Article from the T&T featuring my book! :)

(Originally published in the Times & Transcript on June 22nd 2012)


Author takes 'journey to authenticity'
by Linda Hersey


The Life Gardener just might surprise you.

The author, Rémi Boudreau of Moncton, not a gardener 'at all,' employs 'seven gardening principles' in this his first book. Written in novel form, it's designed to help readers apply these principles to life.

'I actually tell my own real journey in the book,' says Rémi. 'The novel is still fictional, but the discussions and the challenges that the main character in the book faces to make changes to be more authentic - because that's the point of the book … The subtitle is A Journey Towards Authenticity, and (the book contains) seven principles to help us grow into our authentic self.' A native of Bathurst, Rémi is also a successful singer/songwriter.

The Life Gardener basically fulfilled his dream of writing a book although he struggled with possible subject matter. While blogging 'and just putting stuff out there' and last summer doing a video 'about weeds in the garden,' he seized on the idea of how that concept could actually be applied to daily living. That grew into the book and he finished the project in late 2011.

His natural talent for insight and understanding has been utilized in The Life Gardener as well as the opportunity to share valuable lessons learned in his own life.

'Three and a half years ago was when I decided to reclaim my life because I had slowly stepped away from the real version of who I was.

I had become quite popular (music) when I was 18 back north in Bathurst, and people were starting to recognize me. That fame that I was getting kind of scared me and it made me step away and stop playing music for 10 years. Following that I just became a person obsessed with money and success, and image was everything. I lost touch with who I really was.' Among those life changes to make a fresh start, both personal and professional, was closing a company he'd built that had 18 employees. He feels that no matter how far off the path someone may go, there's always a way to get your life back in order.

'Life is not meant to be a struggle and painful,' he says. 'We are meant to enjoy this life. There are certainly ups and downs, but if everyday you just feel miserable - it's not normal. There must be some changes that need to be done in your life.' At 111 pages with a music CD written as a companion to the book, The Life Gardener (self-published) is available at Chapters ('local section') as well as on-line at www.remiboudreau.com; www.amazon.com, and the soundtrack on iTunes. The book and soundtrack are each priced separately with a special price and free shipping if purchased together.

Rémi Boudreau shares his favourites quotes from The Life Gardener: 'Our thoughts are the seeds with which we fill our garden’ and 'Your soul is the seed. Your body is the flower. Your life is the garden. You are the gardener.'

Linda Hersey's By the Book, profiling local authors and their works, appears every Friday.

Are you using your inner compass? (You should!)

Imagine yourself traveling towards an unfamiliar place and even though you have programmed your GPS to help guide you to it… you decide not to consult it during your journey.

Life is such a journey. And even though we don’t have an actual GPS attached to us, we do have something very similar to it… our inner compass.

An INTUITION, a VISION, a GUT FEELING or even a FEELING OF UNQUESTIONALBE KNOWING… those are all messages we receive from this inner compass on a daily basis. The problem, however, is that most times; we have a hard time hearing those messages. We have so many “pressing and urgent” other things on our minds that we fail to hear the whispers of this inner guidance. 

So what are we to do?

THE ANSWER:  Meditation (or time alone with yourself)

By allowing yourself some time in quietude regularly, you’ll discover that your life will get a little easier in time.  You’ll find that your struggles will become less consuming… you’ll discover that your challenges will get resolved quicker… you’ll discover a new ability to achieve goals quicker and with more ease…  you’ll find yourself a much more pleasant and joyful person…

Of course, if you don’t use your GPS, you MIGHT still get to your destination in time… but wouldn’t you rather use that extra time for more pleasant activities?

Quotable Quotes from "THE LIFE GARDENER"

“As much as we can appreciate the beauty of a single flower, it is nothing when compared to the splendor of a beautiful garden. It would appear that its beauty does not come from the sum of each individual flower, but rather from the original composition and interplay of the textures, shapes and colors that makes up this beautiful piece of art.”

–The Life Gardener

“Life is a piece of art, but only a few choose to hold their own brush.”

–The Life Gardener

“If a gardener is determined to make a tulip smell like a rose, he might spend years trying to achieve his goal, but he would eventually discover that it had been a complete waste of his time.”

–The Life Gardener

“The best teachers in life never leave the role of student.”

–The Life Gardener

“By letting go of what could have been, we can focus our energy on what will be.”

–The Life Gardener

“Our thoughts are the seeds with which we fill our garden.”

–The Life Gardener

“Where love is present, beauty soon follows.”

–The Life Gardener

“When we live our lives trying to please everyone else but us, this stranger that we become, finds itself having to steal from others, in order to survive.”

–The Life Gardener

“When we give, we receive. When we take, we deceive.”

–The Life Gardener

“Even a broken flower is given a chance to grow at the start of the following season.”

                                                                    –The Life Gardener

“Seasons change. We can try to avoid, ignore or deny this fact if we choose, but seasons will still change.”

–The Life Gardener

“The most beautiful gardens on earth are not limited to one type of flower”

–The Life Gardener

“The Universe is continuously helping and guiding us towards our authentic self. Intuition, inspiration, a vision or a sense of unquestionable knowing is what happens when we are able to connect, listen and trust.”

–The Life Gardener

What's "THE LIFE GARDENER" about?

The Life Gardener is a novel with a powerful message; one that I believe can help you with your own journey called life.

