Dear Dougald, Today would have been my father's 98th birthday, had he not died by suicide at the age of 51. He gave up on life's possibilities. Your article is the perfect one to read this morning, as it reflects to me that when we have faith that the "hold" will come into view, we keep moving on the path of life. It's really a matter of faith, and prayer, that's available to all of us. Formal religion, in a dogmatic sense, may be in ruins, leaving many souls in despair. I relish this Mystery of walking, writing, breathing, kneeling toward "the hold". Many thanks for this piece (peace) today!
Dear Val, It was moving to read your message and to know that my piece could play that role for you on a day like this. It makes me think of all the ways that, often without knowing it, we can offer the hold that someone else may be in need of. And that takes me to the Franz Rosenzweig quote that I love so much, about how there is no way to get solid ground under our feet, we are all in the mire and cannot pull ourselves out of it, but what we can do is reach out to those around us, and by some miracle, it becomes possible to do for each other what we cannot do for ourselves. 'There is no such thing as standing,' he writes, 'there is only being upheld.'
Weirdly enough, I encountered The Great Humbling for the first time last week - and the 'Get On Your Knees' episode prompted a lot of fruitful discussion with friends about the process of grand old institutions becoming 'nurse logs' for new life. I'm feeling very grateful for your writing, which I seem to keep discovering at exactly the moment I need to read it.
This is good to hear! I seem to remember we did an episode in Series 4 around the theme of serendipity and synchronicity, so 'weirdly enough' is very much part of the vibe of the Great Humbling.
I enjoyed the idea of 'the missing hold' as a metaphor, as someone who is overly hard on herself about not being able to figure things out or find my way through things quickly. If we just keep going the missing holds do reveal themselves and we just can't control how or when they appear...also this piece brings to mind metaphors of how climbers use their bodies, defying gravity and how utterly present they have to be. I am not a climber but live with one, I tried it once and was so utterly terrified that the metaphors will have to do!
I'm glad this made sense, Emily! And thanks for extending the metaphorical field of what climbing involves. I'm with you on the being terrified bit. I did conquer my fear of heights in the past couple of years from spending some weeks working on scaffolding and even clambering around on the roof of the Red House. But I still don't fancy going out on a rock face!
I can’t seem to find the full Imprint film on Vimeo, though the trailer has an indication that it’s available for rent or purchase....Perhaps it’s about what country the viewer is in. If you have a Vimeo link to rent/buy the full film, can you share it here?
Ah, thanks for letting me know, Jim. I'll see what I can find out. I do know that the whole film is due to be released free of charge later in the autumn.
Dear Dougald, Today would have been my father's 98th birthday, had he not died by suicide at the age of 51. He gave up on life's possibilities. Your article is the perfect one to read this morning, as it reflects to me that when we have faith that the "hold" will come into view, we keep moving on the path of life. It's really a matter of faith, and prayer, that's available to all of us. Formal religion, in a dogmatic sense, may be in ruins, leaving many souls in despair. I relish this Mystery of walking, writing, breathing, kneeling toward "the hold". Many thanks for this piece (peace) today!
Dear Val, It was moving to read your message and to know that my piece could play that role for you on a day like this. It makes me think of all the ways that, often without knowing it, we can offer the hold that someone else may be in need of. And that takes me to the Franz Rosenzweig quote that I love so much, about how there is no way to get solid ground under our feet, we are all in the mire and cannot pull ourselves out of it, but what we can do is reach out to those around us, and by some miracle, it becomes possible to do for each other what we cannot do for ourselves. 'There is no such thing as standing,' he writes, 'there is only being upheld.'
What a beautiful perfect response and one that I thoroughly resonate with. May you find other things to help you through today x
Weirdly enough, I encountered The Great Humbling for the first time last week - and the 'Get On Your Knees' episode prompted a lot of fruitful discussion with friends about the process of grand old institutions becoming 'nurse logs' for new life. I'm feeling very grateful for your writing, which I seem to keep discovering at exactly the moment I need to read it.
This is good to hear! I seem to remember we did an episode in Series 4 around the theme of serendipity and synchronicity, so 'weirdly enough' is very much part of the vibe of the Great Humbling.
Yes indeed - the word "weird" chosen with a nod to Rune Soup!
Every piece of your writing gives me something to hold on to. Thank you 🙏🏼
Thank you, Allie!
I enjoyed the idea of 'the missing hold' as a metaphor, as someone who is overly hard on herself about not being able to figure things out or find my way through things quickly. If we just keep going the missing holds do reveal themselves and we just can't control how or when they appear...also this piece brings to mind metaphors of how climbers use their bodies, defying gravity and how utterly present they have to be. I am not a climber but live with one, I tried it once and was so utterly terrified that the metaphors will have to do!
I'm glad this made sense, Emily! And thanks for extending the metaphorical field of what climbing involves. I'm with you on the being terrified bit. I did conquer my fear of heights in the past couple of years from spending some weeks working on scaffolding and even clambering around on the roof of the Red House. But I still don't fancy going out on a rock face!
I can’t seem to find the full Imprint film on Vimeo, though the trailer has an indication that it’s available for rent or purchase....Perhaps it’s about what country the viewer is in. If you have a Vimeo link to rent/buy the full film, can you share it here?
Ah, thanks for letting me know, Jim. I'll see what I can find out. I do know that the whole film is due to be released free of charge later in the autumn.