Pause, Purpose, Possibility

Episode 25: A Conversation with Parker Palmer, part 3

Here's the third installment of my delightful and illuminating conversation with the renowned author, educator, and activist Parker Palmer.  You can learn more about him and his work on the website of the Center for Courage and Renewal.
 
In this episode, Parker reflects on the "power of anger in the work of love" and its relationship with his steadfast commitment to active nonviolence in a troubled and divided world; on the lessons about neighboring that he and his wife Sharon have learned from the family who live next to their backyard; and on the ways that Pause, Purpose, and Possibility show up in his own life.  He leaves us with the gift of not one but two of his poems: "Snow" (you'll love it!) and "Everything Falls Away" (you'll love this one too!)
 

Episode 24: A Conversation with Parker Palmer, part 2

This week’s episode is the second of what will be a three-part series featuring my rich and delightful conversation with none other than the renowned author and educator Parker J. Palmer.  You can see a more complete introduction of him in the show notes for Episode 23, or on the website for the Center for Courage and Renewal:  couragerenewal.org
 
A highlight of this part of the conversation revolves around stories and reflections on the importance of (quoting Thomas Merton) "being present in the world in hiddenness and compassion" -- the power of showing up with and for others as we really are.
 
Parker has written:
“My personal legacy? I’d like it to be one of good humor, good will and generosity. I’d like it to be said that we had a lot of laughs, we extended a lot of kindness, and we built an abundant storehouse of heart-and-soul resources that anyone can draw on.”
 
That’s exactly what you’ll get a taste of as you listen in on my conversation with Parker Palmer.  Welcome, and enjoy!
 

Episode 23: A Conversation with Parker Palmer, part 1

This week’s episode is the first of what will be a three-part series featuring my rich and delightful conversation with none other than the renowned author and educator Parker J. Palmer. 
 
I am grateful and honored beyond words by Parker’s generosity of spirit and time, every morsel of which begs to be savored – so again, this is the first course of three-course meal, a feast, a bounty of ideas and laughter, mystery and wisdom.
 
As you’ll hear shortly, Parker’s own introduction of himself is grounded in and reflective of “soul” rather than “ego,” so it falls to me here to offer a brief sketch of some of the highlights of his decades-long, globally impactful work:
Parker J. Palmer is a writer, speaker and activist who focuses on issues in education, community, leadership, spirituality and social change. He is founder and Senior Partner Emeritus of the Center for Courage & Renewal, whose work “nurtures deep integrity and relational trust, building the foundation for a more loving, equitable, and healthy world.  Through Circle of Trust retreats and other programs rooted in the Courage & Renewal approach we nurture supportive communities of reflection and practice to help people come alive with a renewed sense of purpose, build trustworthy relationships, and cultivate the courage to rise to today’s challenges, making a difference within themselves and their communities.”
 
Parker holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California at Berkeley, thirteen honorary doctorates, and many, many other awards, honors, and distinctions.
 
Palmer is the author of ten books—including several award-winning titles—that have sold over two million copies and been translated into twelve languages:
On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity and Getting Old.
Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit,
The Heart of Higher Education (co-authored with Arthur Zajonc),
A Hidden Wholeness,
Let Your Life Speak,
The Courage to Teach,
The Active Life,
To Know As We Are Known,
The Company of Strangers, and
The Promise of Paradox.
 
A member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quaker), Dr. Palmer and his wife, Sharon Palmer, live in Madison, Wisconsin.
 
Parker has written:
“My personal legacy? I’d like it to be one of good humor, good will and generosity. I’d like it to be said that we had a lot of laughs, we extended a lot of kindness, and we built an abundant storehouse of heart-and-soul resources that anyone can draw on.”
 
That’s exactly what you’ll get a taste of as you listen in on my conversation with Parker Palmer.  Welcome, and enjoy!
 

