Podcasts about John Donne

An episode recorded as part of the Modes of Reading Today Symposium, hosted by the Townsend Center For The Humanities begins with a discussion of John Donne's insomnia and Wilfred Bion's undigested nightmares, followed by a vigorous discussion of attention, sleep, and immersion as they relate to literature and criticism [39:00], after which the symposium's organizer (and host of the Psychoanaliterature podcast) flips the studio for some analysis of The American Vandal's creator [90:00].Cast (in order of appearance): Matt Seybold, David Marno, Yael Segalovitz, Jonathan Kramnick, Toril Moi, Emma Lieber, Nicholas Baer, Dora Zhang, Anne-Lise François, Farah Bakaari, Sina Dell'AnnoDates Recorded: February 19-20, 2026Music: Danny Weiss Quartet, Moby, L. D. MillerFor more about this episode, please visit TheAmericanVandal.com

During the Cold War, hearings led by U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy soon turned into a witch hunt, as paranoia and political opportunism destroyed the careers (and lives) of actors, directors, singers, filmmakers, writers, and prominent scientists who were accused of disloyalty, subversion, and treason. But even as the accusers cited poems, plays, novels, and song lyrics to bolster their attack, literature mounted a counteroffensive, striking back at the powerful in what Marjorie Garber has termed "poetic revenge." In this episode, Jacke talks to Garber about her book A Treacherous Secret Agent: How Literature Spoke Truth to Power During the Red Scare about the long reach of authors like William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Kyd, John Donne, and others, whose works exposed the lies and hypocrisies of one of America's darkest periods. PLUS Jacke takes a look at Arthur Miller's late-in-life reflections on his own work of poetic revenge, the great anti-McCarthyist play The Crucible. The music in this episode is by Gabriel Ruiz-Bernal. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠gabrielruizbernal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Help support the show at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/literature⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠historyofliterature.com/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

https://join.unrefinedpodcast.comWhat do you do with stories of people seeing their own double? Is it folklore? Brain malfunction? Astral projection? A demonic imitation? A flesh-and-blood mystery? Or something stranger that does not fit neatly into our modern categories?In this episode rewind, Brandon Spain and Lindsy Waters explore the strange phenomenon of doppelgangers, also known as “double walkers.” The conversation moves through folklore, famous cases, biblical passages, cryptid encounters, scientism, spiritual laws, and the unsettling human ability to recognize when something looks almost human but not quite.The episode begins with the German meaning of doppelganger as “double goer” or “double walker,” then moves into historical and cultural examples like the Irish fetch, changeling stories, Abraham Lincoln, Catherine the Great, Percy Shelley, John Donne, Goethe, and the mysterious case of Pauline Picard. Brandon and Lindsy also look at the famous Emily Sage case, where an entire classroom reportedly saw a teacher's double.The conversation also takes a biblical turn with Peter's “angel” in Acts, the disciples thinking Jesus on the water was a ghost, and the larger question of whether Jewish thought had categories for spirit doubles or familiar beings. From there, the guys explore autoscopy, heutoscopy, sleep paralysis, astral projection, DMT, cryptids that mimic human voices, and the limits of purely material explanations.This is not a neat and tidy answer episode. It's an Unrefined conversation about mystery, discernment, supernatural reality, and why Christians should be careful not to reduce every strange thing to either “just science” or “just demons.”https://join.unrefinedpodcast.com

