"Robert Lax was an American writer and poet who developed a unique style of abstract poetry, described by Jack Kerouac as 'one of the great original voices of our time'. He was also a contemplative who, outside of a formal monastic context, adopted a lifestyle based upon simplicity and prayer which was an inspiration to his many friends and visitors. Thomas Merton, his closest friend, immortalised him in his best-selling book, The Seven Storey Mountain. In the mid-1960s Lax abandoned his career in New York to live on the Greek islands of Kalymnos and Patmos, seeking 'to put himself in a place where grace could flow'. In this article, Robert Hirschfield presents a central aspect of his spirituality -- living slowly.
