Publisher: Motivational Press LLC

We live in a culture where romantic illusions about love abound.  From movies and ballads and fairy tales, we learn the idea that somewhere out there exists that one special person who will fulfill all of our desires and make our hearts – and our lives – complete.  And we’re taught that once we find the “right” person, we will simply live Happily Ever After without any conscious effort on our part.  By the time we’re young adults, most of us have had the experience of falling in love, but very few of us are equipped with the skills and insights needed to sustain that love, or to create a healthy, lasting, and evolving partnership.   In truth, love is a verb: a regular practice, and a moment-by-moment, deliberate choice.  It’s not an experience that just happens to us, but an environment that we create and then nourish with our ongoing commitment and attention.   Few of us are skilled in the practice of love, but approaching it as a practice is precisely what is required, both for the longevity of our relationships and for our ability to evolve as individuals within them. 
The Evolution of Loving provides an intimate glimpse into eight remarkable partnerships that have been consciously built – and in many cases, rebuilt – on a foundation of authenticity, personal responsibility, and trust.  As a photography book and a written essay, It is both a beautiful celebration of, and a concise synthesis of, the principles and practices – including meditations, communication exercises, daily and monthly rituals, and more – that have helped each couple fulfill the highest promise of partnership.  The experiences conveyed in both words and images inspire us as to what becomes possible when we have the courage to fully open up to and grow in partnership alongside another human being.   The book has a very warm and inviting layout and design, like that of one’s personal diary that invites you to snuggle up next to a loved one or a fire and travel deep into the devotional love shared by each couple.  On it pages, you will discover the inspiring real-life stories of sixteen men and women who have learned to listen generously, to communicate authentically, and to take complete responsibility for our own happiness – and whose relationships reflect the depth of this commitment.  And while these couples all display an exceptional degree of devotion, it’s vital to understand that this did not happen by chance.  The level of intimacy between them was created in direct proportion to how much each was willing to give of themselves for the sake of their relationship – not only in happy times when giving comes easy, but at times when old wounds are triggered and our every survival instinct is screaming for us to build defensive walls and guard our hearts. The commitment to return to the practices that foster, maintain and restore connection, even in the midst of heartbreak, disillusionment or uncertainty, is what ultimately guided each couple to the other side.    In this book, you will learn the fundamental principles for deepening physical and emotional intimacy over time, and for allowing your partnership to foster both your individual and collective evolution.  You will learn how to intentionally view your partner – flaws and all – from the broadest and most empowered perspective.  You’ll learn how to balance togetherness with autonomy, and to appreciate the ways your individual differences can contribute to the expansion of your partnership.  Finally, the book closes with a comprehensive array of rituals and practices that will support you in strengthening the foundation of shared values between you and your partner, even when times are tough or communication has broken down.    The promise of evolving love is to use whatever comes up as an opportunity to heal past wounds, to understand our partners more intimately, and to remove any obstacles within ourselves to experiencing love’s full depth.  Each couple featured throughout this book has provided a piece of what is now a precise roadmap for nurturing the ongoing evolution of loving.  The insights, tools, practices and examples offered here will light the way to an experience of love that grows ever deeper, transparent, and trusting over time.