Broadcaster and comedian Wendy Harmer and positive psychologist Dr Tim Sharp (aka ‘Dr Happy’) lift the veil on relationships and explore what it takes to nurture our most important connections with our partners, friends, and with ourselves. About the episode – brought to you by Australian Seniors, in partnership with RSPCA. Join Jean Kittson for the seventh season of DARE: The time of your life (formerly Life’s Booming), called Better With Age. Too often ageing is painted as decline. In reality, Australians are living longer, healthier lives and reshaping what “older” looks like. This series flips the script and shows how ageing is not a dirty word but rather a time to be embraced, featuring interviews with extraordinary over 50s refusing to slip quietly into the background. Wendy Harmer is a trailblazing comedian, broadcaster and journalist who has spent decades at the centre of Australian media and entertainment. Wendy first made her mark breaking new ground in Australia’s stand-up comedy scene before going on to become one of the country’s most recognisable media personalities and the author of bestselling books including Farewell My Ovaries. Australia’s own Dr Happy, Dr Tim Sharp is a leading positive psychologist, bestselling author and founder of The Happiness Institute, Australia’s first organisation dedicated to enhancing happiness. With a career spanning academia, clinical psychology and public speaking, he’s become one of the most recognised voices on mental health and wellbeing. Watch DARE: The Time of Your Life on YouTube Listen to DARE: The Time of Your Life on Apple Podcasts Listen to DARE: The Time of Your Life on Spotify For more information visit seniors.com.au/podcast Produced by Medium Rare Content Agency -- TRANSCRIPT: Jean Kittson: Welcome back to the podcast – DARE: The Time of Your Life, formerly Life’s Booming, brought to you by Australian Seniors, in partnership with RSPCA. I'm Jean Kittson, and this season is called Better with Age where we're flipping the script and showing how ageing is not a dirty word, but rather a time to be embraced. Australians are living longer, healthier lives, and this season celebrates over 50s who are pushing the boundaries of what ageing looks like and feels like. In this episode, we are lifting the veil on relationships and exploring what it takes to nurture our most important connections with our partners, friends, and with ourselves. We've probably all experienced how relationships shift over time. It's natural, of course, but it might surprise you to know just how important they are to our overall happiness and why it's vital to keep nurturing all relationships old and new. Which brings me to our first guest, Wendy Harmer, who knows about the importance of friendships and relationships and making new ones as we age. I first met Wendy when we worked together back in the 80s, so we've been friends a long time. She's one of Australia's most beloved entertainers, a trailblazing, standup comedian, journalist, broadcaster, performer and bestselling author. Her books include the wonderful Pearly children's book series, as well as more adult titles like Farewell My Ovaries and her memoir Lies My Mirror Told Me. And joining Wendy is Dr Tim Sharp, otherwise known as Dr Happy. Tim is one of Australia's leading positive psychologists, and the founder and Chief Happiness officer at the Happiness Institute. Also a bestselling author, including The Happiness Handbook and his most recent Lost and Found. Tim has dedicated his career to helping people live happier and more flourishing lives. Tim and Wendy, welcome to the podcast. Thank you both for coming in. Wendy Harmer: Great to be here, Jean. Jean Kittson: Oh, it's lovely to have you both here. Wendy Harmer: I've got to say, Tim, the first time I set eyes on this one, what a bombshell. She would've been on stage in a nurse's uniform at The Last Laugh Theatre Restaurant. It was, at the time, playing Nurse… Jean Kittson: Pam Sandwich… Wendy Harmer: …Pam Sandwich Jean Kittson: …in Let the Blood Run Free. Wendy Harmer: And this. All arms and legs and big boobs and blonde hair and falling over and doing all this amazing physical comedy. Everyone just adored Jean – and the men, we had to fight them off with a stick. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Well those were the days, weren't they? This is what friendship's all about Tim, right? Thanks Wendy. That was lovely of you to say that. I mean, we've known each other for, well, since the early 80s. Wendy Harmer: It would have been about ‘83. Jean Kittson: And you were on stage doing stand up. See, I was doing [characters] and you were amazing, what you were talking about, women’s things – topics for women, about women and relationships. Wendy Harmer: That's right. Well, because when I first started out doing standup, it was really a bloke's domain and I thought, well, this, you know, this is ridiculous because, you know, women's lives are interesting too, and I mean, there's one thing that annoys me above anything else is saying women aren't funny. Like the idea, Tim, that you would say, ‘oh, the pet budgie can make me laugh. The dog can make me laugh, but a woman can't make me laugh.’ I mean, it really, I think it strikes to our humanity and I get really cross about that. So I've sort of been a bit of a campaigner with that, you know, rubber chook on a stick for many years. But you know, the idea, I know you have this happiness. You talk a lot about happiness. How important is laughter? Dr Happy: Very important. Well, it's a general group, laughter, fun play, all of those things, which we too often underestimate and discount. Well, we sort of see them as a nice to have, but the research is pretty clear. It's super important for a good life. It's hard to live a best life, a thriving life, a flourishing life without laughter, without fun, without play. I mean, there are many other things as well, and I'm sure we'll get to some of those other things, but a hundred percent it is a very important contributor to living a really, really good quality life. Wendy Harmer: And it's interesting too, that our sense of humor. It's not universal at all. It's formed in that crucible of the family, or indeed your chosen family like Jean. You know, we chose each other as grownups to be a family. But that, you know, there is like the punny family, there's the practical joke family. There's, you know, each family has its own particular sense of humor, doesn't it? Jean Kittson: Well, I think friendship is a really important way of maintaining humour in your life because you get together with friends to have a laugh, don't you, often? Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Jean Kittson: I mean, they're complex relationships, friendships. I mean, you've had friendships for a long time, Wendy, long-term friends. Wendy Harmer: I still have a friend who was at my 70th birthday a couple of months ago, whom I met on the school bus when I was 13 years old. So I – Gary. So I think that's pretty cool. He's the friend that I've had the longest, but you know, Jean and I have very similar trajectories in this way. We both were sort of country girls, and then we went to Melbourne and then we moved to Sydney. And that is a big dislocator, isn't it, of friendships. It's when you, you know, and we both moved to Sydney about the same time, so we left this huge coterie of friends to move to Sydney with our husbands, and then we both had kids, which is isolating as well… Jean Kittson: …definitely, it changes everything, doesn't it… Wendy Harmer: … you know, the nature of a friendship just changes so much over the years. Jean Kittson: But in terms of friendship and happiness, I mean, is friendship a really important element? You are talking about laughing, which it is, but I know when I get together with friends, we laugh a lot. But friendship is a really important part of, you know, happiness. Dr Happy: Yeah. Well, look, I've been, well, I probably should say I started out my career specialising in unhappiness. I was a clinical psychologist to begin with and an academic. So I was studying sort of stress, depression, and misery before I even discovered happiness. But I have been studying, well, what we technically call positive psychology for several decades now. And if I had to sum up everything I've learned from thousands of research articles, hundreds of books, many, many conferences about, you know, what are the most important contributors to, well not just happiness, but wellbeing more generally, longevity, physical health, et cetera, it would certainly be positive relationships. In fact, one of the – so Christopher Peterson was one of the leaders, one of the grandfathers of positive psychology, and he dedicated his life to studying, thriving and flourishing. And he was once asked, what have you learned in, you know, 50 years as a professor? And he said, I can sum it up in three words. He said, other people matter. Wendy Harmer: Wow. That is correct. Dr Happy: So yeah, it's vitally important, almost certainly the most important contributor and the most important thing we can do is prioritise fostering and developing good quality relationships. Wendy Harmer: Well, you do hear that, don't you? That people ask on their deathbed, you know, what's your regret? And it's often that I didn't spend enough time with friends or family. You have some amazing relationships, Jean, and it's funny when you have a friend and you get to know that – and Angela, she's not a friend of mine, but I know her to be your best friend and that your friendship has been amazing over the years. How long have you known Angela? Jean Kittson: Well, I've known Angela for, since we were both teachers sent to the wilderness to teach first year out teachers. So probably since we were about 21, so 50 years. But she's a long distance friend, so I would speak to this friend regularly on the phone, and we speak all the time whenever we like on the phone, but I would only see Ange maybe once or twice a year, which is another thing about friendship. I know that our friendship endures because we speak regularly and we are in touch with each other's lives. Then I have friends who live a few streets away who I don't see for months, but I don't ring because they're only a few streets away and I lose contact – I mean, we often lose contact with friends. So, how do you manage that sort of – have you lost contact with any friends? You've got a huge cohort of friends. Wendy Harmer: Oh, well, I've lost, you know, I've lost contact with lots and lots of friends. I've only once lost contact with someone on purpose. I've done the– and that was after I spent time with this friend, and I realised that every time I walked away from spending time with this friend, I felt worse about myself. There was something just subtle in the relationship that just made me feel that I wasn't smart enough or I was like overweight or I wasn't achieving or whatever. Richard Stubbs, you know, our comedian friend, he would say, Wendy, he said, ‘sometimes you go back to that well, where it's quite clearly the person doesn't wanna be friends with you, and you are like, you won't take no for an answer.’ So I'm probably the opposite. I'm probably that needy person who wants, who needs you to be my friend, maybe. Jean Kittson: Well, I think we all need friends and we don't like it when we lose contact. And then you get embarrassed because it's been so long since you called. This is my situation that I'm too scared to ring up in case they just won't pick up and then I know I'm dropped. How do you mend broken friendships if– because they can be very painful, that sort of grief of losing someone just because of neglect, really not deliberately ghosting them or anything. Because friendships need to be nurtured, need to be fed in a way, need to be maintained. Wendy Harmer: [Like this plant..] Oh, that's plastic. That's plastic! I was going to say like this house plant! Jean Kittson: Yeah. Dr Happy: Look, it's, well, there's a couple of things there. You're a hundred percent right. We– relationships do need to be worked on. Now for some people that's easier than others. There's no doubt that some people who, at the risk of oversimplifying, may be the more extroverted people who find it more enjoyable, easier. It just comes naturally to them. Some of us, some other people, need to work a bit harder at it, but it is something you need to work at. And the other thing that came out through both of that, is that things change over time, which shouldn't be a surprise. You know, as we age and as our circumstances change and as our contexts change, you know, and you get married and you have children and then you retire, and all those sorts of things. So, our relationships will change, but we do still need to work on it. We do still, it is important to have some friends, for some people that will be fewer than others. You know, so some people, some of us are happy with one or two good friends, that's enough. Other people might need five 10 or whatever. But… Wendy Harmer: I can never have enough! Dr Happy: …and that's okay. Again, we're all different. Wendy Harmer: Well, yeah. My husband is, he has the most friendships of any person I've ever met in my entire life, to the point where every now and then, it's like barnacles on a barge. I have to go down and scrape them off… Dr Happy: Are you calling your husband a barge? Wendy Harmer: …every now and then. Yeah. But then he had his 50th birthday at our house. Mind you, 350 people came. Jean Kittson: Amazing. Dr Happy: Wow. Wendy Harmer: Lord. But it's almost… Jean Kittson: I’m jealous. Wendy Harmer: …Yeah. But it's almost like his mission, you know, mission in life. But you know, I'll tell you something though. Oh, have you ever had this Jean, have you ever been jealous of someone else's friendship? Because I remember years ago, I was a big Oprah aficionado. I loved everything that Oprah did. And then she talked all the time about her best friend, Gail King. Jean Kittson: Mm-hmm. Wendy Harmer: And they went on a road trip together and how they talked to each other three or four times a day and dah, dah, dah, dah. And I thought, oh, I wish I had a friendship like Gail and Oprah. So I had to stop reading about their friendship because it just seemed too ideal. But, I'm not sure that they weren't just lying. Jean Kittson: They–– didn't you say that they rang each other three or four times a day? Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Three, three or four times a day. Jean Kittson: I know that seems excessive. Wendy Harmer: It does seem excessive. Jean Kittson: I think it seems like there's some insecurity there even. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Maybe. Jean Kittson: Maybe, although, you know, we all need friends for different reasons, and we all need them at different times for different reasons. Often friends are the ones that get you through the hardest times in your life and you don't want to burden your family and your partner all the time with your insecurities. Wendy Harmer: See, I wanna say something really important there, which I hate, which is, you know, where people, you know, they make their marriage vows and they say, ‘you are my best friend.’ And I think. I don't want my husband to be my best friend. My husband is my lover, but he's not my best friend. I mean, what do you think of that, Jean? Jean Kittson: Well, in some ways, I suppose, you need to have a friendship with your relationship. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Yeah. Jean Kittson: It needs to be companionable. You need to trust them to be able to be honest with each other, and that's what friendships are like, and to have sex. You know, if you… Wendy Harmer: Be honest with each other? Are you serious? Jean Kittson: I'm serious. You gotta be honest about your– well, about how you're feeling, I mean, you don't, I mean– of course. I think honesty is really important, although, no, I don't wanna say anything too personal here, but there is a difference, yes. There is a difference between your friendship with your girlfriends, where you can just download and, I mean, do you have a really close male friend, this is the other thing? Wendy Harmer: Oh, yeah, yeah. I've got, actually, probably, I've got more male friends and female friends even. And I love my male friends. When my husband and I got married, I had an ex-boyfriend in my bridal party and he had his– one of his girl, not his girlfriend, but a female friend in his party. So we are very relaxed, you know, about all that. But as I say, you know, yes, I believe in trust, absolutely, in a relationship with your partner. Honesty? Hmm. I'll get back to you. Jean Kittson: Well, I think with really good friends, you can be honest. I often hear people say, oh, these– well, you were talking about a friend who made you feel bad. I'm not talking about that. But I think some friends, you often hear people say, ‘oh, friends should build you up’ or ‘you should always have a positive relationship with them.’ But sometimes friendships go through periods where you are there to support them through really hard times. So, it's not always gonna be someone who makes you feel better about yourself. It's maybe you making them feel better about themselves. Wendy Harmer: But sometimes also as a friend, you've got to say, listen, I think that you might be, you know, on the wrong path here. Or, you know, you've gotta put… Dr Happy: Honesty. Wendy Harmer: …Yeah. You've gotta be diplomatic, haven't you? But some– do you think that a friend, good friend should be able to say, yeah, well, maybe, I don't know whether this is quite the–– how should we go about that? Dr Happy: Oh, for sure. I think, well, if I take my sort of professional hat on and just so to speak personally, because this is something I've learned over the years and, and I haven't really seen much research on it.There's not much talk in the sort of academic community about it. But, I've come to learn, there are different types of friends and so, I have some friends who I can talk honestly about and share my feelings with, even though I'm a bloke and then there are other friends who are fun, but I would never go to them necessarily if I have a problem. And I don't think that necessarily makes them not a good friend. I think it took me a long time to learn there are just different friends who have, kind of almost different purposes for want of a better phrase, including my wife and family as well in that. And so there are some things I will call some people for and other things I'll call other people for and I don’t know if we necessarily give that as much consideration. Wendy Harmer: Is your… Jean Kittson: I think that's really true. Wendy Harmer: …Can I ask, do you think your wife is your best friend? Dr Happy: She is actually at the risk of disagreeing with you! But I don’t know if that's necessarily that common. I have, well, I suppose it depends how you define best, but we are very close friends. We've spent over 30 years now. Jean Kittson: I think you're right about friends for, you know, you don't have friends for all seasons. You have different friends for different seasons in a way. And I– there's friends I would call if I needed a bit of therapy, you know, uplifting, give me a confidence boost. And then there's friends that I would call to just take me out of my world into a whole different world. Wendy Harmer: Yeah… Jean Kittson: …And that's, that's a benefit of having many friends or a few friends. But of course, what you mentioned before, some people are introverts and find friendships more difficult to maybe maintain or they're more exhausting and other extroverts might have a whole lot of friends – like you and Brendan are both extroverts, I would say, Wendy. Dr Happy: Well, so at the risk of disagreeing, that's a bit of a misunderstanding, with introverts and extroverts, so it's not– introverts don't necessarily find friendships difficult. It's just that they don't get their energy from mixing with lots of people a lot of the time. So, they need to have time. They still could have good quality relationships, maybe not as many, but it's just that they'll need to take time out probably a bit more often and spend a bit more time on their own. So it is a bit of a– introverts aren't necessarily loners, or even lonely, for that matter. Jean Kittson: No, that's right. I'm glad you clarified that. I think I'm probably– was talking about sort of at parties and big [events] whereas extroverts get their energy, they find the whole thing… Dr Happy: Yeah. When you were describing your husband's party with 350 people, this is my worst nightmare. I was thinking, my God, I'd be out of there in five minutes. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Tim, can I ask you, how do we kind of know, how do we know when we are deficient in friendship. Is there any universal standard or is it just every single person will feel that very differently? Dr Happy: That's a really good question. And there's probably multiple answers. Wendy Harmer: Thanks. It's a better question than Jean’s! Jean Kittson: Yeah, wow, I was– you just interview us, Wendy. I would be so happy. Dr Happy: As I say, no, great question. I think everyone is different. So again, we all need, you know, some of us are quite happy with a very small group of intimate friends, other people want the 350, whatever it might be. I guess the real question is to ask yourself honestly, like, how do I feel about my life? Do I feel I have enough, do I feel it's adequate in that context and in other contexts as well? Because there's a difference between being alone and being lonely – [we] kind of almost touched on that before. And again, there some people are perfectly happy, either totally on their own or maybe just one or two people in their lives. Other people need more than that, and it's not– one's not right or wrong or better or worse, it's just, again, we're different. So the question then is, how do you feel and if you are, if you don't feel happy with it… Although what we do need to be careful of, and you kind of touched on this a bit earlier maybe with the Oprah thing, is social comparison. Jean Kittson: Yes. Dr Happy: We do need to be careful looking at, you know, let's say you or your husband saying, ‘oh, she's got lots of friends. I don't have enough so I'm inadequate.’ Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Dr Happy: That's not necessarily the case. Social comparison is problematic and number is one, because as you hinted at, especially on social media, it's not always accurate. Not always truthful. But two, even if it does work for you or Oprah, it doesn't necessarily mean it works for me. Wendy Harmer: Mm-hmm. Dr Happy: So we've all gotta find our own right way, our own balance, I suppose. And again, for some people that will be a bit easier than others. Wendy Harmer: Mm, Jean Kittson: Yes. I suppose as you get older too, there's going to be, there's so many more responsibilities in your life. I know that as a carer, people always say, ‘oh, maintain your own friendships and maintain a social life,’ but it's almost impossible if you are a carer for someone and you're on-call and you have to cancel social engagements, and you find yourself drifting away from friends and moving – you're no longer the inner circle of your friendship group. You're getting further and further out. And I just wonder if that's– if you can repair that, if that couldn't be repaired when you are, you know, you have more time and let fewer responsibilities. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. It feels like, to me, it feels like to me that anyone that you want to have in your life would understand that. And if, if you picked up the phone and said, ‘look I've been caring for, you know, a sick relative or mum and dad or whatever,’ and I find myself now, you know, I don't have that as much responsibility anymore for whatever reason, whether there's been a bereavement or whatever that if you, if that, if you pick up the phone and that person says, welcome back and I've been thinking of you, and they welcome you with open arms, that's the person you want in your life, don't you think? Jean Kittson: Definitely. But I think the distance that can happen over years particularly means that people move on with their friendships and their lives have changed and you can no longer be intimately involved with their lives and it takes a lot to catch up. Wendy Harmer: Yeah, that's true. Jean Kittson: But you really– I think somehow you have to bridge that otherwise you will be lonely. Dr Happy: It's a really good point. As you were saying that I was, again, reflecting on my personal life as opposed to my professional life. And I was thinking, I've always found it difficult, you know, initially, busy starting my career and trying to establish my career, then getting married, having young children, and at that time, not that many of my friends had young children at the same time. So that sort of then, you know– so there was always, and now caring for elderly parents, et cetera. There's always been something that's potentially got in the way, but I am at a stage now where I'm trying to reestablish because I lost – I don't wanna bring this down too much – I lost many years through mental ill health, through quite serious depression, anxiety, and I particularly lost a lot of friendships because I isolated, it wasn't their fault necessarily. So I'm trying to reestablish it. And it's interesting, and this goes to your point, I think, to see how people respond. And some people are welcoming me back with open arms saying, ‘great, we missed you.’ Other people, not so much. And that's fine, I suppose. I guess you do learn when you do make that effort, who the real friends are. Wendy Harmer: One of the things that I'd like to talk about is that it is often women in relationships who are doing the heavy lifting when it comes to friendship. Of course this is very problematic if there is a bereavement, you know, and like my dad. My dad ended up living alone without friends. And I mean, it was very, I mean, he ended up, I think they prescribed him Prozac or some darn thing or whatever, but that happens to a lot of men, doesn't it really? It's something to watch out for, I would've  thought. Dr Happy: Certainly. Yeah, the research is pretty clear. Older men, well, men generally, tend to be not quite as good at fostering and developing those relationships. It tends to become more problematic as they age, and they tend to become more isolated, which is then a high risk factor for a whole range of problems including depression, but also other health problems as well. So yeah, it is a big problem and I think we're starting to see a real explosion as this, as the baby boomers really are hitting that, well are at that age now, I suppose, and even Gen X are getting to that point. Things are changing. So when I– I think my generation was sort of the bit of a turning point and then–– Well, when, if I look at my son, for example, is in his early twenties and how he interacts, and he might not be typical, but the way he relates to particularly his male friends is very different in a good way, I think. Jean Kittson: In a good way. Yeah. Wendy Harmer: I think I agree. Same with my–– how old's your son? Dr Happy: 23. Wendy Harmer: Yeah, mine's 28. I see them very accepting of each other. They don't have to, well, you know, maybe this, our particular sort of… Dr Happy: We might not be typical… Wendy Harmer: But they don't have to put on that macho thing, and they're very, it seems to me they do reach out to a friend who's down. You know, going through a hard time, they seem to be softer. Dr Happy: I think it is changing. So, I mean, I did a podcast series a few years ago on what does it mean to be a man? And the main thing I took, I learned from, I mean, I was meant to be teaching people, I suppose, but the main thing I learned from that is that there isn't one masculinity. There are masculinities. There are multiple ways to quote/unquote be a man. And I think I sort of try and talk a lot about that, particularly young men that, you know, there are different ways to be masculine. There are different ways to show your emotions. There are different ways to be vulnerable. Again, we'll all do that differently, but if we can be more accepting, I think that's really important because, you know, men as a result of all of that, there are significant health and mental health problems, from poor definitions of masculinity. Jean Kittson: Yes, of course. Wendy Harmer: Hey Jean, do you reckon you can make a new friend at our age? Jean Kittson: Well, I was just going to ask you that, in fact, Wendy. I think well, if we take from the men's side, often people of our age and getting older are put into retirement villages or their families say, you know, you go off and sell the family home. And they wanna put us with each other instead of a cross section. And we’re supposed to make friends like we were back at kindergarten and often people are in their 80s and they move into a whole new community. Wendy Harmer: They're quite set in their ways. Of course. Jean Kittson: …yes, of course Not flexible. Jean Kittson: Well, maybe they just have other, different incapacities. Maybe they can't see very well, maybe they can't hear very well, and you're supposed to start new friendships at that stage in life. I think that from my point of view, but I'd rather ask you both this.. Wendy Harmer: …but you've written the books about this… Jean Kittson: Well, I wrote books about being, yes, about caring for our elders and how to make sure they got what they wanted and they had the life they wanted. And not many people wanna leave their community at a late age and try to make new friends, that's for sure. It's very, very difficult. And often it comes with, because of their maybe ill health and they can't– mum had lost her sight for 20 years and mum and dad, both of them couldn't hear very well. So it was harder to make new friends, but they did through groups, like you're saying, how do you make new friends? It's like the Men Shed, or bowling for the vision impaired – which is a very dangerous sport, I must say – but you make new friends by, and we had… and there's, you know, choirs and painting and perhaps joining groups where you're not having to go out for a coffee and sit opposite a stranger and try to, you know, find common ground, that you're doing something else. It's like the friendships, I imagine, it's like those sometimes very intimate friendships you have with people on a train or a bus or a plane that you know you're never going to see again, and then you just share all sorts of things. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I'm really pleased to hear that because I mean, it just sounds horrifying to me, the idea of going to an aged care home and being sat around with a whole lot of people and then think, and someone jollying and like, ‘oh, let's all be friends’. I could not think of anything worse. But you're saying that it doesn't have to be like that. Jean Kittson: Oh, there is a lot of community and if you're there for a while, I mean, people often are very– start off not very happy in those sort of places, because they've had illness. And there'll be a lot of people probably listening to this podcast who are struggling with things that are happening in their lives and thinking, well, how do I even have time for friends? But it is really important, even if you've only got one friend, don't you think? Dr Happy: Definitely, and I think you've hit the nail on the head. I think it is difficult, I think we all acknowledge that, but it is possible. And I think you're right. Joining clubs, societies, community– I mean, I was thinking of my mum who, after mum and dad got divorced and very later became a very passionate bridge player like multiple times a week. And that was her family. It was her second family. It was– dad's been very involved in Rotary. So some of the– you know, there are communities or groups that already exist, you know, woodworking or sporting or the Men's Sheds for example, that's a great way to do it because you're also pursuing, you know, presuming you're pursuing a passion that you enjoy or some sort of hobby, but you're interacting with other people. So that is possible and it's one of probably, the best and easiest way to do it if that's something you want to or need to do. Wendy Harmer: Mm-hmm. I did a little bit of research about this, about resilience in children, and one of the conclusions is that resilience, if a child– a child just needs one adult to make a difference to their resilience. So, and you know, that might not be mum or dad, it could be a friend, could be a relative or whatever, but just that one person, and I'm thinking it's probably the same in old age as well. Dr Happy: Yeah, well I talk a lot about happiness and thriving, flourishing, and as I had said earlier, I talk a lot about positive relationships because it's one of the most important contributors. And I often talk about what I call ‘3:00 AM friends.’ Who would you call at 3:00 AM when the [bleep] hits the fan? – Am I allowed to say that? – When something goes wrong. And well like you said, you really only need one. I mean, if you've got two or three. That's just fantastic. But if you've got one person who you can call when something's gone wrong, that's all you need and that's super important at any age really. Wendy Harmer: Well I’ve got Jean on speed dial. Jean Kittson: Call me at 3:00 AM anytime, Wendy. Oh, that's a very great point. Wendy Harmer: I've never thought of that. That’s a really good point, who would you call? Jean Kittson: Who would you call… Wendy Harmer:…who would you call at 3:00 AM? Well, I know that Jean has been such an extraordinary carer for her mum and dad that I know that she'll have every number of every medical centre, ambulance, where to get drugs… Jean Kittson: But which friend would I call? Dr Happy: Can I get your number? Jean Kittson: And have you got someone you would call after…? Dr Happy: Well, at the risk of upsetting Wendy, my wife. And then well, yeah, I'm pretty lucky to have a good family as well. So, I wouldn't say we are best buddies who speak every day, but I have a brother and sister, and we have pretty good, strong relationships. I think if I needed to, I know either one of them would do whatever they could. I have a father who's still, he's obviously getting– my mother died, but he's elderly and physically sort of isn't able to do much, but he would do whatever he could, obviously. And then, yeah, I do have a small handful of friends who I think if I really needed to and who I have, I suppose in the past, called up when I needed to. Wendy Harmer: I wanna put this, I mean, I really, really must insist here that, I'm talking about in the event that my husband is like, lying next to me dead or something, who am I gonna call? Because he would be the first person… Dr Happy: …well if he's dead there's no point calling anyone! Jean Kittson: It's interesting that, well, sometimes people would prefer, well, what am I trying to say here? Sometimes I feel guilty when I think the first people I would call would be in my family. They're the people I'm closest to, probably, and they're the ones that I– we share everything. Wendy Harmer: Yeah, of course. Jean Kittson: But then psychologically that could be called enmeshment, if I say I'd call my daughters if I, you know, needed something at three in the morning, they'd be the first people that I would. Wendy Harmer: Of course. Jean Kittson: But, I'm not sure whether that's unhealthy or not. Dr Happy: No, not necessarily. Enmeshment is maybe the three times a day sort of thing, but calling – and probably I should have put my kids in that when I was talking about earlier as well – but no, I think calling… One of the greatest myths in our society, I think, and one of the greatest myths and misconception about happiness or life generally, is this myth of independence. And I could bang on about neoliberalism… Wendy Harmer: …No man is an Island, John Donne… Dr Happy: But no, well, I think so much of a sort of quote/unquote Western society is focused on independence and individual responsibility. And that's not to say we shouldn't be responsible. Of course we should, but we are social animals. We're social beings, and there's nothing wrong at all in needing other people and relying on other people. Not every minute of every day for everything. That's problematic. But when something goes wrong, we shouldn't feel bad at all about reaching out and asking for help. Wendy Harmer: But this is also, this is also a product of the kind of society that we live in. I mean, if you look at those intergenerational households… Dr Happy: Mm-hmm. Wendy Harmer: …that you see in so many other cultures, of course everyone's enmeshed and everyone's friends, everyone's arguing, everyone's, you know, it's a whole… Jean Kittson: Ecosystem… Wendy Harmer: …in itself. That's right. And so you've got, living down the street, there's this ecosystem there and this one there and this one there. But, Australia, of course, we have this thing where, oh, you must grow up and move out of home and it's gonna be great for everyone. And I mean, it's not necessarily. Jean Kittson: Well, we're products of the nuclear family, aren't we? Where our… Wendy Harmer: Yeah, we sure are. Jean Kittson: …our parents were, they were aspirational. They wanted to leave the small towns and the… everyone seemed to think a small town was bad when I was growing up. And you had to go to the city and that was where the excitement was and the stimulation was, and that's where people got things done and they were more interesting. And now I think we're realising that small towns and villages… Dr Happy: …green changes… Jean Kittson: …yeah, exactly. They really have so much to offer. And you were talking about young people beforehand, people in villages, you know, now we need mentors for young people and this great organisation, Raise organisation, that puts mentors in schools. And that's another thing you can do if you're older and you wanna connect, you can volunteer to be a mentor for a younger person. A younger person once– you know, we had, when we were in a village, we had mentors, whether we liked it or not. We had companionship because everyone was interested in who we were and what we might contribute to the community. But that's lost. Wendy Harmer: Well, I'm glad you're asking. Yes, I will move in with you. Jean Kittson: Yes. Move in and mentor me, Wendy. Dr Happy: No, I think… I couldn't agree more. I think there's no doubt that big cities do offer something like, you know, employment prospects and entertainment variety and even, you know, cafes and restaurants and blah, blah, blah. But when we're– if you look at the research into, well not happiness at an individual level, but sort of, thriving and flourishing at a sort of higher level, the happiest places to live tend to be those regional centres that are big enough… so for example, in, you know, New South Wales it would be Orange or Newcastle or Wollongong. So they're big enough to have everything you might want, but still small enough to have a sense of connection and community. Wendy Harmer: …Geelong, Ballarat … Dr Happy: Yeah. So every state would have a version of that. And that's what you know, I think during COVID for example, we saw a significant shift to some of those places. Because that's what people were looking for, that connection, that community, and many of those people have stayed there or are continuing to move those spaces. So, I mean, I suppose if you can find that in the big city, great. That's good. That's what we wanna try and do, those of us that do live in big cities, to find that community through clubs, through societies, through whatever, you know, surf club, for example, that's a great example. Whatever it might be. Jean Kittson: That is an excellent piece of advice about finding the connection where you are. So many people reach our age and they decide they want a tree change or a sea change, and they leave their community and then they think their kids will visit, but they're back in the city with their own family earning a living, and then they find they're on their own again, and they've left the people that are really important. Yeah, would you ever move Wendy? Wendy Harmer: Oh yes. Jean Kittson: …but not far… Wendy Harmer: Oh, yes! My husband's a bit of a mollusc and a rock. We lived in, I mean I grew up moving all over the place because dad was a rural school teacher. So, I mean, when we talk about friendships, well, you know, I had to make friends over and over and over again. And so I think that's why I might just have a little bit of neediness there because I always think, oh, you know, that things that you grow up with, I suppose a pathology. I would love to move, but my husband's very content to, you know, where he is. I've got one daughter who lives next door. I mean, I adore that. And then I've got one son who's, you know, he spends a lot of time overseas, so, I've got a bit, you know, I've got a bit of both. Would I move ? Jean Kittson: Well, you could take your friends with you, obviously you would move in the same area, or would you do a really– I mean… I would be worried about community and friendship moving. Wendy Harmer: You have to understand this. Did I say mollusc on a rock? The man is immovable. It's not happening. So, yeah. But, you know, home for me is where I am. You know, I don't– because I grew up in all these different places, I don't really– if you said, Wendy, where's home? I would say, here, Wendy is home. That's where home is for me. So a little bit different. Jean Kittson: And Tim, what about you? Dr Happy: Well, we were chatting before, and we're literally in the process of selling a family home that we've been in for 25 years. But we're probably not going to move very far at all, like a few kilometers. But what we have done, because we're empty nesters now, but we've also bought a block of bush, a couple of hours out of Sydney, where we're gradually spending more and more time. So that's thoroughly enjoyable, immersed in nature. So sort of trying to get the best of both worlds. We have a smaller place in Sydney and a nice retreat. Jean Kittson: That's perfect. That's like the ideal. Wendy Harmer: …best of both worlds. Fantastic. Jean Kittson: My sister and I both married people from New South Wales and then my parents moved from Sorento where they'd been for years and years, had a great network of friends and they moved up to New South Wales to be near my sister and I. We both had young kids. We were both, you know, we needed help, and they moved there. And I went back to Sorento last week, and there were all these people – to do a fundraiser for a hospice – and there were all these people who were friends of mum and dad's. Because they were in business, they had friends that were younger. We didn't touch on this, but friends of different ages, you know, not just your peers. They had friends who were my age who thought of them really fondly and it was really lovely. It was amazing how warmly they spoke of them and how if mum and dad had turned up again after 20 years, they would just fall straight back into that friendship. Wendy Harmer: We get back to that, to the kind of culture that we live in that does not make being close as possible as it should. Jean Kittson: No, we should never have moved away from mum and dad. We should have stayed near them and they moved to be near us. And, I don't think they– they made some good friends, very, very good friends. But the friendships they'd made over their middle years were the closest friends, and long lasting. I mean, after their death, they were still friends with them. In fact, I was saying how I've got this problem because mum and dad's ashes are still in my cupboard, because mum wanted to be scattered at sea and dad wanted to be with mum, but not scattered at sea. So. I'm stuck. Dr Happy: I'm not gonna get involved in that one! Jean Kittson: No, exactly! Wendy Harmer: I've still got a whole lot of dad's ashes, because he moved around Victoria so much, I've got no idea where I should put them. I'd have to do this tour, you know, Cook’s tour and put I bit there, and a bit there, a bit there… Jean Kittson: But what I was gonna say, one of these women who– mum had given her her first job, which I didn't really know her. She has a boat and she said I'll take their ashes out and scatter them for you. Wasn't that nice? Dr Happy: There you go, a generous offer. Jean Kittson: I know… what sort of… that's a pretty good friendship, I would say. Wendy Harmer: Yeah. I'll scatter your ashes after you die. Jean Kittson: Will you? Thank you Wendy. Wendy Harmer: I think I'll do it in the shoe department at David Jones. Jean Kittson: Do it next week…! Wendy Harmer: You'd be quite happy there, wouldn't you? Jean Kittson: That's where you would be. I'll be in the local op shop. Just leave them there. Someone will probably buy them. Would either of you like to say anything more about the importance of friendship because we can wrap up otherwise. Wendy Harmer: I would like to say that I'm still recruiting! Jean Kittson: Yeah. I'll share your number! Wendy Harmer: …So if you'd like to… Jean Kittson: …this is Wendy's number Wendy Harmer: …if you'd like to be my, where's my camera? If you'd like to be my friend, do drop me a line. Look, I am Mrs Have-a-chat. My daughter just says, going down the street with you is a nightmare because I'm like, oh, there's the butcher. I might have a yarn with them. And oh, there's… So, yes. As I say, I'm taking applications. Dr Happy: Oh. Well, I think I probably already made my point, but I just to reiterate, I'd say there are multiple factors that contribute to living a good and happy life, but if I was gonna say the most important thing, I would say fostering and developing good quality relationships. So, make it a priority. It's just as if not more important than anything else you can possibly do. Jean Kittson: Thank you both very much… Wendy Harmer: …And thank you for being my friend all these years. Jean Kittson, an ornament to my life. Jean Kittson: Yeah. I'm a bauble on the Christmas tree of your friendship tower. Wendy Harmer: Indeed. Jean Kittson: Oh no. Well, I'm very proud to be your friend, that's for sure. Thank you both so much. I've learned a lot and I'm gonna ring up some friends now… And thank you for sharing your stories of friendship too. Thanks, Wendy. Thanks, Tim. Wendy Harmer: You're welcome. Thank you, Jean. Dr Happy: Thank you. Jean Kittson: Thanks. Thank you to Wendy Harmer and Dr Tim Sharp. You've been listening to DARE: The time of your life, brought to you by Australian seniors. Please leave a review and share this show with someone you know. Visit seniors.com au slash podcast for more episodes. Thank you. Goodbye.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode continues our series on the aubade (a morning love song) with a dramatic turn. Larkin reinvents the tradition as waking to the fact that every new day brings a person one day closer to death. To see the tradition that Larkin reimagines, see our previous episode on John Donne, "The Sun Rising." For the text of Larkin's "Aubade" see the Poetry Foundation. For more on Larkin, see the Poetry Foundation. Thanks to Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, as well as Faber and Faber, for permission to read Larkin's "Aubade" for this episode. Photo by Barry Wilkinson/Radio Times via Getty Images

