EZRA BAYDA was born in 1944 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. After graduating from Rutgers University with a degree in philosophy, he became a carpenter and a builder, an occupation he worked at for thirty years. He teaches with his wife, Elizabeth Hamilton (author of Untrain Your Parrot), at Zen Center San Diego. He is also founder of the Santa Rosa Zen Group in Santa Rosa, California, where he teaches monthly. He is the author five previous books, including Being Zen, Zen Heart, and Beyond Happiness. For more information, visit www.zencentersandiego.org.

Ever feel like your efforts to live a life of wisdom, honesty, and compassion are hijacked by, well, life? Take heart. Ezra Bayda has good news: life's challenges aren't obstacles to our path—they are the path. Understanding that liberates us to use every aspect of what life presents us with as a way to live with integrity and authenticity—and joy.
In this, as in all his books, Ezra's teaching is Zen made wonderfully practical, in a way that can apply to anyone's life. Meditation is the foundation, but it doesn't stop there. It's about learning to take the practice of presence we cultivate in meditation to all the rest of our complicated lives. Doing that empowers us to navigate our journey with the integrity and authenticity that are what a satisfying life are all about.