Thinking about Work

For 5 consecutive days last week I sat mesmerized with 30 students listening to the gentle and profound words of Paul Stevens. His co-professor, Rick Goossen talked about what entrepreneurial leadership looks like in the business world while Paul inspired us to consider work from God’s perspective.

The course syllabus listed a book by Parker Palmer, my current favourite writer, called The Active Life. Apparently, Dr. Palmer struggled with the weariness resulting from full engagement with…well, life. He swung, as I do, from frenzy to the contemplative end of slow-to-near-stopping as a means of regaining rest and perspective and then…back again. His pendulum swung further than mine and he very seriously considered joining a monastic order. His view is insightful, his writing clear and compelling.

One assignment for the Soul of Innovation course is to write a formal book review and so I am happily immersed in Palmer’s The Active Life. Here is a quote:

“Until we know hidden wholeness we will live in a world of dualisms, of forced but false choices between being and doing that result in action that is mere frenzy or in contemplation that is mere escape.” (Palmer, p. 29)

What is hidden wholeness? According to Annie Dillard, “This is given. It is not learned.” And it can only be given through humility because clues to our best work, that result from wholeness, originate from our natural inclinations. The path to wholeness circumvents the ego and has its roots in childhood. It’s encouraging to think about that. The clues are not obscure but at the core of my graced history.

What have you been doing and enjoying consistently since you were a child? Your response might be a key to understanding vocation in a completely new way.