The Ragged Edge Of Silence

John Francis's real and compelling prose forms a tapestry of questions and answers woven from interviews, stories, personal experience, science, and the power of silence through history, including practice by Native American, Hindu, and Buddhist cultures.

By the author of Planetwalker, The Ragged Edge of Silence takes us to another level of appreciating, through silence, the beauty of the planet and our place in it. John Francis's real and compelling prose forms a tapestry of questions and answers woven from interviews, stories, personal experience, science, and the power of silence through history, including practice by Native American, Hindu, and Buddhist cultures. Through their time-honored traditions and his own experience of communicating silently for 17 years, Francis's practical exercises lay the groundwork for the reader to build constructive silence into everyday life: to learn more about oneself, to set goals and accomplish dreams, to build strong relationships, and to appreciate and be a steward of the Earth. With its amazing human interest element and first-person expertise, this book is energizing and universally instructive.

When the struggle to save oil-soaked birds and restore blackened beaches left him feeling frustrated and helpless, John Francis decided to take a more fundamental and personal stand—he stopped using all forms of motorized transportation. Soon after embarking on this quest that would span two decades and two continents, the young man took a vow of silence that endured for 17 years. It began as a silent environmental protest, but as a young African-American man, walking across the country in the early 1970s, his idea of "the environment" expanded beyond concern about pollution and loss of habitat to include how we humans treat each other and how we can better communicate and work together to benefit the earth. Through his silence and walking, he learned to listen, and along the way, earned college and graduate degrees in science and environmental studies. The United Nations appointed him goodwill ambassador to the world’s grassroots communities and the U.S. government recruited him to help address the Exxon Valdez disaster. Was he crazy? How did he live and earn all those degrees without talking? An amazing human-interest story, with a vital message, Planetwalker is also a deeply personal and engaging coming-of-age odyssey—the positive experiences, the challenging times, the characters encountered, and the learning gained along the way.

Deployed to Iraq in March 2004 after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, US Marine Michael Zacchea thought he had landed a plum assignment. His team's mission was to build, train, and lead in combat the first Iraqi Army battalion trained by the US military. Quickly, he realized he was faced with a nearly impossible task. With just two weeks' training based on outdated and irrelevant materials, no language instruction, and few cultural tips for interacting with his battalion of Shiites, Sunnis, Kurds, Yazidis, and others, Zacchea arrived at his base in Kirkush to learn his recruits would need beds, boots, uniforms, and equipment. His Iraqi officer counterparts spoke little English. He had little time to transform his troops—mostly poor, uneducated farmers—into a cohesive rifle battalion that would fight a new insurgency erupting across Iraq. In order to stand up a fighting battalion, Zacchea knew, he would have to understand his men. Unlike other combat Marines in Iraq at the time, he immersed himself in Iraq's culture: learning its languages, eating its foods, observing its traditions—even being inducted into one of its Sunni tribes. A constant source of both pride and frustration, the Iraqi Army Fifth Battalion went on to fight bravely at the Battle of Fallujah against the forces that would eventually form ISIS. The Ragged Edge is Zacchea's deeply personal and powerful account of hopeful determination, of brotherhood and betrayal, and of cultural ignorance and misunderstanding. It sheds light on the dangerous pitfalls of training foreign troops to fight murderous insurgents and terrorists, precisely when such wartime collaboration is happening more than at any other time in US history.

Argenti agent Darren Sumner spent fifteen years hunting werewolves, but one night of betrayal sent him from his family of assassins into the arms of werewolf Aden Richter. Neither can deny their passion nor their hunger for the other, but as Darren tries to find his place in this new world, he wonders whether desire can be enough. Rumors of an upcoming power struggle between the packs in Washington, DC, bring the question of Darren's role to the forefront. Is he Aden's partner and a leader of the pack? Or is he nothing more than Aden's boytoy, placed outside his family? Darren struggles to prove himself as the tensions between the packs mount and Aden's ex-lover puts a plan of vengeance into action.

Author Paul Rodney Turner the "food yogi" takes you on a journey of rediscovering food and its importance in our spiritual evolution. FOOD YOGA not only offers practical guidance on how to live a healthy and happy life by reconnecting with nature, but also introduces the reader to the power of food as a uniter and a medium for expressing our love for the divine. Food yoga springs from the belief that the kind of food we eat affects our consciousness and subsequent behaviours. All the world's great spiritual traditions have elaborate food offering rituals carefully designed to expand consciousness and all use food as a means to represent or please the Divine and to expand the consciousness of their followers. Food yoga is, in essence, a discipline that honors all spiritual paths by embracing their core teaching - that food in its most pure form is divine and therefore an excellent medium for spiritual purification.

“Activists and rap stars, abolitionists and pioneers, inventors and scientists surge with life throughout this thrilling and comprehensive work.” —Jennifer Maritza McCauley, National Endowment for the Arts Fellow A #1 Bestseller in Teen & Young Adult 21st Century U.S. History We are familiar with a handful of African Americans who are mentioned in American history books, but there are also countless others who do not get recognized in mainstream media. Their actions may not have appeared to shake the world, but their contributions to shifting American culture were just as groundbreaking. The achievements of the Black Americans included in this book range from athletic to artistic, literary to scientific. Their biographies vary greatly, but each one contributes to the course of Black history and its influence on the greater world. Their stories encourage readers, especially teenage boys and girls, to find their own path to change. Monique L. Jones’s The Book of Awesome Black Americans is more than a Black history book. It’s a celebration of Black people. In this book, you will find: Amazing role models who brought on change by using their gifts and passions to overcome societal barriersStories mainstream media failed to mention that are sure to inspire, motivate, and educate readers of all backgroundsTestimonies that demonstrate how American culture thrives when it celebrates diversity and promotes inclusiveness “Belongs on every coffee table in America. Monique Jones packs her book with astonishing stories of bravery, grit, and joy. The astonishing anecdotes of overlooked personalities and heroes will ensure you never look at history the same again. Who says history has to be boring?” —Li Lai, founder of Mediaversity Reviews

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The Ragged Edge" by Harold MacGrath. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.