"All I ever really wanted to do in life was to write. I wanted to think things out and then put those thoughts on paper. Like all the eminent writers whose works I had studied, I wanted to help the great conversations of life go on stirring the human soul to even deeper insights into human possibility," writes Joan Chittister, the executive director of Benetvision and a prolific writer and popular lecturer. She serves as co-chair of the Global Peace Initiative of Women. In this book on discerning your calling, Chittister pays tribute to the two couples who have been her patrons and have made her dream of being a writer a true reality.
The lure of living a meaningful and fulfilling life strikes people at different stages in their development. Some receive a calling from on high when they are very young. Others wait until middle age when they are bowled over by the need to work for a nonprofit organization or to travel overseas and serve the poor as a volunteer. The person who is unhappy with her job is usually depressed and angry, whereas a person content with his labors exudes a quiet inner peace. Chittister notes that our brains are designed for happiness.
Real happiness is being able to make your unique contribution to the creation of a better world. Or as William James put it, "The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it." Chittister is a perfect example of a person who has phenomenal energy and is animated by passion, purpose, and joy. As a talented crone, she is busy spreading her wisdom around in as many forms as possible. God called her to a demanding and rewarding life of ministry, and everything has worked out well as she keeps on writing and stirring the souls of her readers.