While the story itself is a work of fiction, it has been inspired by actual events that I have personally faced and overcome on my journey towards authenticity. While I feel I have made tremendous strides in overcoming some of the illusions and beliefs that had been the foundation for how I viewed the world and my role in it, I believe that my journey towards authenticity continues.

I believe we are all spiritual beings having a human experience. I also believe that life on earth is a school of some sorts, and that each and every one of us comes to this school with specific lessons we are meant to learn and to teach. What comes out of this cycle of learning and teaching is evolution.

While I believe authenticity to be the merging of spirit, mind and body, we still need to understand that we are, for the moment, living a human experience… an imperfect, sometimes challenging, but more often rewarding human experience. And for our experience to be less painful and more fulfilling, I believe we need to be more patient with ourselves and with others.

Before reading “The Life Gardener”, I ask my readers to give themselves permission to open up to the possibilities of what their life could be. I ask that they try to see past any illusions or beliefs that may be currently limiting their experience and joy. Life has many seasons, and sometimes we can be stuck in one by fear of what could be coming next – I know I was. But by trying to prevent change, not only are we preventing this learning and teaching from taking place, we are also putting all of our energy and efforts trying to prevent something that is simply destined to happen – our own history proves it. Although scary at times, change is truly a positive thing.

Life is a blessing we are all meant to enjoy. 

Advance Praise for "THE LIFE GARDENER"

“This beautiful book will teach you powerful lessons about living an authentic and happy life.”

–Martin Latulippe, CSP

Bestselling Author & Speaker

“The thing I like most about this book is that you can tell it is written from the heart. The simplest concepts are often the most difficult to master. I've also had the pleasure of being taken through Remi's journey musically, and that extremely rare combination makes the principles in this book resonate in a way I've never experienced before.”

–Kathy Mercure

Freelance Writer

“By utilizing his immense courage and sharing from his heart, Remi weaves a compelling tale of a young man and the many valuable lessons he learned and incorporated into his life along the way. An inspiring and easy to read story that will touch all who read it!”

–Bev Crossman

Inspirationalist & Life Coach

“All the best with the new album and sending your wonderful music and poetry out into the world. May all those who can be comforted and inspired by your gift find their way to your offerings.”

–Oriah Mountain Dreamer

Bestselling Author

 “In the book The Life Gardener, Remi has allowed himself to be vulnerable in order to share some of the incredible lessons that he learned through his own personal struggles. The lessons he shares in the book are applicable to anyone, regardless of where they are in their life journey. His story has made me reconsider the way I look at the difficulties in my own life. Easy to read and hard to put down, this book is a must read!”

–Jenn Marr

Philanthropy Development Officer

“If you're a person that needs to establish direction and better values in your life, this book is for you! It's a great example of simple principles that can be incorporated in anyone's life in order to live a happier and more balanced existence. Great read!”

–Steve Daniels

Leadership Coach

“The Life Gardener brings to the surface those burning 'Who am I and how do I find that out?' thoughts that we all so often have. Remi helps us find our unique answers with his heartbreaking, thought provoking novel about loss, love and most importantly… finding ones sense of self.”

–Natasha Carson

Book Lover & Blogger

 “Remi is truly a creative artist as his down-to-earth writing style carries the reader along on this journey towards understanding and growth.”

–Trina Campbell

Site Administrator for Miracle Messages

“As a professional artist, I take my inspiration from the simplest things. The simple principles in this book are sure to inspire you in your own life.”

–Matt Leblanc

Abstract Artist

Fire vs Water (Who wins?)

If water enters a battle against fire with even forces… water always wins.

To illustrate, imagine yourself sitting near a campfire.  If you were to throw drops of water at it, would you be able to extinguish the fire?  But what if you were to take a bucket of water roughly the size of the fire and dump it all over it… wouldn’t that extinguish the fire?

The battle between fear (fire) and love (water) is similar. 

We live in a time where fear seems nearly impossible to overcome.  It appears as if one person does not stand a chance against big corporations who fear losing their power in their markets or governments who fear losing control over their people or society who fears there aren’t enough jobs, money and resources for everyone.

So what are we to do?

I believe we need to focus on love and build a tribe strong enough that can then go to battle against fear and be on even ground.  1 vs 1000 will not win.  But if you gather an army of love strong enough… water (love) always wins.

When we fight fire with fire, the fire grows bigger… and that’s not what the worlds needs right now.

Resolutions & Water Stains

The New Year is a time when a lot of people make resolutions for the upcoming year.  However, as you might have already experienced, those resolutions rarely last very long.  And to explain why I believe that is the case, let me give you a comparison that relates to painting.

Imagine, if you will, that your roof is leaking and water has started to drip from your ceiling and onto your dining room table.  Looking at the ceiling, you would most likely notice that the paint has started to peel and that the water has left a brown stain.

The problem with most resolutions is that they typically focus on the surface of the problem and not the real source of the problem.  In my example, if you were to hire me to come over to repair and repaint the ceiling, would that fix your problem?  Maybe at first, but in time the same thing would happen because the water issue (the real source of the problem) has not been fixed.

Now, think about this for a second... whether it's exercising, eating better or anything else you may have set as your New Year resolution, could it be that it's simply not the real source of the problem?  Is there perhaps a deeper reason as to why you are having difficulty with what ever it is you decided to change.

I say, find the source of the problem... this way, you won't need to make the same resolution year after year.


Happy New Year!!!


Remi :)