Roots and Wings: The Human Journey from a Speck of Stardust to a Spark of God

After a breathless whirl through the universe story, the author brings us back to planet Earth with very personal and pointed questions addressed to the reader. These are not all tidily collected at the ends of chapters, but interspersed throughout the text in such a way that they cannot easily be ignored. She shows how creation's interplay of chaos and ordering is reflected in our lives, and helps us learn from the ruins of our hopes. Using anecdotes from her own life, Silf makes her insights tangible and invites us to explore, rather than try to explain our own life story. Brief focused chapters make the book especially useful for those whose reading time is fragmented, yet each chapter offers ample food for further reflection.While the first part of this refreshing book helps us nurture good roots, the latter part con-tains flying lessons. Familiar Gospel stories are retold from a new perspective, with one of the participants in the story as narrator. Mary Magdalene, trying to cling to Jesus after his resurrec-tion, is told, "We can't ever go back. The way leads only forward. Don't hang on to the past.... The future has such gifts for us, but we can't receive them unless we move on with empty hands." This is a book full of hope, urging us to both dig deeper and soar higher.

After reading this book I feel much more able to be a grandparent because it talks about life in verbal images and Silf is a master at telling stories that open your mind to the possibilities one can achieve.

Thoughtful, Prayerful and beautifully written.Guides one through the path of new cosmology and interweaves it with current scripture studies.