Episode 22: Pause, Part 2

This episode continues our exploration of “pause” by inviting stories of models or exemplars of pause.  Who comes to mind and heart as practicing pause as an act of love? As solitude?  As an expression of care or connection?  Rest and renewal? Simply noticing?  We hear stories of a wide range of inspiration around pause -- where it can come from, what it can consist of, and how it can make for deep and necessary change:  work colleagues, family members, animals, children, music.  And how about pause as resistance or justice-seeking?  Or, in a world where the need and yearning for justice is constant, where there’s always WORK to be done, what keeps pause from being simply an indulgence that’s available only to those who can afford it?  In an average human lifespan of “4000 weeks,” is there really room for pause?  As you’ll hear, the consequences are greater and even more dire if we don’t pause. It’s at the heart and soul of who the broken world needs us to be as we live fully into our callings, into the invitation to be fully alive and present to the world right in front of us.

Episode 21: This Ain't Your Dad's Holy Grail: Men and Meaning (A Conversation with Dane Anthony)

Each episode of the old TV show "Red Green" would end with the all-male cast gathering for the opening of the regular meeting of the Possum Lodge by bowing their heads for the Man’s Prayer:
 
I’m a man.
But I can change.
If I have to.
I guess.
 
While it may be true that some things have changed since then, men still have a lot of work to do – a lot of inner work, a lot of relational work, a lot of anti-racist and anti-misogynist justice work, a lot of maturing and transformation and vulnerability to embrace, a lot of posturing and armor to let go.
 
My guest this week, Dane Anthony, explores with me some of the ways that change, growth, transformation can happen, and not only among men, starting with questions like:  How would you describe who you are without referring to your professional role or title?  What might you need to “unlearn” in order to open doors and pathways to understanding yourself and your work in the world more deeply and with greater authenticity and joy?  How might exploring new images of God or the holy in one’s life open up access to one’s unique “soulprint,” the sliver or spark of the divine in each of us that invites our truest selves into lives of mattering and belonging?
 
Dane’s professional path focuses on facilitating conversations of meaning and purpose, helping others to explore the deeper connections that bring awareness and grounded practices to work and relationships. He has fostered engagement-centered leadership in the following contexts:
more than 30 years in Higher Education jn university chaplaincy, as a student services administrator, and as a faculty member.
spiritual guide and mentor for more than 30 years through spiritual direction, vocational discernment, men’s groups and retreat leadership.
20+ years’ experience teaching and consulting with the StrengthsFinder Inventory for individuals and businesses.
 
Dane earned his bachelor’s degree from Missouri State University, and his Master of Divinity from Midwestern Seminary.  In addition, he holds certifications in Spiritual Direction.  My primary connection with Dane has been as a Facilitator in the Circle of Trust Retreat process in association with Parker Palmer and the Center for Courage & Renewal.  
 
He has been married to Maggie for 30 years. They have 3 grown children.  
 

Episode 20: An Unboxed Life (Living a Life that Matters, part 3)

Going through the boxes (or closets, or backpacks) of the "stuff" of one's life can be, like many things, both daunting and illuminating.  What are you carrying, and what's calling to be "unboxed," to come into the light and air -- maybe in some cases in order to be let go, and in others inviting you to live with intention into openness and possibility?  How might letting go of the overwhelm of too many competing tasks and to-dos, obligations and commitments and priorities and pressures open up new space for meaning, and for your heart's deepest yearnings and joys?  An "unboxed life" might contain habits of thinking and living that maybe served you well at one time, but may no longer serve as well, and need to be reframed or replaced.  It might also contain stories of who you've been or thought yourself to be but maybe are no longer -- and tantalizing hints of the stories that have yet to live themselves out through who you might become.

Episode 19: Freeing Yourself to Really Be Yourself: A Lifelong Journey with Neal Hagberg

What if I try this new thing, and some people don’t like me?  My guest this week, Neal Hagberg, voiced these worries of his own many years ago to his then 8-year-old daughter.  Her response (you’ll love it!) set him free to take the risk, and opened up his life in ways he could’ve never imagined. She helped him to realize that “If you free yourself up to really be yourself, then you actually become yourself.”
Across our time together he shares other stories of hard choices (letting go of the “safe” and lucrative path of becoming a doctor in order to become a singer-songwriter), of flaws and failures, of the importance of curiosity, beauty, and imagination in the face of all that’s broken in the world.  We explore what it means in that kind of world to choose to “love anyway.”
 
