Pico Ayer

Well, Big Sur already is the place where the calendar falls away and the outside world feels very distant. And you're on this 60-mile stretch of coastline in central California where humans feel very tiny because you're just in the presence of tall redwoods, the huge expanse of the uninterrupted ocean, the cliffs, and the sky.

And then right perched at the top of a hill there is this 900 acres of dry golden hills, pampas grass, and a cluster of little huts where the monks stay and where their 15 or so visitors stay. it's already one of the most beautiful sights on earth.

And then right perched at the top of a hill there is this 900 acres of dry golden hills, pampas grass, and a cluster of little huts where the monks stay and where their 15 or so visitors stay. it's already one of the most beautiful sights on earth.

And then right perched at the top of a hill there is this 900 acres of dry golden hills, pampas grass, and a cluster of little huts where the monks stay and where their 15 or so visitors stay. it's already one of the most beautiful sights on earth.

In 1996 because I travel a lot National Geographic magazine very kindly came to me and they said we'll send you anywhere in the world on our dime to write a piece about a special place and I'm sure they were thinking I would write about Tibet or Ethiopia or Antarctica and I said the only place I can think of is Big Sur and so I just drove three and a half hours up the coast again because that is as unworldly a location as I know.

In 1996 because I travel a lot National Geographic magazine very kindly came to me and they said we'll send you anywhere in the world on our dime to write a piece about a special place and I'm sure they were thinking I would write about Tibet or Ethiopia or Antarctica and I said the only place I can think of is Big Sur and so I just drove three and a half hours up the coast again because that is as unworldly a location as I know.

In 1996 because I travel a lot National Geographic magazine very kindly came to me and they said we'll send you anywhere in the world on our dime to write a piece about a special place and I'm sure they were thinking I would write about Tibet or Ethiopia or Antarctica and I said the only place I can think of is Big Sur and so I just drove three and a half hours up the coast again because that is as unworldly a location as I know.

It's both. I'm very conscious, I'm very lucky that I can summon up the time and resources to go on retreats there every season, sometimes for as long as two weeks and three weeks. And one of the things that so disarms me is that the monks ask for so little, but still there is a voluntary donation involved. So... I am keenly aware that many people in the world don't have that opportunity.

It's both. I'm very conscious, I'm very lucky that I can summon up the time and resources to go on retreats there every season, sometimes for as long as two weeks and three weeks. And one of the things that so disarms me is that the monks ask for so little, but still there is a voluntary donation involved. So... I am keenly aware that many people in the world don't have that opportunity.

It's both. I'm very conscious, I'm very lucky that I can summon up the time and resources to go on retreats there every season, sometimes for as long as two weeks and three weeks. And one of the things that so disarms me is that the monks ask for so little, but still there is a voluntary donation involved. So... I am keenly aware that many people in the world don't have that opportunity.

But I do concentrate on silence because that is available to anybody. And somebody who can't go on retreat can still go on a walk, can still turn off the lights and listen to music, can still try to free herself from the clamor of the world. And in order to, just as you say, bring yourself back to a sort of deeper reality that too often we forget. I think T.S.

But I do concentrate on silence because that is available to anybody. And somebody who can't go on retreat can still go on a walk, can still turn off the lights and listen to music, can still try to free herself from the clamor of the world. And in order to, just as you say, bring yourself back to a sort of deeper reality that too often we forget. I think T.S.

But I do concentrate on silence because that is available to anybody. And somebody who can't go on retreat can still go on a walk, can still turn off the lights and listen to music, can still try to free herself from the clamor of the world. And in order to, just as you say, bring yourself back to a sort of deeper reality that too often we forget. I think T.S.

Eliot once wrote about the life we have lost in living. And I think many of us are crying out to find that life, but we're in such a rush. And the world is so distracted these days. We don't know how to put our hands on it. And I loved what you said in your introduction about how this isn't about getting away from the world, but actually getting deeper into it.

Eliot once wrote about the life we have lost in living. And I think many of us are crying out to find that life, but we're in such a rush. And the world is so distracted these days. We don't know how to put our hands on it. And I loved what you said in your introduction about how this isn't about getting away from the world, but actually getting deeper into it.

Eliot once wrote about the life we have lost in living. And I think many of us are crying out to find that life, but we're in such a rush. And the world is so distracted these days. We don't know how to put our hands on it. And I loved what you said in your introduction about how this isn't about getting away from the world, but actually getting deeper into it.

And in what ways do you feel like you get deeper into it when you're there? Because it's uncluttered and undistracted, and it's like having the most intimate conversation with the natural world. Again, as I'm talking to you here in Santa Barbara, my mind is too likely filled with the email I just answered, the latest CNN update, the latest notification from United Airlines.

And in what ways do you feel like you get deeper into it when you're there? Because it's uncluttered and undistracted, and it's like having the most intimate conversation with the natural world. Again, as I'm talking to you here in Santa Barbara, my mind is too likely filled with the email I just answered, the latest CNN update, the latest notification from United Airlines.

And in what ways do you feel like you get deeper into it when you're there? Because it's uncluttered and undistracted, and it's like having the most intimate conversation with the natural world. Again, as I'm talking to you here in Santa Barbara, my mind is too likely filled with the email I just answered, the latest CNN update, the latest notification from United Airlines.

As soon as I go there, where there is no cell phone connection, no internet, no television, I'm freed of all that clutter. And suddenly, as if I've come awake to the beauty of the ocean, I'm suddenly fascinated by the rabbit that's standing on the splintered fence in my garden.