About Cynthia James

Cynthia is a transformational specialist and one of today’s brightest and best loved inspirational leaders, guiding people to make changes at a deep level for lasting healing. Cynthia excels as a speaker, coach, singer, and multiple award-winning author of What Will Set You Free and Revealing Your Extraordinary Essence and #1 Bestseller for I Choose Me: The Art of Being a Phenomenally Successful Woman at Home and at Work. Cynthia James embodies the quote “I am not what I have done. I am what I have become;” and, she leads others to do the same. Her own life was transformed as she transcended a violent and abusive childhood. Through education and personal healing, she created the foundation for all her programs. Ms. James has facilitated hundreds of workshops, seminars and keynotes, including: Omega Institute, Celebrate Your Life, Woman Arising, the Gift in Shift, the Colorado Behavior Healthcare Council, the Women’s Success Forum, the Children’s Hospital, Spirit One Seminars, LeadingAge, and many others. Cynthia’s most recent programs and tools include: Advanced Awareness Coaching, offering depth, focus and results for high level business leaders; and, Affirmative Living, which includes a meditation CD, Passages, and an APP for iPhones and Droids, 100 days of Affirmative Living, in English and Spanish. Cynthia was once a working Hollywood actress, co-hosted a radio talk show, a television talk show in Los Angeles, and appeared in the movie, Sacred Journey of the Heart. She is a former Miss Minnesota Universe, sought after as a radio guest and is a contributing blogger for YourTango.com. Thousands follow her monthly inspirational videos and her monthly newsletter and blog. Cynthia has uniquely combined the creative arts with innovative therapeutic techniques to bring powerful personal growth, healing and expansion to individuals of all ages, cultures, and lifestyles. She facilitates the message of her award-winning books, What Will Set You Free and Revealing Your Extraordinary Essence, worldwide and as a workshop to women in prisons. Internationally, she has led workshops in England, Switzerland and Ireland; and, she has led a myriad of pilgrimages to various spiritual locations in France, Peru and Italy. In 2012, Cynthia created and facilitated the internationally successful Venus Transit University, reaching over 8,000 people. In 2014, she and her husband of 16 years, Carl Studna, created and co-hosted Bridging the Gender Gap Teleseries, focusing on developing trust and understanding between men and women. Also in 2014, her Extraordinary Living Project was selected to be a Commitment Maker by the Clinton Health Matters Initiative. In the same year, she founded her Extraordinary Living Foundation whose mission is creating sustainable health for women in mind, body and spirit. In 2015, Cynthia and her business partner, Jean Hendry, created the Women Creating Our Futures conference featuring nationally and internationally recognized speakers, life coaches and artists guiding hundreds of women to build the life and future they both desire and deserve. Cynthia holds two Master’s Degrees, the first in Consciousness Studies from the Holmes Institute, where she was awarded the honor of distinguished alumni. The second is in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica. Cynthia James is personally committed to utilizing creative expression as a vital and effective healing modality that will assist everyone in their own personal and professional growth. For more information about Cynthia and her work, visit: www.cynthiajames.net.

About Carl Studna

Carl Studna is a world-renowned photographer, an inspirational speaker and teacher, and the author of the multi-award winning book, CLICK! Choosing Love: One Frame at a Time, which following its 2012 release became a #6 best-seller among titles in the Self-Help genre. Throughout his 20-year career as a photographer and videographer, Carl’s intimate portraits of influential people – including luminaries such as Tom Robbins, Ram Dass, Paul McCartney, James Brown, Eric Clapton, Elton John, Marianne Williamson and Deepak Chopra – have become known worldwide and have graced countless publications from Time Magazine to Rolling Stone.  Carl also had the honor of photographing His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the first Synthesis Dialogues in Dharmasala, India.

Mr. Studna received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Expressive Arts from Sonoma State University and his Master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica.  He is also a member of the esteemed Transformational Leadership Council, a by-invitation-only group of authors, speakers, coaches, trainers, researchers, consultants, and other leaders in the fields of personal and professional development that was established in July of 2004 by Jack Canfield. 

 

Both in his work as a photographer and while teaching and writing, Carl’s primary message is that life is a sacred journey to be cherished and embraced, and that we all have the power to awaken to the splendor that underlie even seemingly ordinary moments.  Carl’s trademarked methodology, known as the LuminEssence Method©, is the culmination of nearly thirty years of experience in blending intimate portrait photography with the principles of personal development.  With it, clients and workshop participants alike experience a new paradigm for resting in the light that resides within, and allowing it to fully express and reveal each person’s authentic gifts.  Carl is also the creator of Conscious Coupling and Bridging the Gender Gap, two powerful relationship-building courses that he co-facilitates with his wife, Cynthia James, both at live events and online.