Douglas Carlton Abrams – författare

A powerful, stirring yet utterly down-to-earth story with an unforgettable message about anger, compassion and forgiveness.Based on a true story from the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu's childhood, Desmond and the Very Mean Word depicts an incident in a South African town. While proudly riding his new bicycle, young Desmond is rudely insulted by some neighbourhood boys – and at first he responds angrily. But he's troubled to find that retaliation brings him no relief, and he can't stop thinking about the mean things the boys said to him. With the aid of the kindly Father Trevor, Desmond arrives at a better understanding of his feelings and learns that true forgiveness comes from within – and arises when you choose to regard all people with compassion, whether or not they say they are sorry.A beautiful tale of forgiveness, as well as a lesson about how to handle bullying and feelings of anger, embarrassment and revenge, this is a vibrantly illustrated, deeply warm-hearted story.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have survived more than fifty years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships—or, as they would say, because of them—they are two of the most joyful people on the planet.In April 2015, Archbishop Tutu traveled to the Dalai Lama''s home in Dharamsala, India, to celebrate His Holiness''s eightieth birthday and to create what they hoped would be a gift for others. They looked back on their long lives to answer a single burning question: How do we find joy in the face of life''s inevitable suffering?They traded intimate stories, teased each other continually, and shared their spiritual practices. By the end of a week filled with laughter and punctuated with tears, these two global heroes had stared into the abyss and despair of our time and revealed how to live a life brimming with joy.This book offers us a rare opportunity to experience their astonishing and unprecendented week together, from the first embrace to the final good-bye.We get to listen as they explore the Nature of True Joy and confront each of the Obstacles of Joy—from fear, stress, and anger to grief, illness, and death. They then offer us the Eight Pillars of Joy, which provide the foundation for lasting happiness. Throughout, they include stories, wisdom, and science. Finally, they share their daily Joy Practices that anchor their own emotional and spiritual lives.The Archbishop has never claimed sainthood, and the Dalai Lama considers himself a simple monk. In this unique collaboration, they offer us the reflection of real lives filled with pain and turmoil in the midst of which they have been able to discover a level of peace, of courage, and of joy to which we can all aspire in our own lives.

A powerful, stirring yet utterly down-to-earth story with an unforgettable message about anger, compassion and forgiveness.Based on a true story from the Archbishop Desmond Tutu's childhood, Desmond and the Very Mean Word depicts an incident in a South African town. While proudly riding his new bicycle, young Desmond is rudely insulted by some neighbourhood boys – and at first he responds angrily. But he's troubled to find that retaliation brings him no relief, and he can't stop thinking about the mean things the boys said to him. With the aid of the kindly Father Trevor, Desmond arrives at a better understanding of his feelings and learns that true forgiveness comes from within – and arises when you choose to regard all people with compassion, whether or not they say they are sorry. A beautiful tale of forgiveness, as well as a lesson about how to handle bullying and angry feelings, this is a vibrantly illustrated, deeply warm-hearted story.