Scan barcode
pturnbull's review
4.0
This book is a series of meditative essays on the nature of life after the shift from being an active working adult into becoming an elder. At first the essays seemed soporific. After falling asleep twice while reading I thought I might prefer them one at a time in a small study group setting or in a weekly newsletter (Chittister supplies one via an email subscription). But then I found myself transformed by their substance. Each essay explores a state of being such as "Joy," "Learning," or "Mystery" and closes with two means of perception: as a burden or as a blessing. I learned to let go of my old way of viewing my purpose in life. There is no need for further striving for achievement or recognition. Instead it is time to live a new way forward, to find out who I am, what I have to offer, to look again at what talents and longings I left behind to earn a living and acquire a home and family. I began to see older people differently. At symphony concerts they enter slowly using canes and walkers. Now I marvel at their commitment to hearing live orchestral music. By the final third of the book I felt I was reading a treasure. It's a library book, but I think it deserves a place on my bookshelf at home, to be savored during dark winter nights, as a tool to help make the most of whatever years or days remain for me.
Joan Chittister is a sister in the Benedictine Order and has been writing on spiritual matters to a large audience for several decades. Some essays were more meaningful to me than others. I found "Spirituality" and "Forgiveness" to be small masterpieces. Recommended for those who enjoy contemplative literature.
Joan Chittister is a sister in the Benedictine Order and has been writing on spiritual matters to a large audience for several decades. Some essays were more meaningful to me than others. I found "Spirituality" and "Forgiveness" to be small masterpieces. Recommended for those who enjoy contemplative literature.
More...