Episode 49: (Part One) On the Brink of Everything with Parker Palmer
September 8, 2021
One of the greatest challenges we face with aging is new limitations. While these limitations might test us, staying engaged in our daily lives is what will continue give us both meaning and purpose.
Today I’m joined by a guest who is part poet, part storyteller. Parker Palmer is a bestselling author, speaker, and activist who has graciously agreed to share his insight with us today. After writing his first nine books, Parker transitioned from the long distance run of penning books to creating short-form essays online.
His tenth book, On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity, and Getting Old, was born from that collection of essays. It’s a thought-provoking reflection on the gift of aging and what gives us purpose in life. In part one of our interview, Parker explores the concept of embracing our life experiences by looking at them from different angles.
We discussed:
- How we redeem hard times in life by finding the meaning and purpose in it
- Why making ourselves useful matters more than ever in our later years
- The reason why Parker embraced short-form writing in the last 20 years
- What attending Berkeley in the 60s taught him about social change
- How a sabbatical year living in a Quaker community changed Parker’s life