Higher education is in upheaval, and a wave of "micro colleges" is reimagining undergraduate formation. Matthew Smith, co-founder and president of Hildegard College in Costa Mesa, California, joins Mark Labberton to talk about a tiny school marrying the Great Books to redemptive entrepreneurship. "We need young adults who are coming out of college who are failure resilient." In this episode, Smith reflects on the demographic cliff, the limits of professionalized majors, and why eighteen-year-olds need formation before a career. Together they discuss higher ed innovation, redemptive entrepreneurship, beauty as a public good, and what employers really want. Episode Highlights "We need young adults who are coming out of college who are failure resilient." "Most of these schools are endeavoring at least to promise a fruitful career … leaving behind what most 18 to 23 year olds actually need." "I would warn people away from universities that cannot clearly answer the question, what will all students learn at your school?" "First you need to seek what's true and good, what's worthy of being loved. Then you need to be formed into the kind of person that loves it. And then finally, the natural outlet of that is creation." "If there's a problem, they figure it out. They're not just asking their computers what the answer is." About Matthew Smith Matthew J. Smith is the founding president of Hildegard College, a Christian liberal arts micro college in Costa Mesa, California. He holds a PhD in Literature from USC, and taught for fifteen years at Azusa Pacific University before founding Hildegard College. His scholarship covers Shakespeare, John Milton, John Donne, and George Herbert; he has authored or edited four books on early modern literature and religion, and is working on a new book on beauty. Helpful Links and Resources Hildegard College https://www.hildegard.college Praxis on Redemptive Entrepreneurship https://www.praxis.co/redemptive-entrepreneurship St. John's College https://www.sjc.edu Literature and Religious Experience, by Matthew J. Smith https://www.amazon.com/Literature-Religious-Experience-Beyond-Unbelief/dp/1350193917 Show Notes Higher ed in flux "It's the economy that's driving disruptive innovation in higher education right now." The demographic cliff and small private colleges Job readiness vs. personal transformation "Leaving behind what 18 to 23 year olds actually need … becoming wise and faithful adults." From English professor to college founder Discovering micro colleges through classical K–12 schooling Trivium, quadrivium, democratic liberal education Visiting startup colleges in 2018; tuition often $10K–$15K "A shared vision of the end of learning" Hildegard's founding: liberal arts plus entrepreneurial arts Hildegard of Bingen, polymath patron Borrowing redemptive entrepreneurship from Praxis Beauty as antidote to weaponized truth and goodness Foundations of Thought + Entrepreneur Lab Real campaigns, real ventures—not test answers Field trips: Portland and El Salvador "We need young adults … who are failure resilient." Limits of pure classicism at St. John's, Thomas Aquinas "I loved my college, but I wish they would've taught us how to do something." Startup speed: idea Thursday, launching next Thursday "What will all students learn at your school?" Why Smith stopped believing in the English major Employers want teachability and adaptability "First you need to seek … then to be formed … then creation." Intellectual confidence and humility together #HigherEducation #ClassicalEducation #LiberalArts #MicroCollege #ChristianHigherEd #RedemptiveEntrepreneurship #GreatBooks #HildegardCollege Production Credits Conversing is produced and distributed in partnership with Comment magazine and Fuller Seminary.

