Interesting, thank you. But it's important for me to clarify that your suggestion that calling is an act is not at all what I, Plato or Hillman meant. (That's two men and a woman, then!) I've written about the issues with the heroic far too much to buy into that paradigm as a life plan, though it's important at certain times of our lives. I've written at length (but not in this post, so I'm guilty of omission) about all the ways in which vocation is quite different from calling, and profession even more so. As I said, 'I’ve always thought of this pattern as our own unique way of expressing what it is to be human in this world.' We can express our humanity by being the one person in someone's life who makes them feel good. That's not about committing any kind of great act. We can express our humanity by growing a bed of tulips in our garden that makes everyone who passes smile. I should also say that the concept of ikigai (elucidated in some depth by a Japanese psychologist whose name escapes me) I've researched isn't about being paid, it's about feeling that your life has meaning and that you still have a useful contribution to make to the world. Which seems to be a bit different from what you've found, and again seems to conflate 'calling' with 'job'. (Forgive my brevity, I'm away talking at a book festival!)
Yes this is exactly what I am saying too - that I agree with you! Calling is definitely not only expressed as 'job'. Indeed I don't have one anymore but I do feel a sense of calling which is expressed via creativity, via volunteering and indeed I have a huge tulipbed about to com out! (Did you know?!) . I said the same thing about Ikagai - that the Japanese version is NOT about being paid but about contribution. But if you look at those nice Venn diagrams al over the internet they add a circle about getting paid. But often I hear the opposite -from others not you Plato or Hillman - hence the 'myths I bust.
In my next book, Wise Women, there's a lovely Devon story about an old woman who had a bed of tulips so beautiful that the pixies used the flower-heads as cradles for their pixie babies while they danced. I guess that's why tulips are top of mind!
I agree with both of you and that leads me to think about context, and perhaps the ways in which perhaps in the developed West choice and action have been privileged at the expense of recognizing dare I say it, the sacred nature of “authentic expressions of agency” as distinctive from work. In the small island communities like the one that I grew up in two generations ago there were few choices. One’s calling and expression of purpose was primarily about contributing to community well-being; taking care of immediate and extended family and making the best use of available resources. I think of women who tended the land alongside raising families and who at a glance could transpose an image of a bridal gown from a tattered newspaper page onto whatever fabric was available and beam with pride on the bride’s big day at “something I just put together”. Or voluntarily prepare sought after house raising or “wake” yard meals based on an indisputable reputation for having “a sweet hand”. They lived in full alignment with their gifts and “calling”, willing and able to say I’m ready whenever the there was a need. And Dr. Blake I look forward to “Wise Woman”.
Interestingly one thing I didn't add to that article ( because it was over long as it was) was the emphasis in Judaism on calling as a collective purpose. as in what we are called to as ' a people' and the role individuals play in that.
Where did you grow up? Its sounds like a place where maybe the limitations could chafe ( for me anyway not used too them) but the community was precious?
I like that phrase "the sacred nature of 'authentic expressions of agency'.."
I love how you framed Substack as an ongoing dialogue between writers. The idea started out (I think) as everyone sending out their own newsletters to their own groups and having control of their own "following" but has truly developed into a community of conversation and inspiration among one another. Bigger than the sum of the parts.
I really enjoyed all your references to Judaism, especially its way of looking at texts. I think this is one of the great things Judaism has to offer. To clarify, I am not Jewish myself but taught in a Jewish school for 11 years as part of my first career as a teacher. I learned a lot and still read Jewish texts and books. I'm going to think a lot about what you wrote about a 'calling' and what it means - thank you.
You are welcome. That 's the joy of ancient wisdom of all traditions I think - that they are available to all. I have to say the texts and learning aspect was the biggest draw for me to Judaism.
Loved this and the back and forth between you and Sharon is gold dust.. . Re. Hineni - do you know Leonard Cohen’s final masterpiece You Want it Darker? It’s the backbone for that stonkingly great piece of art. (I’ll email anyway). Well the late great Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks does the most brilliant dissemination of it from a Rabbinical perspective which blew my mind - have you seen it? (I’ll send it too just in case).
