Wendell Berry and the Real Work
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This episode celebrates the life and work of Wendell Berry, the poet and farmer who died this week. Berry's brief poem "The Real Work," invites us to recognise that when we no longer know what to do or which way to go, we may have arrived at our genuine calling. A conversation for all of us navigating confusion, loss, or disorientation, and wondering about how we might bring ourselves when we no longer know the way.
This episode celebrates the life and work of Wendell Berry, the poet and farmer who died this week. Berry's brief poem "The Real Work," invites us to recognise that when we no longer know what to do or which way to go, we may have arrived at our genuine calling. A conversation for all of us navigating confusion, loss, or disorientation, and wondering about how we might bring ourselves when we no longer know the way.
This week is hosted as always by Lizzie Winn and Justin Wise of Thirdspace.
This is Turning Towards Life, a weekly live 30 minute conversation hosted by Thirdspace in which Justin Wise and Lizzie Winn explore living with depth, attentiveness and care. Find us on FaceBook to join in the lively conversation on this episode. You can find videos of every episode, and more about the project on the Turning Towards Life website, and you can also watch and listen on Instagram, YouTube, and as a podcast in all the usual podcast places.
Episode Overview
00:00 Introduction to Wendell Berry's Legacy
03:06 Surface and Depth
05:58 The Real Work
08:47 Finding Meaning in the Impeded Stream
14:05 Others and Navigating Life's Challenges
14:53 The Beauty of Not Knowing: A Personal Reflection
17:37 The Song of Life in Chaos
21:00 On Connection
23:18 Responding to Life's Challenges Together
26:55 The Transformative Nature of Uncertainty
29:53 What is the Real Work?
Our source for this week:
The Real Work
It may be that when we no longer know what to do
we have come our real work,
and that when we no longer know which way to go
we have come to our real journey.
The mind that is not baffled is not employed.
The impeded stream is the one that sings.
Wendell Berry (1934-2026)
Photo by Jeffrey Hamilton on Unsplash
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