DESCRIPTION - TNS 18,4 - John Donne (1572-1631) on 21 April 2026John Donne (1572-1631) is a contemporary of our Guest at The Night School last month - St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622). Both were “divines”, which means “One who has officially to do with ‘divine things'; formerly, any ecclesiastic, priest, or other member of the clergy; now, one skilled in divinity; a theologian.” The latter was particularly famous for his letters of spiritual direction; the former, our Guest this month, is esteemed for his religious poetry, especially for his “Holy Sonnets”.His life and his understanding of God and religion, grounded in the convictions and habits of medieval Europe, came to pieces in the emergent “new world” of science and of the constantly, often violently, changing political scene. His personal failures and suffering deepened him to such a degree that he trained for the Priesthood and was ordained in 1615. Then when his wife died in 1617, his suffering increased and drove him deeper into the mystery of God and life. It is in this context that he composed his justifiably famous “Holy Sonnets”. He is judged the greatest of what came to be called “the Metaphysical poets”. (George Herbert, a previous Guest of The Night School, is counted among this number.)With our Guest this month, we will look closely at these sonnets, in whom we find some of the most famous lines in English poetry. For example, “Death be not proud” and “What if the present were the world's last night?” and “Batter my heart three person'd God” and in a prose essay, “No man is an island.”Welcome to the closing Part of The Night School, Series 18.

It was my first year of college, and my faith had sailed straight into an intellectual hurricane. I was drowning in questions about science, philosophy, and history; my mind felt like it was on a life-or-death scramble for evidence to support my belief in Christ. One night, I prayed a desperate prayer: “Lord, I want to believe. If you are real, help me as I investigate my doubts.” The very next morning in my freshman English class (El Camino, baby!), we read a poem that bypassed my head and rocked my very soul. Its lines spoke to the true question haunting my heart: death. That reading felt like a reassuring wink from God as I began a decade-long intellectual quest. John Donne's Holy Sonnet 10 famously declares: Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so... One short sleep past, we wake eternally And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die. As we dive into Romans 8 this week, we face that same human ache over life and death. It is a question that both John Donne and the Apostle Paul answer with the same defiant hope.

Send us Fan MailWords: Rev'd Jon SwalesMusic Pixabay: Piano LamentAfter the Chorus/After the NoiseI wrote this travelling by train through the Alps from Rome to Paris, after reading John Donne's Holy Sonnet XIV, “Batter my heart, three-person'd God.” These two poems trace a movement from the triggered body, where worship can still feel like threat yet there still,  despite numbing and distance, is a desire for encounter. I. After the ChorusDo not come to me now  as soft advice.Not as the bright smile  at the church door.  Not as the chorus swelling  through the speakers,  all uplift  and upward hands.The room is singing  its predictable liturgy —  the slow one,  the anthem,  the key change meant  to lift the heart —and something in me  locks.The body remembers  what the mouth  still cannot say.One chord,  and the old rooms open.The brand.  The corporate style.  The lanyards.  The smoothness of it all.Words weaponised  like daggers:‘you bring nothing of value  to this place.'And suddenly I am back there,  inside the room  where harm was done  and called itself ministry.So come like weather.Come like rain  against the chapel windows  when the singing grows too loud,  when joy itself  feels like threat.Break the locked places.There are pews inside me  still occupied by ghosts,  whole liturgies of fear  recited in the blood,  old shames hanging there  like vestments  in the dark.I have called it resilience.  I have called it faith.  I have called it carrying on.Still the walls sweat.Still the heart,  that small battered flat  above the old sanctuary,  lets in every echo  except peace.So come not as guest  but as the one  who knows the building  was never theirs.Kick in the swollen door.Shatter the stained glass  of the god they handed me —  the one who looked too much  like power,  too much like control,  too much like men  who mistook harm  for holiness.Burn what must burn.The false shepherd.  The polished liturgy.  The songs that ask the wounded  to rise too quickly.Batter my heart,  threefold mercy,  Father of the bruised,  Christ of the locked room,  Wild Goose moving  not in the amplifier's roar  but in the tremor beneath it.Undo me.Not as they undid me.Not to wound  but to make room  for breath.For I have been  an occupied city,  streets patrolled by fear,  every chorus a siren,  every bridge lifted in worship  a trigger.