I have seen it - because you sent it to be before 😂 there was another Sack’s post that featured in my research for this piece too - you can’t really do much Jewish without crossing his teaching. Great man.
Thank you for this wonderful piece. I have spent much time pondering the concept of life purpose and concluded that in essence it's a quality of being rather than a concrete thing. In our day and age, cultivating inner peace is the greatest gift we can give ourselves and the world. Our energy and presence changes and those who come into contact with us will benefit as well, and it's got nothing to do with preaching or telling others how to live our their lives.
You are welcome. And you hit the mail on the head! That peace is a hard thing for me - so much ‘training’ that struggle and stress is worth more respect. But it isn’t.
Thank you for placing “calling” and by implication “life purpose” in a context that allowed for multidimensional exploration. You have put into words much of the dis-ease I have felt about the “imperative” tone that underpins much of what is abroad in the popular “find your calling”, “declare your purpose” prevailing discourses. While this might be an ideal navigational approach for many, at this stage of my life (69-70) it doesn’t work well for me. Instead I am drawn to applying competencies and knowledge acquired over the years to spaces and places where it is needed and can be beneficial. There is a joy in being able to say this aligns well with me and the me I am becoming. While in other instances not feeling the pressure to engage with activities and tasks that signal misalignment. Your writing has provided a helpful way of understanding what I think I am currently experiencing. My working life is busy and most importantly fulfilling yet I struggle to articulate a single, finite and specific calling or purpose. This is a source of some unease - rebellion and unorthodoxy can be lonely. This post helps me to feel that I am not alone and there is a way of making sense of it all.
You are definitely not alone! And now I don’t feel alone either. So often I post stuff that just fees viscerally right to me from research and experience and I do it because I don’t think it’s being said at all, or not enough, or not in the right context. Or someone’s saying the exact opposite and I disagree. Or in this case it’s been said well but I feel the need to agree but from a different start point. Then there’s that horrible few minutes after I publish when I think: oh what have I done? Then someone will say: yes, that makes sense and I feel seen and less lonely in that rebellion!
Calling and purpose can be a really quiet ‘being fully me the best I know how’ without any big fanfare acts. Just feeling a square peg in a square hole in all you do is enough!
Hi! I agree - knowing ourselves is a vital part of it. How can we align to what we don’t know? The tricky thing I find is that I change as I age and develop so the alignment also has to be conscious and not just the old pattern and I don’t always get that right first go.
I know what you mean, Helen. Sometimes new things become more meaningful, and I think sometimes, at least in my case, I become more confident with age, and less afraid of just doing what resonates with me.
Thank you, Helen, for this thoughtful and nuanced post. I guess calling is in many ways a journey, one that takes us along winding , ones which sometimes diverge from the direction in which we started. I'm trying to be curious and open in that journey.
Fascinating as ever ( sorry I haven’t stopped by for a while). I think about something like this a lot, and I suspect I probably have most of my adult life. Whilst doing creative things is definitely a significant part of who I am, I think I agree with Sue Routner -Wardley in that I find myself lately trying to think more about how I make the journey rather than over focussing on a creative “output” or “product”. I think is probably healthier for me at the moment anyway. Shalom
It’s ok. I know Producer Pooh demands long hours from his stars 😜
But seriously…have you come to any conclusions about the ‘how’’ of the journey for you? Anything you feel like sharing anyway? What’s the throughline of all your wonderful stuff?
In the autumn I went on a mindfulness and qi gong retreat at the Sharpham Trust and I am attracted to the whole mindfulness thing, which I find I am having trouble describing as I write this 🙄, but I suppose for me at least is about trying to have a healthy relationship between my thoughts/emotions (even positive ones) and whatever you want to call the space in which they reverberate (let’s not get into theories of self/consciousness this late on. Something like that.
a bit of a rolling stone..landed in Tobago (Trinidad & Tobago) from UK at age 5/6 enjoyed a glorious childhood with doting grandparents, remained through to early 20’s then off again. Now I mention that arrival and “landing” because with hindsight I recognize the visceral impact of encounters observed through the eyes of a pre-adolescent childhood. The sensorial awareness of the difference between “this” and “that” is almost inexplicable; an almost effortless writer’s memory emerges. And so one can think about “calling” “life purpose” and ultimately choice across multiple framings. I am fascinated but not surprised by the resonance of your Judaic framing. This landed on all fours with aspects of my Caribbean identity. There are sound historical and socio-cultural explanations but that a different conversation altogether.
