Testimonials

In sentences that are as sincere as they are nostalgic, Meikle Paschal gives us a valuable portrait of the journey of his life from the poor neighborhoods of Boston to the comfort of a consciousness furnished by the loving kindness of his Buddhist principles, principles that save him from the bitterness and resentment that can occupy the mind of someone who has fought adversity for his entire life. An African American man gifted with unusual intelligence and a keen intuition, he is lifted also by a penchant for forgiveness. As a reader, I am especially endeared to his portraits of a Boston I could never have known, the old Boston of the mid twentieth century. Paschal seems remarkably adept at recognizing and seizing the chance in life, even when he was not aware of the fuller meanings of his actions at the time. He implies repeatedly that something saved him, and it is that hope he offers the reader, namely that if we would just believe there is a way, the way will reveal itself to us. He is not blind to the tragedies of life, as he notes the people who did not have or see the chance, people who fell victim to things we would rather not imagine, but he offers his own encounters with those chances. He explores the vicissitudes of upward mobility in stories that are insightful and inspiring. In admitting the perfection possible in life, he admits the imperfections, the double binds, the impasses, and he continues on with life, even as the apparent paradise proves itself over and over to be only that and not something ultimately real. Paschal lets us see only the journey is real.

— Afaa Michael Weaver

National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship recipient
Pew Fellowships in the Arts recipient
Simmons College Professor
Chairman of the Simmons International Chinese Poetry Conference
Fulbright Scholar
Poet

Dr. Meikle Paschal in sharing his personal journey from the projects in Boston, gives hope to the disenfranchised and most vulnerable; our children, daring us to embrace alternative possibilities and make choices that break old patterns often leading to negative be­havior, dashed dreams and sometimes despair. Through the power of believing in oneself emerging from discipline and faith, Paschal forces us to look deeply within, overcome our fears, our anger and egos, and to rise like a falcon soaring above our circumstances of birth and environment to achieve all possibilities and to make a dif­ference in the lives of our families, communities and nation.

— Aziza Braithwaite Bey, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Cultural Historian
Graduate School of Education, Lesley College

In this transformative work, Meikle Paschal presents an energizing, unadulterated depiction of his growth and de­velopment as an African-American man seeking to achieve and define his existence. Through the teachings of Buddha, Paschal discovers pathways leading to answers about the complexities of life, and an inner peace that allows him to more effectively interact with his world.

— Kenneth C. Boatner, Ed.D., MPH,
President and CEO, Focus on
Successful Solutions, LLC