This week, "Art and Soul" is about the art of well being. Lisa Barry talks with the owner of Crazy Wisdom Bookstore and Tea Room in Ann Arbor, Bill Zirinsky.
He talks about how the store has been a source of wellness and inspiration in Ann Arbor for over 30 years and how they can help in our healing as we ride out the current pandemic and other unsettling societal situations.
Bill Zirinsky says there are many opportunities and practitioners in the Ann Arbor area offering psychological growth and spiritual awareness. Crazy Wisdom Bookstore brings many local thought leaders together and offers a wide assortment of books on topics from acupuncture to zen and many others in between. He says it’s “an oasis for people who are searching in their lives,”
Zirinsky describes the energy in his store on Main Street as “calming, and spirited and welcoming.” They closed for six months at the beginning of the pandemic and were able to reopen in early fall. He cites Ann Arbor herbalist Dr. Bronwen Gates, whom he described as one of the wisest women in Ann Arbor. who said, “The pandemic is a necessary spiritual awakening for us all.”
The Crazy Wisdom Community Journal just had its 25th anniversary (see links below to several issues). It’s a magazine they produce with articles and interviews, profiles, and features about people in the community doing good work in the areas they specialize in. They pivoted to a weekly online issue last spring because of the pandemic as a way to let customers know they were still alive and well and still putting effort and energy into building community.
Zirinsky says it has been their goal for years to bring together “the local resources to give people a sense of the rich array of opportunities in the area for psychological growth and spiritual awareness.”READ THE LAST THREE ISSUES OF THE CRAZY WISDOM COMMUNITY JOURNAL BELOW:
SAMPLE FIVE ISSUES OF CRAZY WISDOM'S WEEKLY E-ZINE BELOW:
*The new Art and Soul theme song you hear was written for this segment by Ann Arbor area bassist and composer Paul Keller.*
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— Lisa Barry is the host of All Things Considered on WEMU. You can contact Lisa at 734.487.3363, on Twitter @LisaWEMU, or email her at lbarryma@emich.edu