Oh how fascinating to have lived there. I do wish I'd been an expat at some time. I was imagining Scottish islands at first but then you said house raising, which sounded Amish - I never even thought of T and T. I'd love to have that conversation about the connection between Judaism and Caribbean identity though.
And I’ve lived in Seychelles, Cayman and now Bermuda. Years ago, more than I care to count as a lowly undergraduate at University of the West Indies (UWI) I did sociology of religion as part of that fearsome Intro to Sociology. I have a recollection of explorations of the impact of Judeo-Christian influences on messianic practices in the region and the compelling appeal of the old rather than the New Testament of Christianity. There are of course all sorts of social, political and historical reasons. And somewhere in the mix is the long standing presence of communities.
One should bear in mind that migrant practices like people are often overtaken by time and the things and people that carry them take routes and turns (or get stuck) and become originals in their own ways.
Wikipedia is not an exalted reference but a quick go to reveals:
The presence in what was formally the Danish West Indies (now the US Virgin Islands) is noteworthy:
“Jews began settling the colony in 1655, and by 1796 the first synagogue was inaugurated. In its heyday in the mid-19th century, the Jewish community made up half of the white population.[18] One of the earliest colonial governors, Gabriel Milan, was a Sephardic Jew.”
Interesting, thank you. But it's important for me to clarify that your suggestion that calling is an act is not at all what I, Plato or Hillman meant. (That's two men and a woman, then!) I've written about the issues with the heroic far too much to buy into that paradigm as a life plan, though it's important at certain times of our lives. I've written at length (but not in this post, so I'm guilty of omission) about all the ways in which vocation is quite different from calling, and profession even more so. As I said, 'I’ve always thought of this pattern as our own unique way of expressing what it is to be human in this world.' We can express our humanity by being the one person in someone's life who makes them feel good. That's not about committing any kind of great act. We can express our humanity by growing a bed of tulips in our garden that makes everyone who passes smile. I should also say that the concept of ikigai (elucidated in some depth by a Japanese psychologist whose name escapes me) I've researched isn't about being paid, it's about feeling that your life has meaning and that you still have a useful contribution to make to the world. Which seems to be a bit different from what you've found, and again seems to conflate 'calling' with 'job'. (Forgive my brevity, I'm away talking at a book festival!)
Yes this is exactly what I am saying too - that I agree with you! Calling is definitely not only expressed as 'job'. Indeed I don't have one anymore but I do feel a sense of calling which is expressed via creativity, via volunteering and indeed I have a huge tulipbed about to com out! (Did you know?!) . I said the same thing about Ikagai - that the Japanese version is NOT about being paid but about contribution. But if you look at those nice Venn diagrams al over the internet they add a circle about getting paid. But often I hear the opposite -from others not you Plato or Hillman - hence the 'myths I bust.
In my next book, Wise Women, there's a lovely Devon story about an old woman who had a bed of tulips so beautiful that the pixies used the flower-heads as cradles for their pixie babies while they danced. I guess that's why tulips are top of mind!
I fear my gardening skills are such that mine will be too scraggy for pixies!
I agree with both of you and that leads me to think about context, and perhaps the ways in which perhaps in the developed West choice and action have been privileged at the expense of recognizing dare I say it, the sacred nature of “authentic expressions of agency” as distinctive from work. In the small island communities like the one that I grew up in two generations ago there were few choices. One’s calling and expression of purpose was primarily about contributing to community well-being; taking care of immediate and extended family and making the best use of available resources. I think of women who tended the land alongside raising families and who at a glance could transpose an image of a bridal gown from a tattered newspaper page onto whatever fabric was available and beam with pride on the bride’s big day at “something I just put together”. Or voluntarily prepare sought after house raising or “wake” yard meals based on an indisputable reputation for having “a sweet hand”. They lived in full alignment with their gifts and “calling”, willing and able to say I’m ready whenever the there was a need. And Dr. Blake I look forward to “Wise Woman”.
