From the Rector…
Richard Rohr’s Falling Upward explores what he calls the two halves of life. In the first half, we often pursue status, achievement, security, and material success. In the second half, we begin to release those things in favor of what brings lasting joy, love, and meaning. Rohr suggests there is no set age for this transition. It may come at 22, 72, or perhaps never. But when it comes, it can transform both our values and our purpose.
We have all heard stories of the “midlife crisis,” usually involving dramatic changes, impulsive decisions, or a shiny sports car. But that is not what Rohr means. The second half of life is not about chasing new externals. It is about turning inward and asking what truly matters. Author George Saunders writes, “Seek out the most efficacious anti-selfishness medicines… find out what makes you kinder, what opens you up and brings out the most loving, generous, and unafraid version of you—and go after those things as if nothing else matters.”
In the first half of life, we tend to ask what we can acquire. In the second half, we begin to ask what we can release.
Rohr describes the first half of life as “building your container.” We form identity, career, relationships, beliefs, and a sense of self. We seek titles, power, certainty, and recognition. The second half often begins when that container is shaken—through loss, suffering, failure, aging, disappointment, or the realization that old answers no longer satisfy. This is what Rohr means by “falling upward.” What feels like failure can become growth. What feels like loss can become freedom. We move beyond ego and certainty toward humility, compassion, wisdom, and deeper connection with God, ourselves, and one another.
Perhaps this shift is not a single dramatic moment, but a gradual turning of the ship. It may happen slowly through the tides and storms of life. Small awakenings accumulate until one day we realize we no longer recognize the person we have become—and we are ready to change. Pope Francis reminds us that “our journey demands an openness to discovery, reappraisal, change, evolution.” These are the marks of the pilgrim’s path, and they can lead us into the deeper life we were made for. For many of us, this transition is difficult. It may involve risk, especially if it calls for changes in work, priorities, or lifestyle. But the greater risk may be losing ourselves entirely.
The first half of life can be filled with distractions that pull us away from what we truly believe and who we truly are. We compromise too often, and over time we forget our truest self. Yet grace offers another way. The second half of life invites us to reclaim what was always there: the beloved self that God created. In a world eager to define us by success, fear, and consumption, this sacred work becomes an act of freedom. To fall upward is to let go of what the world says we should be, so that we may finally become who God calls us to be.
Light and Life,
Candice+