This episode begins a three-part series on the "aubade," a poem to greet the morning (often by wishing the morning away). We discuss Donne's many wonderful techniques and even recite a little Romeo and Juliet. Here is the poem: The Sun Rising By John Donne Busy old fool, unruly sun, Why dost thou thus, Through windows, and through curtains call on us? Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run? Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide Late school boys and sour prentices, Go tell court huntsmen that the king will ride, Call country ants to harvest offices, Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime, Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time. Thy beams, so reverend and strong Why shouldst thou think? I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink, But that I would not lose her sight so long; If her eyes have not blinded thine, Look, and tomorrow late, tell me, Whether both th' Indias of spice and mine Be where thou leftst them, or lie here with me. Ask for those kings whom thou saw'st yesterday, And thou shalt hear, All here in one bed lay. She's all states, and all princes, I, Nothing else is. Princes do but play us; compared to this, All honor's mimic, all wealth alchemy. Thou, sun, art half as happy as we, In that the world's contracted thus. Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be To warm the world, that's done in warming us. Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere; This bed thy center is, these walls, thy sphere. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44129/the-sun-rising For more on Donne: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/john-donne

You were never meant to do life alone. On this episode of Like It Matters Radio, Mr. Black takes on one of the most urgent and overlooked crises of our time: disconnection. In a world filled with digital noise and surface-level relationships, people are more connected than ever… yet more isolated than ever. Drawing from John Donne’s timeless truth—“No man is an island”—this episode reminds us of something we’ve forgotten: your life is tied to other lives. What affects one… affects all. Mr. Black breaks down the reality of today’s loneliness epidemic—where people aren’t just alone, they’re questioning whether they matter at all. When connection fades, trust fades. And when trust fades, everything else begins to fracture—relationships, communities, and culture itself. But this isn’t just a diagnosis. It’s a call to rebuild. This episode explores: Why humans are wired for connection and belonging How loneliness impacts mental, emotional, and even physical health Why trust is the foundation of every healthy relationship and system How real connection—not surface interaction—restores purpose Through a deeply personal story of loss, Mr. Black brings this message out of theory and into reality—reminding listeners that people are not just important… they are everything. Because here’s the truth: People are the problem. And people are the solution. You were made for relationship—both vertical and horizontal. You are part of something bigger. And your life matters more than you think. This is an Hour of Power for anyone who feels disconnected, overlooked, or alone—and a challenge to leaders to rebuild connection, restore trust, and invest in people again. Because when one of us suffers, we all feel it. And when one of us rises, we all benefit. Inspiration. Education. Application. When you live your life like it matters… it does.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Evening Prayer for Tuesday, March 31, 2026 (Tuesday of Holy Week; John Donne, Priest and Poet, 1631).Psalm and Scripture readings (60-day Psalter):Psalm 77Proverbs 291 Timothy 3⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to access the text for the Daily Office at DailyOffice2019.com.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to support The Daily Office Podcast with a one-time gift or a recurring donation.

Morning Prayer for Tuesday, March 31, 2026 (Tuesday of Holy Week; John Donne, Priest and Poet, 1631).Psalm and Scripture readings (60-day Psalter):Psalm 74Exodus 38:1-23Mark 1:14-31⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to access the text for the Daily Office at DailyOffice2019.com.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to support The Daily Office Podcast with a one-time gift or a recurring donation.

After a long break in which your intrepid host has contended with everything from eye surgery to accreditation, the second part of the panel discussion on The Counselor is finally here.Returning for the second part of his first appearance on the podcast is Dr. Russell Hillier, whose consideration of the screenplay first sparked my interest in examining the text again.  He is Professor of English at Providence College, Rhode Island. He is the author of two books, Milton's Messiah (Oxford University Press, 2011) and Morality in Cormac McCarthy's Fiction: Souls at Hazard (Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), and he is coeditor of Combined Lights: Comparative Essays on the Writings of John Donne and George Herbert (University of Delaware Press, 2021). Additionally, he has published articles on many authors in many journals. Returning as well is the excellent Dr. Dianne Luce. She is the author of Reading The World. Cormac McCarthy's Tennessee Period, University of South Carolina Press, 2009, and Embracing Vocation: Cormac McCarthy's Writing Life, 1959-1974, U South Carolina Press 2023. She is currently working on a second volume of Cormac McCarthy's Writing Life, covering 1974-1985.  Bryan A. Giemza is Professor of Humanities and Literature at the Texas Tech University Honors College. His work bridges literature, climate communication, and public-facing humanities. He has published widely on McCarthy's engagement with science, theology, and the American West. His forthcoming edited volume, Sowing the West Texas Wind, examines the causes and consequences of misinformation through regional case studies. His work has been supported by major humanities funders including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Fulbright Program. His book Science and Literature in Cormac McCarthy's Expanding Worlds was published by Bloomsbury in 2023. As always, listeners are warned: there be spoilers here.  Film trailer excerpts from The Counselor, directed by Ridley Scott, distributed by 20th Century Fox, 2013.  Thanks as always to Thomas Frye, who composed, performed, and produced the music for READING MCCARTHY.  The views of the host and his guests do not necessarily reflect the views of their home institutions or the Cormac McCarthy Society.  Download and follow this podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  If you're agreeable it'll help us if you provide favorable reviews on these platforms.  To contact the host, please reach out to readingmccarthy@gmail.com. Support the showStarting in spring of 2023, the podcast began accepting minor sponsorship offers to offset the costs of the podcast.  This may cause a mild disconnect in earlier podcasts where the host asks for patrons in lieu of sponsorships.   But if we compare it to a very large and naked bald man in the middle of the desert who leads you to an extinct volcano to create gunpowder, it seems pretty minor...

I am so excited to say that my guest on the GWA Podcast is the author, academic, screenwriter, creator of fantastical worlds and nocturnal roof-climber, Katherine Rundell. An award-winning non-fiction author for adults and fiction writer for children – whose books have sold over 4million copies worldwide, Rundell has penned works that span from the Impossible Creatures series – set in magical, endangered Archipelago – to Rooftoppers, about a young girl called Sophie who climbs the roofs of Paris in search of her mother, which is, one of my favourites. Because another of Rundell's great works is Why You Should Read Children's Books Even Though You Are So Old and Wise, a small yet mighty book that argues for children's fiction as integral to our reading output. A place which invites us not only to understand the fundamentals of good and evil, but reminds us of the importance of taking kids seriously, as Sophie, the protagonist in Rooftoppers, reminds us: “Do not underestimate children, do not underestimate girls.” I also highly recommend Rundell's lecture on this subject that was published in the London Review of Books last winter. A Fellow of St Catherine's College, Oxford and quondam fellow of All Souls College, Oxford – where she was admitted as the youngest fellow in 2008 – Rundell is also a scholar on the 16th century poet, preacher, politician, lawyer, Dean of St Paul's Cathedral (and more) John Donne, with her electrically-written biography, Super Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne that won her the Baillie Gifford Prize. A #1 NYT and ST bestselling author, the winner of Waterstones Book of the Year, and the Author of the Year, as recognised by the British Book Awards, Rundell is one of our greatest thinkers, writers, creators, and campaigner for “putting imagination first”. And it is reading her books that I am reminded of that superpower, the brilliance of human capability that not only gets us to dream up different worlds, but imagine how we can make this complex one a much more beautiful and better place. This week marks World Book Day 2026, and excitingly the publication of my first children's book, so I couldn't be more honoured to speak with Katherine today, about writing, art, books, and more. –– KATHERINE'S BOOKS: https://www.waterstones.com/author/katherine-rundell/53343 MY CHILDREN'S BOOK! https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-story-of-art-without-men/katy-hessel/9780241824214 -- THIS EPISODE IS GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE LEVETT COLLECTION: https://www.famm.com/en/ https://www.instagram.com/famm_mougins // https://www.merrellpublishers.com/9781858947037 Follow us: Katy Hessel: @thegreatwomenartists / @katy.hessel Sound editing by Nada Smiljanic Music by Ben Wetherfield

I am so excited to say that my guest on the GWA Podcast is the author, academic, screenwriter, creator of fantastical worlds and nocturnal roof-climber, Katherine Rundell. An award-winning non-fiction author for adults and fiction writer for children – whose books have sold over 4million copies worldwide, Rundell has penned works that span from the Impossible Creatures series – set in magical, endangered Archipelago – to Rooftoppers, about a young girl called Sophie who climbs the roofs of Paris in search of her mother, which is, one of my favourites. Because another of Rundell's great works is Why You Should Read Children's Books Even Though You Are So Old and Wise, a small yet mighty book that argues for children's fiction as integral to our reading output. A place which invites us not only to understand the fundamentals of good and evil, but reminds us of the importance of taking kids seriously, as Sophie, the protagonist in Rooftoppers, reminds us: “Do not underestimate children, do not underestimate girls.” I also highly recommend Rundell's lecture on this subject that was published in the London Review of Books last winter. A Fellow of St Catherine's College, Oxford and quondam fellow of All Souls College, Oxford – where she was admitted as the youngest fellow in 2008 – Rundell is also a scholar on the 16th century poet, preacher, politician, lawyer, Dean of St Paul's Cathedral (and more) John Donne, with her electrically-written biography, Super Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne that won her the Baillie Gifford Prize. A #1 NYT and ST bestselling author, the winner of Waterstones Book of the Year, and the Author of the Year, as recognised by the British Book Awards, Rundell is one of our greatest thinkers, writers, creators, and campaigner for “putting imagination first”. And it is reading her books that I am reminded of that superpower, the brilliance of human capability that not only gets us to dream up different worlds, but imagine how we can make this complex one a much more beautiful and better place. This week marks World Book Day 2026, and excitingly the publication of my first children's book, so I couldn't be more honoured to speak with Katherine today, about writing, art, books, and more. –– KATHERINE'S BOOKS: https://www.waterstones.com/author/katherine-rundell/53343 MY CHILDREN'S BOOK! https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-story-of-art-without-men/katy-hessel/9780241824214 -- THIS EPISODE IS GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE LEVETT COLLECTION: https://www.famm.com/en/ https://www.instagram.com/famm_mougins // https://www.merrellpublishers.com/9781858947037 Follow us: Katy Hessel: @thegreatwomenartists / @katy.hessel Sound editing by Nada Smiljanic Music by Ben Wetherfield

Camões e o poeta erótico britânico John Donne não poderiam imaginar que assinariam parcerias na música brasileira. Nem Beethoven acharia que daria conselhos a Reginaldo Rossi, seu colega de profissão e de frondosidade capilar. A antropofagia da MPB deu origem a colaborações inusitadas. Aumente o volume do seu radinho e saboreie conosco esta salada mista de literatura, poesia, humor e cafonice.Seja nosso apoiador e participe do maior e melhor grupo de música popular brasileira do país. Acesse apoia.se/travessiapodcast

As we enter Lent, how can we make space in our lives to hear from God? In this episode we talk about the role of the wilderness in our lives and how it can actually be a place of encounter and change, a place where you hear the voice. Support the podcast Contact the podcast through your email machine Mid-faith Crisis Facebook Page Nick's Blog Mentioned in this episode: “Resurrecting Faith” – A Lent Course Wahaca | Tacos, Margaritas, Sunshine Simon de Voil Bridgerton | Netflix Official Site Church of the Wild | Victoria Loorz Strong's Hebrew: 4057. מִדְבָּר (midbar) -- Wilderness, desert Desert Fathers - Wikipedia Batter my heart, three person'd God (Holy Sonnet 14) | John Donne

In the last episode, I showcased a country song based on John Donne's famous poem. Some people asked if I sang the song. No, I did not.The lyrics of the sonnet are by John Donne with a few modern tweaks made by me. The music and singing are done by AI.I used a program called MurekaAI. If you decide to explore this AI program, please use my affiliate link: https://www.mureka.ai/?utm_source=rewardful&via=7aa6dd.Why? Because it helps me pay for doing this newsletter and podcast. That simple. So, if you like your trial with MurekaAI and decide to sign up for a paid account, use the affiliate link above. Thanks1Now, I'd like your feedback on the above version of Death, Be Not Proud. And I would appreciate knowing how you like this version versus the one from the last episode (featured below): Death, Be Not Proud by John DonneDeath, be not proud, though some have called theeMighty and dreadful, for you are not so;For those whom you think you overthrowDie not, poor Death, nor yet can you kill me.From rest and sleep, which but your pictures be,Much pleasure; then from you much more must flow,And soon our best men with you do go,Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.You are slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,And also with poison, war, and sickness dwell,Poppy or charms can make us sleep as wellBetter than your stroke; why swell you then?One short sleep past, we wake eternallyDeath shall be no more; Death, you shall die.Book Marketing Success is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bookmarketing.substack.com/subscribe

I create a song based on John Donne's famous poem.Death, Be Not Proud by John DonneDeath, be not proud, though some have called theeMighty and dreadful, for you are not so;For those whom you think you overthrowDie not, poor Death, nor yet can you kill me.From rest and sleep, which but your pictures be,Much pleasure; then from you much more must flow,And soon our best men with you do go,Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.You are slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,And also with poison, war, and sickness dwell,Poppy or charms can make us sleep as wellBetter than your stroke; why swell you then?One short sleep past, we wake eternallyDeath shall be no more; Death, you shall die.A sonnet and song for those who love life and poetry!Book Marketing Success is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bookmarketing.substack.com/subscribe

What truly satisfies us? Today we are looking into the book of Psalms. We can find in the Psalms the reality of our human fallenness, our human fickleness, our sinfulness, our need for redemption, and God's offer of love and forgiveness.The Psalms are like a mountain range–they are the heights. The Psalms are also a valley–they are the depths. In the Psalms you can be met in both places. The book of Psalms is waiting to meet you in the instability and the unfixed character of your own life.Of all the major themes of the Bible, here in the Psalms you can find the revelation of God and His goodness.John Donne, the great 17th century English preacher, poet and Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral, famously said that the Psalms are manna for the soul.For us to understand who we really are requires a knowledge of God and knowing who God is. This in turn sheds a spotlight on who we really are. Studying the Psalms gives this to us.Dr. Mark Gignilliat is professor of divinity at Beeson Divinity School, where he teaches courses in Old Testament and Hebrew. Mark also serves as theologian in residence at St. Peter's Anglican Church in Birmingham. Dr. Gignilliat is married to Naomi, and they have four children.

