys clever charismatic gay roommate who has a secret that could put his brilliant college career in jeopardy. Pella the 23-year-old daughter of the college president has returned home after a failed marriage determined to get her life in order. Only to find her father a confirmed bachelor has fallen desperately in love himself. Then one fateful day Henry makes a mistake -- misthrows a ball. & everything changes! ...

A wonderful warm novel from a major new American voice. Henry Skrimshander newly arrived at college shy & out of his depth has a talent for baseball that borders on genius. But sometimes it seems that his only friend is big Mike Schwartz
- who champions the talents of others at the expense of his own. & Owen Henrys clever charismatic gay roommate who has a secret that could put his brilliant college career in jeopardy. Pella the 23-year-old daughter of the college president has returned home after a failed marriage determined to get her life in order. Only to find her father a confirmed bachelor has fallen desperately in love himself. Then one fateful day Henry makes a mistake
- misthrows a ball. & everything changes...

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