BR. PAUL QUENON entered the Trappist Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky in 1958 at the age of 17, where Thomas Merton was his novice master and spiritual director. He sleeps under the stars each night and is an avid hiker and hill climber. Br. Paul is the author of the award winning book In Praise of the Useless Life: A Monk’s Memoir (first place in the 2019 Catholic Press Association Book Awards), praised by Sue Monk Kidd, Pico Iyer, and Kathleen Norris. As well, he co-authored, with Judith Valente, The Art of Pausing: Meditations for the Overworked and Overwhelmed. The author of 9 collections of poetry, including Unquiet Vigil: New and Selected Poems, Bells of the Hours, and Laughter: My Purgatory, his book of photographs and poems, See the Moment, Feel the Moment, is due in 2021. Br. Paul, a sought-after and inspiring speaker, is a frequent guest on podcasts. JUDITH VALENTE has twice been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in journalism and is the recipient of many awards for her coverage of faith and culture for national PBS-TV’s Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly. A former staff writer for both The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, she was a contributing correspondent for Chicago Public Radio, and her articles appear in U.S. Catholic and National Catholic Reporter. Judith is the author of four previous spirituality titles, including most recently, How to Live: What The Rule of St. Benedict Teaches Us About Happiness, Meaning and Community. She is a lay associate of the Benedictine monastery Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison, KS, which is the subject of her 2013 memoir, Atchison Blue: A Search for Silence, a Spiritual Home, and a Living Faith. As well, she is a sought-after speaker and retreat leader on living a more contemplative life and discovering covering inner wisdom through poetry. Learn more at www.judithvalente.com More about Patti: www.PattiConklin.com