Interestingly one thing I didn't add to that article ( because it was over long as it was) was the emphasis in Judaism on calling as a collective purpose. as in what we are called to as ' a people' and the role individuals play in that.
Where did you grow up? Its sounds like a place where maybe the limitations could chafe ( for me anyway not used too them) but the community was precious?
I like that phrase "the sacred nature of 'authentic expressions of agency'.."
I love how you framed Substack as an ongoing dialogue between writers. The idea started out (I think) as everyone sending out their own newsletters to their own groups and having control of their own "following" but has truly developed into a community of conversation and inspiration among one another. Bigger than the sum of the parts.
I really enjoyed all your references to Judaism, especially its way of looking at texts. I think this is one of the great things Judaism has to offer. To clarify, I am not Jewish myself but taught in a Jewish school for 11 years as part of my first career as a teacher. I learned a lot and still read Jewish texts and books. I'm going to think a lot about what you wrote about a 'calling' and what it means - thank you.
You are welcome. That 's the joy of ancient wisdom of all traditions I think - that they are available to all. I have to say the texts and learning aspect was the biggest draw for me to Judaism.
Loved this and the back and forth between you and Sharon is gold dust.. . Re. Hineni - do you know Leonard Cohen’s final masterpiece You Want it Darker? It’s the backbone for that stonkingly great piece of art. (I’ll email anyway). Well the late great Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks does the most brilliant dissemination of it from a Rabbinical perspective which blew my mind - have you seen it? (I’ll send it too just in case).
I have seen it - because you sent it to be before 😂 there was another Sack’s post that featured in my research for this piece too - you can’t really do much Jewish without crossing his teaching. Great man.
Holy smokes I’m losing my marbles!
Glad you sent it (again). Missed it the first time. thank you
Thank you for this wonderful piece. I have spent much time pondering the concept of life purpose and concluded that in essence it's a quality of being rather than a concrete thing. In our day and age, cultivating inner peace is the greatest gift we can give ourselves and the world. Our energy and presence changes and those who come into contact with us will benefit as well, and it's got nothing to do with preaching or telling others how to live our their lives.
You are welcome. And you hit the mail on the head! That peace is a hard thing for me - so much ‘training’ that struggle and stress is worth more respect. But it isn’t.
Thank you for placing “calling” and by implication “life purpose” in a context that allowed for multidimensional exploration. You have put into words much of the dis-ease I have felt about the “imperative” tone that underpins much of what is abroad in the popular “find your calling”, “declare your purpose” prevailing discourses. While this might be an ideal navigational approach for many, at this stage of my life (69-70) it doesn’t work well for me. Instead I am drawn to applying competencies and knowledge acquired over the years to spaces and places where it is needed and can be beneficial. There is a joy in being able to say this aligns well with me and the me I am becoming. While in other instances not feeling the pressure to engage with activities and tasks that signal misalignment. Your writing has provided a helpful way of understanding what I think I am currently experiencing. My working life is busy and most importantly fulfilling yet I struggle to articulate a single, finite and specific calling or purpose. This is a source of some unease - rebellion and unorthodoxy can be lonely. This post helps me to feel that I am not alone and there is a way of making sense of it all.
You are definitely not alone! And now I don’t feel alone either. So often I post stuff that just fees viscerally right to me from research and experience and I do it because I don’t think it’s being said at all, or not enough, or not in the right context. Or someone’s saying the exact opposite and I disagree. Or in this case it’s been said well but I feel the need to agree but from a different start point. Then there’s that horrible few minutes after I publish when I think: oh what have I done? Then someone will say: yes, that makes sense and I feel seen and less lonely in that rebellion!
Calling and purpose can be a really quiet ‘being fully me the best I know how’ without any big fanfare acts. Just feeling a square peg in a square hole in all you do is enough!
I have a feeling that getting to know ourselves well is an important part of finding our calling.
And what we make time for. I've always found a way of being an activist even when really busy. And I've also made time for expressing my creativity.
