The Flow: A Hedonist’s Guide to Buddhism, Meditation and Travels in Thailand

What happens when a skeptical, comfort-loving, sharp-witted Westerner with an acute BS meter trades his daily grind for a Thai jungle monastery—and a shot at inner peace? In The Flow, A Hedonist’s Guide to Buddhism, Meditation and Travels in Thailand, a dry-witted hedonist goes searching for something real in a world that prizes distraction, and winds up barefoot and meditating at 5 a.m. amidst the cacophony of the Thailand jungle highlands. What begins as spiritual curiosity soon becomes a heartfelt plunge into the rhythms of Thai life and culture, Buddhist practice, and the universal ache for connection, purpose, and grace.
With a voice that’s as sharp as it is tender, the author takes us from Bangkok backstreets to mountaintop temples, elephant sanctuaries, a legendary river and local wet markets, with some epic rush-hour street crossing and white-knuckle tuk tuk rides just for fun. Along his journey, he encounters a wry Tibetan monk, bartenders and chefs, a shop owner named Larry who loves the same cat he does, and Chalermwan, a quiet yet brilliant fruit vendor whose presence lingers long after the last mangosteen. Through it all, the memoir explores the tension between ambition and surrender, craving and contentment, Western cynicism and Eastern wisdom.