One day, a thunderstorm descends from the north and releases spindles of lightning over

the Franklin's.

Instantly, the desert turns from beige to a rich brown, and the Kriasot bushes explode

their sweet musky resin into the air.

The slag keeps ringing the copper smelter take on the gleam of wet solder.

It occurs to me that I am starting to feel nostalgic about El Paso.

A city I have lived in for less than a week, and planned to leave forever by the weekend.

I imagine Steve Armond is a favourite author for so many of you.

His writing has a way of cracking open and celebrating our oddness as George Saunders once put

it.

Steve's also the longtime co-host of the Relationships podcast Dear Sugars, and his books include

The Best Sellers Candy Freak and Against Football.

His long awaited debut novel All the Secrets of the World comes out in April.

In fact, its roots actually trace back to the meditative story he's sharing today.

In this series, we combine immersive first-person stories, breathtaking music and mindfulness

prompts, so that we may see our lives reflected back to us in other people's stories, and

that can lead to improvements in our own in our lives.

From Wait What, this is Meditative Story.

I'm Rohan and I'll be your guide.

The Body Relaxed The Body Breathing Your sense is open.

Your mind open.

Meeting the world.

...