Also feedback from friends and community help. We all have blind spots, and sometimes don't see some of the things we're good or bad at.
Hi! I agree - knowing ourselves is a vital part of it. How can we align to what we don’t know? The tricky thing I find is that I change as I age and develop so the alignment also has to be conscious and not just the old pattern and I don’t always get that right first go.
I know what you mean, Helen. Sometimes new things become more meaningful, and I think sometimes, at least in my case, I become more confident with age, and less afraid of just doing what resonates with me.
Thank you, Helen, for this thoughtful and nuanced post. I guess calling is in many ways a journey, one that takes us along winding , ones which sometimes diverge from the direction in which we started. I'm trying to be curious and open in that journey.
You are welcome. And yes I see it as a journey too. Mine has taken some very unexpected sharp turns for sure!
Fascinating as ever ( sorry I haven’t stopped by for a while). I think about something like this a lot, and I suspect I probably have most of my adult life. Whilst doing creative things is definitely a significant part of who I am, I think I agree with Sue Routner -Wardley in that I find myself lately trying to think more about how I make the journey rather than over focussing on a creative “output” or “product”. I think is probably healthier for me at the moment anyway. Shalom
It’s ok. I know Producer Pooh demands long hours from his stars 😜
But seriously…have you come to any conclusions about the ‘how’’ of the journey for you? Anything you feel like sharing anyway? What’s the throughline of all your wonderful stuff?
In the autumn I went on a mindfulness and qi gong retreat at the Sharpham Trust and I am attracted to the whole mindfulness thing, which I find I am having trouble describing as I write this 🙄, but I suppose for me at least is about trying to have a healthy relationship between my thoughts/emotions (even positive ones) and whatever you want to call the space in which they reverberate (let’s not get into theories of self/consciousness this late on. Something like that.
a bit of a rolling stone..landed in Tobago (Trinidad & Tobago) from UK at age 5/6 enjoyed a glorious childhood with doting grandparents, remained through to early 20’s then off again. Now I mention that arrival and “landing” because with hindsight I recognize the visceral impact of encounters observed through the eyes of a pre-adolescent childhood. The sensorial awareness of the difference between “this” and “that” is almost inexplicable; an almost effortless writer’s memory emerges. And so one can think about “calling” “life purpose” and ultimately choice across multiple framings. I am fascinated but not surprised by the resonance of your Judaic framing. This landed on all fours with aspects of my Caribbean identity. There are sound historical and socio-cultural explanations but that a different conversation altogether.
Oh how fascinating to have lived there. I do wish I'd been an expat at some time. I was imagining Scottish islands at first but then you said house raising, which sounded Amish - I never even thought of T and T. I'd love to have that conversation about the connection between Judaism and Caribbean identity though.
And I’ve lived in Seychelles, Cayman and now Bermuda. Years ago, more than I care to count as a lowly undergraduate at University of the West Indies (UWI) I did sociology of religion as part of that fearsome Intro to Sociology. I have a recollection of explorations of the impact of Judeo-Christian influences on messianic practices in the region and the compelling appeal of the old rather than the New Testament of Christianity. There are of course all sorts of social, political and historical reasons. And somewhere in the mix is the long standing presence of communities.
One should bear in mind that migrant practices like people are often overtaken by time and the things and people that carry them take routes and turns (or get stuck) and become originals in their own ways.
Wikipedia is not an exalted reference but a quick go to reveals:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judaism_and_Rastafari
A deeper dive reveals a barely tolerable World War Two experience: https://jewishmuseum.org.uk/2020/10/13/jews-in-jamaica/
The presence in what was formally the Danish West Indies (now the US Virgin Islands) is noteworthy:
“Jews began settling the colony in 1655, and by 1796 the first synagogue was inaugurated. In its heyday in the mid-19th century, the Jewish community made up half of the white population.[18] One of the earliest colonial governors, Gabriel Milan, was a Sephardic Jew.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_West_Indies
Over and out…
Oh thank you! It’s late here now so I’ll read the links tomorrow - much appreciated!
So much clarity for me in this article- thank you.