In this episode, Abby interviews Robert Harrison, professor of Italian and French Literature at Stanford University, about darkness, light, the winter solstice, and his long running radio program "Entitled Opinions (about Life and Literature)." Together they present "A Nocturnal upon St. Lucys' Day" by John Donne. Recitation begins at 36:21.

The Catholic Church in England and Wales has a new leader - Richard Moth has been named as the new Archbishop of Westminster, succeeding Cardinal Vincent Nichols who turned 80 last month. We hear from Ruth Gledhill, Assistant Editor at the Catholic weekly The Tablet. A new song from the singer-songwriter and political activist Billy Bragg is called "Put Christ back into Christmas". The title is a reference to the current campaign by the far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Last weekend we reported on the Robinson-inspired carol service in London; Billy Bragg turned out for a rival carol service orgainsed by Stand up to Racism. He explains why. Today is the winter solstice - the shortest day of the year when, as the priest poet John Donne put it, the "whole world's sap is sunk". At three minutes past three this afternoon the earth tilts furthest from the sun, and from that moment the days begin to lengthen. It is a moment marked in pagan tradition, and we are joined by Erin Johansen, the first pagan chaplain at Sussex University who is also training to be a Priestess of Avalon.Presenter: Edward Stourton Producers: Katy Davis and James Leesley Technical Producers: Isabelle Whitehead & Sharon Williams Editor: Tim Pemberton

A version of this essay has been published by rediff.com at https://www.rediff.com/news/column/is-india-standing-alone-in-2025/20251222.htm2025 has been a disastrous year for the US, surely in foreign affairs and economics. The trade war, far from strengthening the economy, has shown the limits of American power: the capitulation to Chinese supplier power on rare earths, and a strategic retreat in the face of Chinese buyer power on soybeans, for example.The dramatic rise of Chinese generativeAI, which will undercut US Big Tech, is another problem. The US cannot afford to be the globocop any more, and the new National Security Strategy seeks a US withdrawal into ‘Fortress America'. It may mark the end of the vaunted ‘American exceptionalism' as well as the ‘liberal rules-based international order'.In an earlier time, this would have led to the famous Thucydides Trap, but in effect the US has gone into an ‘anti-Thucydides Trap' because it unthinkingly paved the way for China's rise, seduced by the short-term benefit of low-cost Chinese goods while ignoring the long-term strategic disaster. In the 20th century, Britain collapsed suddenly, but it is merely a tiny island off Eurasia. I never expected continent-sized America to follow suit in the 21st century.Meanwhile, in a fine example of “manufacturing consent”, the discourse in the US is not focusing on the global problems facing the country, but on MAGA bullying of H1-B Indians and on the Epstein files, which, on the face of it, is a silly exercise in moralization. I believe it was Hermann Hesse who said something to the effect that Americans are not interested in morals, being content with moralization.But the entire kowtowing to China has serious implications for India. One of the pillars of Indian foreign policy for decades has been the idea that it is a strategic counterweight to China in the US's calculations. But if the US has really ceded Asia to China (I recall President Obama saying as long ago as 2009 that the US and China would “work together to promote peace, stability, and development in South Asia”) then the famous ‘pivot to Asia' is null and void.A couple of years ago, I wrote that the most obvious thing for the US's Deep State to do would be to form a G2 condominium with China, divide up the world amongst themselves, and set up respective spheres of influence. This was predicated on America's relative decline, and China's economic and military rise to be, for all intents and purposes, a peer. I thought this would take a decade or more, but, lo and behold, the US is caving in furiously to China right now.In addition, I wrote about the surprisingly large and malign influence exerted by Britain, whereby it plays a ‘master-blaster' role, leading the US by the nose, usually to America's detriment. Britain's ‘imperial fortress' Pakistan seems to be involved in every terror incident, yet President Trump's new-found camaraderie with them (“here, some more F-16 goodies for you”) is yet another indictment of their twisted priorities.And Britain seems to be “winning”, too: on the one hand, they have finally defeated Germany, which they couldn't do via two World Wars: the latter's economy, its electricity grid, and its vaunted mittelstand and its automobile industry are in shambles. On the other hand, Britain is the one major European power that has not been defeated by Russia, so they think they can, conversely, defeat them. France (Napoleon) and Germany (Hitler) learnt otherwise.The pointless Ukraine War is bankrupting Europe; I wrote about how this is hastening the end of the European century and how ‘Europe' is reverting to what it was through most of history: unimportant ‘Northwest Asia'. This could well also be Britain's revenge against Europe, which it exited in a huff via Brexit: British elites have looked down upon Europeans all along.I mention all these not to show that I was somehow prescient, but that things we have been observing for some time are coming to a head: the US National Security Strategy is the capstone of the New World Order. And it seems to codify these trends: hegemony to China with Asia as its sphere of influence, the abandonment of Europe to its own devices, a focus on the Americas in a new ‘Donroe Doctrine' (so to speak).In the background are continuing terror attacks such as the one in Sydney, murderous attacks on Alawites in Syria, the car bomb in Delhi, and the lynching and burning alive of a minority Hindu youth, Dipu Chandra Das, in Bangladesh by a frenzied mob. The world is not a safe place.There was also a defining moment: the US seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker. Far from being a show of strength, this may well be an admission of weakness: Venezuela is no competitor, and this is like the US invasion of defenseless Panama some years ago. It is, however, a declaration that the Americas belong to the US sphere of influence (the ‘Donroe' Doctrine).Sadly, China may demur: it views the Americas are adjacent to them (just across the Pacific) and have made inroads into many countries, including Panama, and ironically are funding a proposed alternative to the Panama Canal through Nicaragua, as well as a major Brazil-Peru railroad project (all the better to ship in raw materials from both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and to ship out “rubber dogshit from HongKong” back to them). Their $3 billion Chancay deepwater port in Peru has already been inaugurated.China is now a $500 billion trading partner for South America, overtaking the US, yes, overtaking the US. To top it all, the ports on both sides of the Panama Canal, i.e Cristobal (Atlantic side) and Balboa (Pacific side) are run by Hong Kong companies, which of course means the CCP does. In fact, it is blocking US firm Blackrock's acquisition of these ports.China therefore has serious assets in the Americas, and large commercial interests. The US can pretend it is supreme in the Americas, but the reality may be a little different.Meanwhile, the US has more or less abandoned its Quad partners in Asia and acknowledged Chinese hegemony there: in other words, that half of the condominium is done. When the new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said something that was obvious and perfectly within her rights to worry about Japan's security, the Chinese came down on her like a ton of bricks, wolf-warrior style. The normally voluble Trump said nothing at all in support of Japan.Regarding India, there has been a persistent tilt towards Pakistan during and after Operation Sindoor; and the imposition of harsh tariffs. The increasingly volatile situation in Bangladesh which is the result of a likely US-backed ‘regime-change' operation is a significant security threat to India because of the collusion of jihadi, Pakistani and Chinese-proxy elements there and the very real concern about the cutoff of India's Northeast from the mainland, apart from the ongoing murders and ethnic cleansing of Hindus and Buddhists there.Now comes the New York Times, which I generally despise as a propaganda arm of the Deep State. But they show some self-awareness in their editorial “America cannot win alone”. No man is an island, as John Donne wrote some years ago. And America is not a singular colossus any more either, and it needs alliances. It hurts me (as an Americophile) how rapidly the US is declining in relative terms, and perhaps even absolute terms.The best indicator of this decline is in the crown jewels of the US: its technology sector. On the one hand, the entire US stock market has been propped up by the Magnificent Seven and the alleged promise of the generativeAI boom. On the other hand, China's patented “over-invest, scale up, get to be lowest-cost producer, drive competitors out of business” is repeating in industry after industry: the latest is automobiles, where the famous German marques are history.Trump's surrender on Nvidia's H200 chips is an indication that China is playing the trade-war game much better than the U.S. China has amassed a $1 trillion trade surplus in the first 11 months of 2025, an unprecedented feat that shows its trade power. Not only is this because of supply-chain dominance, but an analyst suggests it's also because China is now on the verge of delivering a knockout blow to US/Western tech.There are news reports that China has almost managed to replicate EUV (Extreme Ultra Violet) lithography from ASML, one of the key areas in chipmaking that was beyond China's reach. They used former ASML employees of Chinese descent, as well as less advanced technologies from ASML itself, Canon and Nikon.This is the context in which one has to critique Trump's 2025 US National Security Strategy. In summary, it shows a narrowing of America's expansive self-image, the beginnings of a ‘Fortress America' mindset and an ‘America First' doctrine. The ‘promotion of democracy' is downplayed (aka ‘regime change', as we have seen in Bangladesh. Thank goodness!) and fighting other people's wars (think Ukraine) has been de-emphasized.It fits in very well with the G2 condominium idea, as it focuses on national interests and explicitly rejects globalism, elevates economic matters while suggesting the use of military might as an element of dealmaking, and asks ‘allies' to shoulder more responsibility.Europe is downgraded, China is the prime focus with an emphasis on deterrence (e.g., Taiwan), supply-chain resilience and balanced trade, the Indo-Pacific gets short shrift, and the emphasis is on the Americas as, so to speak, the US's private playpen, harking back to the 19th century.India gets almost no attention: it is mentioned four times as compared to 21 times for China, with the tone shifting from ‘strategic partner' or ‘leading global power' to a more transactional expectation of burden-sharing and reciprocity. The Quad is downplayed too. India will need to maintain multi-alignment (e.g., with Russia via RELOS agreements), diversify dependencies, and accelerate self-reliance. India is on its own, as I said in “The Abhimanyu Syndrome”. At least twenty-five years of wooing the US has gone down the drain. Back to the drawing board.At the beginning of 2025, I must admit I was optimistic about Indo-US relations under Trump's presidency. I did not think the G2 condominium would arrive so soon, especially under Trump, or that the eclipse of the US would be so sudden and so dramatic. India had at least one bright spot in 2025: the rapidly-growing economy, despite US tariffs. I really can't see much that went well for the US. Truly an annus horribilis. In 1999, I wrote that that year was terrible for India, but 2025 may have been worse for the US, in my opinion.Malayalam podcast created by notebookLM.google.com:1800 words, 20 Dec 2025 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rajeevsrinivasan.substack.com/subscribe

Full disclosure time here on the READING MCCARTHY podcast.  When Ridley Scott's film The Counselor arrived in theaters with its very own shiny McCarthy screenplay, I was underwhelmed.  We'd been waiting for over half a decade for The Passenger and had no idea we'd be almost another ten years waiting for that project (and of course we had no concept of Stella Maris at the time). I found interesting elements in the film but didn't think it held together. But people smarter than me (such as my three guests in this program) convinced me to return to it it and here we are in a 2-parter.    Appearing for the first time is Dr. Russell Hillier, whose consideration of the screenplay sparked my interest in returning for another bout: he is Professor of English at Providence College, Rhode Island. He is the author of two books, Milton's Messiah (Oxford University Press, 2011) and Morality in Cormac McCarthy's Fiction: Souls at Hazard (Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), and he is coeditor of Combined Lights: Comparative Essays on the Writings of John Donne and George Herbert (University of Delaware Press, 2021). Additionally, he has published articles on many authors in many journals. Returning as well is the excellent Dr. Dianne Luce. She is the author of Reading The World. Cormac McCarthy's Tennessee Period, University of South Carolina Press, 2009, and Embracing Vocation: Cormac McCarthy's Writing Life, 1959-1974, U South Carolina Press 2023. She is currently working on a second volume of Cormac McCarthy's Writing Life, covering 1974-1985.  Bryan Giemza holds a Ph.D. and J.D. and is the Provost's Fellow for Outreach and Engagement in the Honors College at Texas Tech University.  His books include Irish Catholic Writers and the Invention of the American South as well as Images of Depression-Era Louisiana: The FSA Photographs of Ben Shahn, Russell Lee, and Marion Post Wolcott (2017). His book Science and Literature in Cormac McCarthy's Expanding Worlds was published by Bloomsbury in 2023. As always, listeners are warned: there be spoilers here.  Film trailer excerpts from The Counselor, directed by Ridley Scott, distributed by 20th Century Fox, 2013.  Thanks as always to Thomas Frye, who composed, performed, and produced the music for READING MCCARTHY.  The views of the host and his guests do not necessarily reflect the views of their home institutions or the Cormac McCarthy Society.  Download and follow this podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  If you're agreeable it'll help us if you provide favorable reviews on these platforms.  To contact the host, please reach out to readingmccarthy@gmail.com.  Support the showStarting in spring of 2023, the podcast began accepting minor sponsorship offers to offset the costs of the podcast. This may cause a mild disconnect in earlier podcasts where the host asks for patrons in lieu of sponsorships. But if we compare it to a very large and naked bald man in the middle of the desert who leads you to an extinct volcano to create gunpowder, it seems pretty minor...