Neal Hagberg is Director of Tennis & Life Camps at Gustavus Adolphus College, which has been recognized as one of the top tennis camps in the country by Tennis Magazine.  He is a USPTA Elite Professional and has worked at Tennis and Life Camps (TLC) since 1981, and has been director since 2010. In 2019, he received the national Community Service Award from the USPTA and USTA.  In addition to being a teaching pro, Neal designed the “life” portion of TLC with legendary Gustavus coach and teacher Steve Wilkinson, who taught a radical, simple approach to winning more matches: take the focus off winning; and who taught both tennis and life skills by focusing on the only things we can control: our attitude, our effort, and our sportsmanship.
 
Neal is a 1981 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College; received his M.Div. at Luther Seminary; and was also a touring singer/songwriter for 25 years with his life-partner Leandra Peak as half of the duo Neal & Leandra.  He performed concerts in 45 states and Canada, in venues ranging from coffeehouses to Carnegie Hall; and is the recipient of two McKnight Artist Fellowships, one for Performing and one for Composing.

Episode 18: From Star Stuff to Cowpies in a Warm Summer Rain (Living a Life that Matters, Part 2)

The word “matter” can have multiple meanings.  There’s the one which is the overarching focus of this podcast, the one that’s invoked when we say that something or someone “matters” or when I ask, What really does “matter,” and why? 
 
And then there’s the meaning of the word that points to physical, tangible, measurable “matter”: things, objects, the “stuff” that everything is made of, that we can see and smell and taste and touch and hear.... Where I’m really going with this is to wonder about whether and why and how “matter matters.”  This episode explores ways in which our physical, material, embodied existence – from hard work and good food to skin color and mortality – can be part of what it means to live a life that matters. 

Episode 17: Pause (Part 1)

The need for "pause" is built into the nature of things -- between inhale and exhale as we breathe, between the beats of our hearts, and (as we hear in this episode) between "stimulus and response" throughout our lives.  And yet it's so easy to neglect; it seems immensely difficult to actually do in any kind of consistent and meaningful way in the face of the relentless and frenetic pace of our days.
 
In this conversation, the members of the Milkweed Group (Kelli, Chris, Colleen, and Kelsey) explore with each other what pause means to us, why it's important, how it can take many different shapes.  Whatever form it takes, however frequent or rare it might be, "pause" is crucial for helping us to shift how we see things, how we understand ourselves and our place in the bigger picture.  Whether as a moment of relative quiet or stillness in the midst of frenzy, or as a burst of movement and physical activity in the face of stagnation, pause invites a reframing, a new and different way of knowing and of being and of living in the world.

Episode 16: Navigating Life when EVERYTHING is a Priority

When daily life can feel overwhelming, and when EVERYTHING feels like it’s supposed to be a priority, how can it make sense to make plans or have goals at all, let alone to live with intention into a sense of vocation or calling? 
My guest this time is the wise and delightful Dr. Danielle McGeough, founder and host of the podcast PlanGoalPlan.  She talks with me about re-imagining what goal-setting and planning can be.  She invites people to step into their full potential in a way that both gives them energy and joy AND calls forth mindfulness and presence.  Noting that women underestimate their capabilities by 50% as compared to men (even more among women of color), Danielle makes the case that planning and goal-setting needs room for adaptability, resilience, and emergence; it needs to fuel an expansive imagination that taps into the deep yearnings and callings within us.  “You wanna learn how to plan?  You wanna hang out with some moms!” she says, and goes on to describe playfulness as key to the relationship between parenting, planning and goal setting, leadership, and improv.
 
Dr. Danielle McGeough is a professor, mom, business owner, community volunteer, and organization junkie. On the faculty of the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa, she has more than 18 years of experience teaching, and a knack for guiding people as they learn about themselves.  She started Plan Goal Plan to help working moms gain clarity on who they are and what matters – and trust me, it’s accessible and meaningful to everyone.