ONE BECOMES ONE

Maxey’s (I Am Liberty, 2011) memoir about her spiritual quest through life and marriage.

Since an ugly split with her husband, Gil, Maxey’s life has taken some unexpected turns. From barely surviving on unemployment checks to searching for a new relationship on the Internet, Maxey has met new people and ventured to places she would never have dreamed of a decade ago. It may seem unlikely that a single mother in Tennessee would form a soul-mate connection with a computer programmer in Southern California, but such are the wonders of the modern world. The story details the excitement of their blossoming relationship: After exchanging ideas about life and religion, they agree to marry even though they’ve never met in person, and though their backgrounds are steeped in a variety of spiritual traditions ranging from Hindu texts to the teachings of Jesus, they make revelations of their own, too. Part spiritual journey, part rant against a difficult ex-husband and part criticism of the material world, Maxey’s book unfolds with struggles both existential and physical. While readers disinclined toward chakra descriptions and ascension planes may feel alienated at times, the author’s constant anchoring to the real world helps distance her book from being an unapproachable New Age diatribe. The infighting at liberal-minded church meetings and custody battles over her preteen son don’t always make for the most compelling or inviting storylines, and the same can be said of her frustration with those who don’t take her spiritual path seriously. Speaking of a Nashville church retreat in which she reveals that her greatest desire is “the awakening and ascension in consciousness of the world’s people,” Maxey is dismayed when “the minister revealed that her greatest desire was to fly in a hot-air balloon, [and] everyone applauded. WTF?”

A wild tapestry of various teachings held together by the author’s candidness in her search for spiritual fulfillment.