Day 5 All the Way Down

Summer 2015 Book Discussion

Parker Palmer—Let Your Life Speak

In Chapter 4, All the Way Down, Palmer shares very candidly his experience with depression. I was struck by his honesty in discussing such a scary and dark part of his life but I appreciate his sharing the journey. The section of the chapter that I connected with most begins on page 69. While it is often hard to see how a dark part of our lives can be rewarding, Palmer reminds us that the journey downward can bring us closer to ourselves and to God, we simply must embrace it. In understanding our call in life it is vital that we look at all aspects, the good and the bad, the favorite memories and those we wish never happened; we will never be complete if we overlook parts of our lives. Each of us has things we wish we could erase from our memory however we can’t, instead we can embrace it and ask God for strength to rise from it. 

“The underground is a dangerous but potentially life giving place to which depression takes us; a place where we come to understand that the self is not set apart or special or superior but a common mix of good and evil, darkness and light;  a place where we can finally embrace the humanity we share with others.” (Page 69)

To be honest it took a lot of praying and strength before I was able to embrace some of my life experiences, and even harder to share them with others. The underground is dangerous, it would be much easier to crawl under my bed covers then to share parts of my life. A strange thing happened though when I read this chapter for the first time several years ago….as a class requirement we had to share some of our journal entries with a friend and I quickly realized that I was not alone, she too had similar experiences and as we cried our way through our darkest days we found a way to grow, to strengthen our faith and to understand that we are never alone on this journey called life. I have learned so much over a cup of coffee and an honest conversation. Sometimes a simple journal entry does the trick but more often than not sharing with others, reflecting on my prayer life, and noting how my body reacts in some events are the best medicine. 

1. Tillich refers to God as the “ground of being” Have you ever had an experience of reaching bottom ground before understanding where you were being called?