Mario Casella"L'uragano di pietra"Gabriele Capelli Editorewww.gabrielecapellieditore.itL'isola è Hurricane, una roccia al largo della costa atlantica a nord di Boston che a inizio '900 ospitava un migliaio di abitanti, tutti scalpellini, in maggioranza di origine italiana provenienti dalla fascia di confine con la Svizzera. Molti di loro, prima di arrivare sull'isola, lavoravano in condizioni da fame nelle cave del Cantone Ticino per estrarre il granito necessario alla nuova linea ferroviaria del San Gottardo. Era la fine dell'Ottocento e in quell'inferno lavoravano anche bambini di otto anni. A Hurricane, invece, le condizioni erano meno dure e si guadagnava meglio lavorando il granito destinato alle opere iconiche del progresso americano. Una su tutte: i piloni del ponte di Brooklyn a New York.Su questo scoglio si incrociano i destini incredibili e in parte autentici dei protagonisti di questo romanzo. Giovanni è un bambino di Schignano (Val d'Intelvi) che lavora nelle cave ticinesi. Riesce però ad andarsene imbarcandosi con lo zio per attraversare “la Grande Pozza” e raggiungere l'America. Pochi mesi dopo anche Miranda arriva sulla stessa isola con il padre, costretto ad abbandonare le cave svizzere a causa della sua militanza sindacale.La storia di una coppia di adolescenti immersi nelle tragedie dell'emigrazione, per molti aspetti simile a quella di oggi attraverso il Mediterraneo.Sullo sfondo aleggia l'ombra della “Mano Nera”, l'organizzazione di stampo mafioso che estorceva agli emigranti italiani il denaro guadagnato con fatica e sacrifici.Come scrisse John Donne, e riprese Ernest Hemingway: “Nessun uomo è un'isola”. Questo romanzo dimostra come un'isola possa, tuttavia, diventare la vita stessa per molte persone, proprio come i protagonisti di questo libro.Mario Casella è giornalista, guida alpina, autore di documentari e di libri. Ai lunghi periodi di impegno con la Radiotelevisione svizzera di lingua italiana (RSI) ha sempre affiancato l'attività indipendente di guida alpina, di realizzatore di documentari e di scrittore. Nella sua produzione letteraria spiccano alcuni volumi che hanno ricevuto importanti riconoscimenti e che sono stati tradotti in tedesco e francese. Tra questi: Nero- Bianco-Nero. Un viaggio tra le montagne e la storia del Caucaso, Gabriele Capelli Editore (Premio ITAS Trento 2013); Il peso delle ombre, Gabriele Capelli Editore (secondo premio Leggimontagna 2018 e menzione Premio Mazzotti 2018);Oltre Dracula. Un cammino invernale nei Carpazi, Ediciclo (Premio Cortina 2019); Senza Scarpe, Gabriele Capelli Editore (Premio Sergio Arneodo 2023). I dettagli della sua attività sono presentati sul sito www.crealpina.chDiventa un supporter di questo podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/il-posto-delle-parole--1487855/support.IL POSTO DELLE PAROLEascoltare fa pensarehttps://ilpostodelleparole.it/

“Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun, Which was my sin, though it were done before? Wilt thou forgive that sin, through which I run, And do run still, though still I do deplore? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more.Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won Others to sin, and made my sin their door? Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun A year or two, but wallow'd in, a score? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more.I have a sin of fear, that when I have spun My last thread, I shall perish on the shore; But swear by thyself, that at my death thy Son Shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore; And, having done that, thou hast done; I fear no more.”—John Donne, “A Hymn to God the Father” Exodus 13:11-22

To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, go to: spectator.co.uk/quiterightThis week on the first ever Quite right! Q&A: What's your most left-wing belief? Michael & Maddie confess their guilty liberal secrets on the Elgin Marbles, prison reform and private equity – or ‘the unacceptable face of capitalism'.Also this week: who would you trust to save your life on a desert island – Boris Johnson, Theresa May or David Cameron? And finally, a literary turn: from John Donne to Thomas Hardy, Michael and Maddie share their favourite poems, and make the case for learning verse by heart.Produced by Oscar Edmondson. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pfister, Manfred www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart

Pfister, Manfred www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart

In the early 17th century, poet John Donne asserted in one of his writings that, “no man is an island…” Meaning that no person, no matter how gifted or resourceful, can ever truly be self-sufficient—we can't live this life on our own. Thousands of years before those words were written, God proclaimed it was “not good” for man to be alone. This week in The Relentless Pursuit, we pull back layers about how we were created to be in community with others.

Episode: 1453 Christiaan and Constantijn Huygens, and John Donne.  Today, a tale of two Huygens and John Donne.

John Donne muses on the ineffability of a chaste love and devises a brilliant (or, at any rate, novel) scheme for reuniting with his loved one in the next life. Happy reading. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

“No man is an island,” wrote poet John Donne in the 1600s, and these words still ring true today. However, much of our modern analysis and study of ourselves is turned entirely within. We focus on our needs, wants, and abilities rather than how we interact with others. How much does this individualistic view limit our ability to understand ourselves Read More › Source

Nathan Meckley reflects on John Donne's reminder that “no one is an island,” connecting it to the Quaker belief that there is that of God in everyone. In light of recent violence and division, he shares the struggle of living out compassion even toward those who cause harm, and reminded us that our deepest values may still call us to it. He closes with queries: How does the witness of Jesus Christ guide us in this moment? How is the Quaker testimony of peace practiced now? What will your/our witness be?

Episode 259 - The Thinklings Podcast Welcome to Episode 259 of The Thinklings Podcast! This is Episode 4 of Season 11!

Our Summer 2025 series, Beside Still Waters, focuses on the places where creativity brings life into a world fatigued by brokenness and division. From jazz to Jane Austen and in between, this season we'll focus on the ways literature and the arts can refresh and challenge our inner lives—and connect us with the Creator of the good, the true, and the beautiful.Our guest this episode is the poet Christian Wiman, a master of the written – and spoken – word. After long wandering, he returned to the Christian faith in which he'd been raised, in part because of a terminal cancer diagnosis – one he has now long outlived. Both before and after his diagnosis, and his return to faith, his experience of despair has fueled his powerful poetry. In grappling with it, Christian uses words in ways that are a tonic against despair.“I deal with despair because…I don't know how not to, and it would be an evasion not to. And I think if you don't feel it, then you're not paying attention.”This podcast is drawn from an online conversation from 2024. We hope this conversation will resonate with you as you explore the good, the true, and the beautiful in your own corner of creation. If it does, please consider joining the Trinity Forum community as a member, at ttf.org. You can find the full video of this conversation there too. And while you're here, please subscribe to this podcast on your chosen platform. Authors and books mentioned in the conversation:Zero at the Bone: Fifty Entries Against Despair, by Christian WimanMarilynne RobinsonDanielle ChapmanWilliam BronkWilliam WordsworthEvery Riven Thing, by Christian WimanMy Bright Abyss: Meditations of a Modern Believer, by Christian WimanPrayer, by Carol Ann DuffyThe Bible and Poetry, by Michael Edwards Augustine of HippoBittersweet, by George HerbertSurprised by Joy, by C.S. LewisRichard WilburJürgen MoltmannWhen the Time's Toxins, by Christian WimanRelated Trinity Forum Readings:Augustine's ConfessionsDevotions by John Donne, paraphrased by Philip YanceyGod's Grandeur: the Poems of Gerard Manley HopkinsBulletins from Immortality, by Emily DickinsonWrestling with God, by Simone WeilRelated Conversations:Connecting Spiritual Formation & Public Life with Michael WearThe Kingdom, the Power & The Glory with Tim AlbertaA Life Worth Living with Miroslav VolfTowards a Better Christian PoliticsChristian Pluralism: Living Faithfully in a World of DifferenceWhat Really Matters with Charlie Peacock and Andi AshworthScripture and the Public SquareHow to be a Patriotic ChristianLife, Death, Poetry & Peace with Philip YanceyThe Fall, the Founding, and the Future of American DemocracyFear and Conspiracy with David FrenchTo listen to this or any of our episodes in full, visit ttf.org/podcast and to help make content like this possible, join the Trinity Forum Society.

“Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so; For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me. From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be, Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow, And soonest our best men with thee do go, Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery. Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men, And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell, And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then? One short sleep past, we wake eternally And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.”—John Donne 1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Today's poem looks forward to a long and prosperous “reign.” Happy reading. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

In this lecture, Jenny explores the profound significance of community in spiritual transformation. She begins by framing her discussion around two key scriptures—Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 and Romans 12:9-21—emphasizing the importance of connection and support among individuals. Through these verses, she highlights that partnership not only brings strength during hardships but also cultivates warmth and protection against life's adversities. Jenny introduces the summer series, which will delve into the practices of community and serving, aiming to foster spiritual growth and transformation.Building on the foundational imagery of spiritual formation, she explains a cyclical process that includes formation, malformation, and counterformation—illustrating how to overcome the influences that can derail one's spiritual journey. Through a call to engage in prayer, she encourages attendees to surrender their burdens, setting the stage for a deeper exploration of community's role in healing and transformation.The narrative takes an empathetic turn as Jenny recounts the experience of a young boy named Sam. She parallels his journey through middle school, highlighting both the excitement and trepidation he feels on his first day, ultimately culminating in the profound loneliness he experiences during a gym class, where he is picked last for a soccer team. This poignant storytelling resonates with the lecture's overarching theme—that everyone shares an innate desire to belong and be known, reinforcing the idea that humans are created for community. By contrasting Sam's isolation with the biblical depiction of community, Jenny asserts that societal connections are critical for emotional and spiritual well-being.Jenny revisits the essence of community as articulated in scripture, mentioning how God's intention for mankind is rooted in the collaborative nature of the Trinity. She quotes John Donne to stress that “no man is an island,” reinforcing that isolation does not allow for true flourishing. Furthermore, she takes reflections from experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, underscoring community's vital role in transcending isolation. Distressingly, Jenny notes that despite advancements in technology and social media, loneliness remains an epidemic. She weaves in stories of communities rallying together for mutual support during difficult times, emphasizing the power of collective effort and encouragement.The lecture further delves into the complexities of human interactions and the roots of distrust that can form barriers to community engagement. Jenny discusses how personal traumas can lead to isolation and a defensive posture against forming new connections. By sharing Sam's journey through math class following his humiliating experience, she illustrates how past events shape our willingness to engage with others.Transitioning into practical applications, Jenny proposes that spiritual practices can help combat the tendencies towards isolation. She emphasizes the necessity of trust in God and the need to embrace vulnerability within community settings. Providing insight from personal experiences, she reflects on the transformative journey of forming deep relationships within small groups, demonstrating how these settings allow individuals to support each other during life's peaks and valleys.She also revisits Paul's epistle to the Romans, extracting principles for cultivating a healthy community—from sincere love and honor to the shared burdens of community life. Highlighting that love acts on behalf of others, Jenny urges the audience to foster genuine connections by actively reaching out and believing the best about those around them.As she draws her discussion to a close, Jenny reiterates the call for participants to take actionable steps towards deeper community engagement. By creating spaces for vulnerability and support, individuals can build a robust and loving environment reflective of Jesus's command to love one another. She encourages attendees to actively participate in fostering community, reinforcing that such actions can lead to transformative experiences not only for individuals but for entire families and communities.In her concluding prayer, Jenny encapsulates the essence of her message by affirming the gift of community, acknowledging its challenges, and inviting everyone to embark on a journey toward genuine love and togetherness in their spiritual walk.

