Presents a different paradigm of successful aging for men and women entering into and moving through the second half of their lives. Through an exploration of key concepts like purpose and renewal, and by drawing upon the timeless metaphor of fire, this book enables readers to become what the authors call "new elders."

"This is a book that will comfort anyone afraid of growing old. It sheds new light on vital aging."
—Walter F. Mondale, former Vice President, Senator and Ambassador

"As a generation, baby boomers have long been called 'the rat in the python.' Claiming Your Place at the Fire challenges us to be the python, not the rat—and to start by shedding our generational skins. This book is thoughtful, warm, helpful, and above all else, wise."
—Alan M. Webber, Founding Editor, Fast Company

Autorentext

Richard J. Leider and David A. Shapiro

Klappentext

Claiming Your Place at the Fire: Living the Second Half of Your Life On Purpose presents a new paradigm of successful aging for men and women entering into and moving through the second half of their livesThrough an exploration of key concepts like purpose and renewal, and by drawing upon the timeless metaphor of fire, it enables readers to become what the authors call "new elders"-individuals who realize the power that comes with true wisdom and who accept the deep responsibility to share that wisdom for the benefit of their loved ones, their communities, and the world at large; to do so is what authors Leider and Shapiro mean by "claiming your place at the fire."

Zusammenfassung
A practical guide to living your later years with wisdom and purpose, featuring inspiring stories and thought-provoking exercises.

When we claim our place at the fire, we enter into the circle of vital elders who have been the source of wisdom in society since time immemorial. We do this by courageously reexamining and rediscovering who we are, where we belong, what we care about, and what our life's purpose is.*

Claiming Your Place at the Fire* invites you to approach the second half of your life as an empty canvas, ready to be filled with a new and vibrant sense of purpose. It shows you how to stoke the wisdom you’ve gained to burn more brightly to light the way for yourself and others. Through stories and exercises, you will learn to look at yourself with new eyes and answer four key questions: 

*Who am I?  
Where do I belong? 
What do I care about?
and What is my purpose

• Leseprobe
  Introduction
  The Four Flames of Vital Aging
  Living on Purpose in the Second Half of Life

  In our earlier book, Repacking Your Bags: Lighten Your Load for the Rest of Your Life, we developed a definition of the “good life” that included four components: place, people, work, and purpose. We defined the good life as “Living in the place you belong, with people you love, doing the right work, on purpose.” While this definition applied to people who were in the first half of their lives, we’ve found it to be no less pertinent to individuals who are entering into the second half.

  In the second half of life, the same questions that drive our conception of the good life during the first half inevitably return. Who am I? Where do I belong? What do I care about? What is my life’s purpose? Only now, in the second half, we have a unique opportunity to be the author of our own story. We have a chance to rewrite it, rather than simply replicate the first half.

  It has become clear to us that becoming a new elder demands a rekindling of the good life. It requires drawing upon the wisdom we have gained in the first half.

  3

  With the four components of the good life in mind, we have been able to identify four common principles among those seasoned citizens who are becoming new elders—individuals who are living on purpose in the second half of their lives.

  These principles have become apparent as we’ve observed the indicators around us. Unfortunately, unlike the Hadza, we have no Honey Guide to guide us. We have had, however, the good fortune to witness dozens of new elders— our own Honey Guides—in action. Their choices, behaviors, and ways of moving through the world have enabled us to identify the “four flames of vital aging”—the key components of a life lived on purpose during the second half.

  These new elders have rekindled the good life for the second half. They have stoked the fire within and are sharing its warmth and light with others.

  This fire metaphor does not arise by accident. It emerges naturally out of an ongoing exploration of what it means to be truly human. After all, nothing is more essential to the human experience than the experience of fire. Fire connects us to the deepest core of our shared humanity. Our most distant ancestors depended upon fire for their survival; our most distant descendents, like us, will employ fire in some form in order to live. The use of fire is quite literally what separates human beings from non-human beings. It is this understanding of the vital role that fire plays in our humanity that has given rise to the myths and stories of fire among indigenous peoples.

  One of the most common ways that we talk about vitality is in terms of “keeping the fire alive.” For this reason—as well as for the abiding role fire plays in linking past, present, and future—the fire theme naturally emerges in our story of new elders. Each of the four key principles of new elders is embodied in a characteristic of fire. In claiming our place at the fire as new elders, we claim each of these aspects ourselves.

  4

  1. The Flame of Identity: Recalling Our Stories

  Principle: Wisdom

  Firestarter Question: Who Am I?

  New elders harvest and transfer the wisdom of the past into the present. They know the important narratives of their culture, whatever that culture is. Joseph Campbell said, “The first requirement of any society is that its adult membership should realize and represent the fact it is they who constitute its life and being . . . and on which that society itself must depend for its existence.” Elders teach by story. But it isn’t simply recalling stories about “the good old days.” Rather, it is an ability to touch the lives and lived experience of others through their own experiences in a manner that brings it alive in the present, through the past.

  2. The Flame of Community: Refinding Our Place

  Principle: Intimacy

  Firestarter Question: Where Do I Belong?

  New elders know where they belong in the world; they have a powerful sense of place—where they have come from, where they are, and where they are going.

  Consequently, they are able to reaffirm who they are for the journey ahead; grounded in the rich history of their first half, they feel alive to the challenges of the second half.

  3. The Flame of Passion: Renewing Our Calling

  5

  Principle: Caring Firestarter Question: What Do I Care About?

  Perhaps no challenge is greater for people in the second half of life than to find something meaningful and valuable to do with their gifts. New elders consistently meet that challenge by applying their gifts in support of young people and the community at large. New elders care passionately about those who follow in their footsteps. They find deep satisfaction in giving their gifts in new ways that serve others rather than just themselves. And they accept this as a critical responsibility of their elderhood. Consequently, new elders are all about “giving it away.” They know that a person is strong not in proportion to what he or she can hold on to, but rather, according to what the person can give up. Thi…