Overview

A “reflective, eloquent [and] inspiringly written” (The New York Times) collection of essays about learning to live richly in the face of loss   “Astonishing . . . sometimes heartbreaking . . . sometimes hilarious.”—The Boston Globe   WINNER OF THE BOOKS FOR A BETTER LIFE AWARD’S BEST SPIRITUAL BOOK Philip Simmons was just thirty-five years old in 1993 when he learned that he had ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, and was told he had less than five years to live. As a young husband and father, and at the start of a promising literary career, he suddenly had to learn the art of dying. Nine years later, he succeeded, against the odds, in learning the art of living. In this surprisingly joyous and spirit-renewing book, he chronicles his search for peace and his deepening relationship with the mystery of everyday life.    From our first faltering steps, Simmons says, we may fall into disappointment or grief, fall into or out of love, fall from youth or health. And though we have little choice as to the timing or means of our descent, we may, as he affirms, “fall with grace, to grace.” With humor, hard-earned wisdom, and a keen eye for life’s lessons—whether drawn from great poetry or visits to the town dump—Simmons shares his discovery that even at times of great sorrow we may find profound freedom. And by sharing the wonder of his daily life, he offers us the gift of connecting more deeply and joyously with our own.

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Reviews

Sometimes there is no difference between a book and a blessing. In Philip Simmons has blessed us all. -- Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., author of Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather's Blessings Pure poetry, tinged with irony and humor, in the voice of a present-day Thoreau whose Walden is his family, the landscape of New Hampshire, and a young body fading away. A deeply moving rhapsody on inhabiting the human condition. -- Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Full Catastrophe Living and Wherever You Go, There You Are Philip Simmons writes with clarity and a passion for honesty, laced with wit. An extraordinary book. -- Elaine Pagels, Princeton University, author of The Gnostic Gospels Generous and genuine, like water from a deep well, halfway between a meditation and a dance, this book is an act of grace. -- Jack Kornfield, author of A Path With Heart and After the Ecstasy, the Laundry Learning to Fall is for anyone who loves life -- or needs to love it more.... A wonderful achievement. -- Balfour Mount, M.D., Professor of Palliative Medicine, McGill University Not only has Philip Simmons figured out the meaning of life for himself; with prodigious literary grace he has figured out how to tell us too. Required reading for Basic Humanity 101. -- Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, author of Invisible Lines of Connection From the Hardcover edition.

Sometimes there is no difference between a book and a blessing. In Philip Simmons has blessed us all. <br>-- Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., author of Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather's Blessings<br><br> Pure poetry, tinged with irony and humor, in the voice of a present-day Thoreau whose Walden is his family, the landscape of New Hampshire, and a young body fading away. A deeply moving rhapsody on inhabiting the human condition. <br>-- Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Full Catastrophe Living and Wherever You Go, There You Are <br><br> Philip Simmons writes with clarity and a passion for honesty, laced with wit. An extraordinary book. <br>-- Elaine Pagels, Princeton University, author of The Gnostic Gospels<br><br> Generous and genuine, like water from a deep well, halfway between a meditation and a dance, this book is an act of grace. <br>-- Jack Kornfield, author of A Path With Heart and After the Ecstasy, the Laundry<br><br> Learning to Fall is for anyone who loves life -- or needs to love it more.... A wonderful achievement. <br>-- Balfour Mount, M.D., Professor of Palliative Medicine, McGill University<br><br> Not only has Philip Simmons figured out the meaning of life for himself; with prodigious literary grace he has figured out how to tell us too. Required reading for Basic Humanity 101. <br>-- Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, author of Invisible Lines of Connection<br><br><br> From the Hardcover edition.

Sometimes there is no difference between a book and a blessing. In Philip Simmons has blessed us all. <br>-- Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., author of Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather's Blessings <br> Pure poetry, tinged with irony and humor, in the voice of a present-day Thoreau whose Walden is his family, the landscape of New Hampshire, and a young body fading away. A deeply moving rhapsody on inhabiting the human condition. <br>-- Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Full Catastrophe Living and Wherever You Go, There You Are <br> Philip Simmons writes with clarity and a passion for honesty, laced with wit. An extraordinary book. <br>-- Elaine Pagels, Princeton University, author of The Gnostic Gospels <br> Generous and genuine, like water from a deep well, halfway between a meditation and a dance, this book is an act of grace. <br>-- Jack Kornfield, author of A Path With Heart and After the Ecstasy, the Laundry <br> Learning to Fall is for anyone who loves life -- or needs to love it more.... A wonderful achievement. <br>-- Balfour Mount, M.D., Professor of Palliative Medicine, McGill University <br> Not only has Philip Simmons figured out the meaning of life for himself; with prodigious literary grace he has figured out how to tell us too. Required reading for Basic Humanity 101. <br>-- Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, author of Invisible Lines of Connection <p> From the Hardcover edition.

Author Information

Philip Simmons was an associate professor of English at Lake Forest College in Illinois, where he taught literature and creative writing for nine years before he was diagnosed with ALS. His literary scholarship has been published widely and his short fiction has appeared in Playboy, TriQuarterly, Ploughshares, and the Massachusetts Review, among other magazines. He died in 2002.

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