Children's writer and academic Katherine Rundell is the multi-million selling author of adventure stories including Rooftoppers, The Wolf Wilder and The Explorer which won the Costa Children's Book of the Year. Impossible Creatures, the first of a five book series, was named Waterstones Book Of the Year in 2023. Her biography of the 17th century poet John Donne was a non-fiction bestseller and she became the youngest ever winner of the £50,000 Bailey Gifford Prize. At the age of 36, Katherine Rundell was named author of the year at the 2024 British Book Awards. Talking to John Wilson, Katherine Rundell recalls Saturday morning bus journeys from her home in south London to Covent Garden where her father would take part in amateur dance classes. Along the route of the 176 bus he would point out cultural landmarks and helped instil in Katherine a lifelong love for the city. She also explains how her father's job as a civil servant took her family to live in Zimbabwe when she was a child, an experience that fuelled her imagination and fascination with the natural world. She also remembers the profound loss she felt at the death of her foster sister, and reveals that much of her writing for children has been driven by this tragedy. She chooses the Chronicles Of Narnia series of books, especially The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, by CS Lewis as a huge influence on her own fantasy writing and the poetry of John Donne which she describes as her "greatest literary passion". Katherine also reflects on the importance of encouraging children to read and the current state of children's publishing. Producer: Edwina Pitman

Today's poem marks a very special day. Happy reading. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

Parables can be a real pain to the brain, but at the same time, Jesus tackles the issue quickly if you're open to it. Solomon says in Proverbs 15: “…wisdom make knowledge acceptable,” that is, sometimes the way you say something makes all the difference. Jesus sometimes chose parables to tell us things that we need to understand. The context of the parable in Matthew 5:13-16 is the Sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes found in the introduction of the sermon are about kingdom thinking, or the Kingdom Ethic. The Kingdom Ethic is what directs our lives as followers of Jesus Christ. This is the: “Thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” type of thinking. This first parable following the Beatitudes is about the practice of this Kingdom Ethic. It is about how Kingdom thinking is actually lived out. If I was to summarize the eight Beatitudes for you, it would be this: “I am not a god. I am a sinner. I am here to serve others by pursuing good. I am moved by compassion, committed to do the right thing before God, in peace, and without compromise.” The purpose of the following parable can be summarized with one word: influence! How does one human being influence another? It was John Donne who said, “no man is an island.” We all have an influence on people, but we do it one at a time. Whether we admit it or not, we all have influence on something or someone and it's either for good or for bad. We cannot live out the Kingdom Ethic in a private world. We cannot live our lives in splendid isolation. In this parable, Jesus uses two metaphors to show how we, his followers, leave our “fingerprints” on the world around us. Some Christians think our job is to curse the darkness, but instead, Jesus has called us to light a candle. It's been said that most Christians have been educated beyond their level of obedience. We need to remember James' admonishment to be “doers of the word and not merely hearers” (James 1:19-25).

Cancer is among the most common and feared diseases in the modern world. Dr. Selwyn Vickers—president and CEO of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center—joins host Mark Labberton to discuss how precision oncology, data, and faith are transforming cancer treatment. A distinguished cancer surgeon and pancreatic cancer researcher, Vickers explains how groundbreaking advances in genomics, immunotherapy, and AI are transforming once-lethal diagnoses into survivable and even chronic conditions. Together, they explore not only the cutting-edge science of cancer care but also the spiritual, emotional, and social dimensions that affect every patient and caregiver. Resonating with themes of suffering, hope, and resurrection, this conversation offers clarity, compassion, and courage for all who are affected by cancer—from those newly diagnosed, to medical professionals, to grieving families and curious listeners. Episode Highlights “We're getting to a point where we will, in the next five to seven years, have a much better chance to cure people—and to make pancreatic cancer a chronic illness.” “We are in what's somewhat coined the golden age of cancer research.” “Cancer is a disease that creates an existential threat in ways no other illness does.” “If a tumour forms, it means your body's immune system has made a social contract with the cancer.” “We changed the diagnosis in 10–12 percent of the patients who come to us—sometimes from cancer to no cancer.” “Cancer care is a team sport. And our patients often inspire us more than we help them.” Helpful Links & Resources Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center BioNTech – creators of mRNA vaccines for COVID and cancer CAR T-Cell Therapy Overview (Cancer.gov) Tim Keller on cancer and hope Emma Thompson's Wit (HBO) BRCA1 and BRCA2 Genes and Cancer Risk MSK-IMPACT: Next-Gen Tumor Profiling About Selwyn Vickers Selwyn M. Vickers, MD, FACS, is the president and CEO of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and the incumbent of the Douglas A. Warner III Chair. He assumed the role on September 19, 2022. Vickers is an internationally recognized pancreatic cancer surgeon, pancreatic cancer researcher, and pioneer in health disparities research. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the Johns Hopkins Society of Scholars. He has served on the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Board of Trustees and the Johns Hopkins University Board of Trustees. Additionally, he has served as president of the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract and the Southern Surgical Association. Vickers is the immediate past president of the American Surgical Association. He also continues to see patients. In 1994, he joined the faculty of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) as an assistant professor in the Department of Surgery, where he was later appointed to professor and the John H. Blue Chair of General Surgery. In 2006, Vickers left UAB to become the Jay Phillips Professor and Chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Born in Demopolis, Alabama, Vickers grew up in Tuscaloosa and Huntsville. He earned baccalaureate and medical degrees and completed his surgical training (including a chief residency and surgical oncology fellowship) at the Johns Hopkins University. Vickers completed two postgraduate research fellowships with the National Institutes of Health and international surgical training at John Radcliffe Hospital of Oxford University, England. Vickers and his wife, Janice, who is also from Alabama, have been married since 1988. They have four children. Show Notes The ongoing threat and fear of cancer How Selwyn Vickers got into medicine Pancreatic cancer: Vickers's expertise “We are in what's somewhat coined the golden age of cancer research.” Sequencing the human genome “Is there a drug that might target the mutation that ended up creating your cancer?” Cancer as both a medical and existential diagnosis The revolution of precision oncology through human genome sequencing ”It takes a billion cells to have a one centimetre tumor.” Immunotherapy: checkpoint inhibition, CAR T-cell therapy, and vaccines Cellular therapy:   ”Taking a set of their normal cells and re-engineering them to actually go back and target and attack their tumors. … We've seen patients who had initially a 30 percent chance of survival converted to an 80 percent chance of survival.” “We know in many tumours there's something called minimal residual disease.” “Immunizing yourself against cancer is a significant future opportunity.” Managing the power of data with AI and computational oncology Cancer-care data explosion: the role of computational oncologists Cancer vaccines: breakthrough mRNA treatment for pancreatic cancer ”Didn't ultimately win. We had to suffer through her losing her life, but was so appreciative that she got much more than the six months she was promised.” Tumour misdiagnoses and the importance of specialized expertise Pancreatic cancer challenges: immune cloaking and late-stage detection In the past, one in four would die from the operation for removing pancreatic cancer Long-term survival Future of cancer detection: AI-based medical record analysis and blood biopsies More accurate blood tests to confirm conditions Using AI to select those who are high-risk for cancer Pastor Tim Keller died of pancreatic cancer. In the past, “your doctor … helped you learn how to die.” ”[God's] given man the privilege to discover those things that have been hidden. And over time we've gradually uncovered huge opportunities to impact people's lives.” The state of breast cancer research and treatment “If you get the diagnosis of breast cancer, you have a 90 percent chance to survive and beat it over a five-year period of time.” ”In general, we're in a great state of understanding how to treat breast cancer, how to detect it early, and then have selective and targeted mechanisms to prevent it from coming back.” Prostate cancer research and treatment Theranostics: using a specific antibody to target cancer cells specifically Pediatric cancer:  ”We actually treat more children for cancer than any hospital in America now, but in general, the survival for pediatric cancers is greater than 80 percent.” Emotional, psychological, and spiritual toll of cancer: importance of psycho-oncology How Sloan Kettering developed psycho-oncology to help cancer patients with mental and spiritual health Personal story: how a cafeteria worker empowers patients through food choices “We give back to them the right to choose what they get to have on their tray.” Cancer treatment is a team sport. Wit (film, Broadway play)—actress Emma Thompson plays a cancer patient studying the work of John Donne on death Socioeconomic and racial disparities in cancer care outcomes The healing role of community, support teams, and compassionate listening The importance of listening to cancer patients who are preparing to die The spiritual courage of patients and the transformative power of faith “Our patients often help us. We see the grace with which they often handle that journey.” The inspiration behind becoming a doctor: family legacy and human impact Terminal care: the sacred responsibility of walking with patients to the end Cancer research and treatment as a Christian vocation and expression of humanity Production Credits

Throughout Lent, we've been releasing weekly episodes focused on spiritual practices.In the final episode of the series, this Holy Week we're considering the discipline of waiting: how we can prepare ourselves to receive good news. Our guide today is N.T. Wright, the Anglican Bishop and New Testament scholar. He describes how Jesus invited his hearers into a new way of understanding Israel's ancient story of waiting, the cosmic significance of its sudden fulfillment, and its meaning for us in this in-between time of preparation to receive good news: "The ultimate life after death is not a platonic disembodied immortality, but resurrection life in God‘s new creation. And that new world began when Jesus came out of the tomb on Easter morning. That's the good news. Something happened then as a result of which the world is a different place. And we are summoned, not just to enjoy its benefits, but to take up our own vocations as new creation people, as spirit-filled and spirit-led Jesus followers, bringing his kingdom into reality in our world."We hope that this conversation will help you as you wait and prepare to receive this good news.The podcast is drawn from an evening conversation we hosted back in 2016. You can find our shownotes and much more at ttf.org. Thank you for journeying with us through Lent. Learn more about N.T. Wright. Watch The Good News and the Good Life, with N.T. Wright and Richard Hayes. Authors and books mentioned in the conversation:Who is this Man? by John Ortberg Related Trinity Forum Readings:Devotions by John Donne and paraphrased by Philip YanceyThe Confessions of St. Augustine by Augustine of Hippo, Introduced by James K.A. SmithPilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie DillardPilgrim's Progress by John BunyanGod's Grandeur: The Poems of Gerard Manley HopkinsA Spiritual Pilgrimage by Malcolm Muggeridge Related Conversations:Liturgy of the Ordinary in Extraordinary Times with Tish Harrison WarrenCaring for Words in a Culture of Lies with Marilyn McEntyreInvitation to Solitude and Silence with Ruth Haley BartonOn the Road with Saint Augustine with James K.A. Smith and Elizabeth BruenigThe Habit Podcast, Episode 26: Tish Harrison Warren with Doug McKelveyThe Spiritual Practice of Remembering with Margaret Bendroth To listen to this or any of our episodes in full, visit ttf.org, and to join the Trinity Forum Society and help make content like this possible, visit ttf.org/join.

Morning Prayer for Monday, March 31, 2025 (The Fourth Sunday in Lent; John Donne, Priest and Poet, 1631).Psalm and Scripture readings (60-day Psalter):Psalm 74Exodus 38:1-23Mark 1:14-31Learn more about Beeson Divinity School online.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to access the text for the Daily Office at DailyOffice2019.com.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to support The Daily Office Podcast with a one-time gift or a recurring donation.

Evening Prayer for Monday, March 31, 2025 (The Fourth Sunday in Lent; John Donne, Priest and Poet, 1631).Psalm and Scripture readings (60-day Psalter):Psalm 77Proverbs 291 Timothy 3Learn more about Beeson Divinity School online.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to access the text for the Daily Office at DailyOffice2019.com.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to support The Daily Office Podcast with a one-time gift or a recurring donation.

We discuss a challenge to wear three items of clothing we are not currently using--and explore ways to overcome common obstacles. We also share creative happiness hacks for welcoming overnight guests, and examine how people who tend to be rigid can adjust their rules to reduce stress in changing circumstances. Resources and links related to this episode: New products Four Tendencies quiz Elizabeth is reading: Swan Song by Elin Hilderbrand (Amazon, Bookshop)  Gretchen is reading: Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne by Katherine Rundell (Amazon, Bookshop)  Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Visit Gretchen's website to learn more about Gretchen's best-selling books, products from The Happiness Project Collection, and the Happier app.  Find the transcript for this episode on the episode details page in the Apple Podcasts app.  To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices