Finding Purple

We see prominent leaders and even majestic kings represented throughout history by the color purple. Finding Purple: A Walk Down The Path Of Sustainable Development is about finding the majestic purple within each of us and within our neighbors amidst the difficulties of life in third-world countries. The more of this purple we see, the more good we will be able to accomplish. Beginning in Costa Rica, ending in Pakistan, and crisscrossing the world in between, Ben Grostic takes us along on his sustainable development journey. His real-time stories and reflections, written while working overseas, bring to life uniquely authentic images in difficult parts of the world. He explains the fundamentals of sustainable development through his firsthand experiences, allowing for new understanding of this growing professional field. Throughout, whether he is critiquing the community development activities of a non-profit organization in Pakistan or getting stung by a scorpion in rural Panama, his words are honest, and his joys and frustrations are genuine.

Of course, Finding Purple is about more than adventures while working in foreign countries. It is about life and the transitions, experiences, and difficulties of the journey. In this book, we can travel part of that journey with Ben, and at the same time, receive the opportunity to stretch our own worldviews.

Finding Purple deals with cultural understanding as an essential element in interpreting the multitude of factors influencing our lives. It discusses how interpretation of culture influences the decisions we make each day. Finding Purple looks at what it means to be aware, and the importance of opening our eyes to commonalities we take for granted. The book discusses the effects of experiencing a time of transition and how western societies encourage us to view transitions as negative events. Finding Purple describes Ben’s own roller coaster life overseas, yet we easily recognize how we all lead lives with extreme ups and downs. All of these topics are accomplished through explanation and commentary on the field of sustainable development.

Ben welcomes us into his own life to feel what he felt and see what he saw as he worked overseas. Finding Purple is inspirational and interesting because it is composed of his real life struggles that are easy to identify with. Yet, these struggles are unique because of the locations and dynamics that existed when they occurred. This uniqueness is essential to Finding Purple as it allows for seeing the world in ways that might not easily be seen otherwise. Writing from within foreign worlds, Ben is able to express new views and reevaluate his own preconceived ideas, encouraging others to reevaluate some of their own.

Perhaps this is done most clearly through descriptions of “people of purple.” In this book, they become an image of an entire, worldwide group that humanity can embrace. One particularly meaningful “person of purple” for Ben was a small, beggar girl on the streets of Kabul, Afghanistan. Her smile had yet to be corrupted by the work that she did. The majestic purple inside her was so clear and strong that it wanted to burst out of her as light bursts from the sun.

Now, it is your turn to experience the world through the eyes of another. Finding Purple can help you do that