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Background

Whether sandwiched between caring for both children and parents, consumed by careers we wonder if we want anymore, going through separations and divorces, and facing our first major illness and losses, midlife can be a time of great potentiality, ripening, and reckoning. Yet the lived experiences of midlife are frequently ignored in mainstream cultural discourse. This is no more true than in the current moment, where every day we hear some new fact about the plight of Boomers, or Millennials, or Gen Z, and now Gen Alpha. But where are Gen X? It seems fitting that the “feral generation” and the “latchkey kids” seem perennially left out of the conversation. Whether we find ourselves in a full-blown “midlife crisis” or simply in a period of deep wondering and questioning, the way forward can be uncertain, especially when we are missing a cultural mirror.

Who better to provide guidance to navigate such anxiety than the existentialists?

The Premise

The target audience for this group is people who are in midlife (i.e., 40-60 years). Primarily Gen X and older millennials.

In this 8-week meetup series, we will explore, what wisdom can we draw from the existentialists in navigating the unknown and uncertain terrain of midlife?

We will ease into the conversation by reviewing some of the work of contemporary poet-philosopher David Whyte, who has written extensively on the topic of midlife. Thereafter, each week we will read an essay or excerpt from existentialists such as Sartre, de Beauvoir, Kierkegaard and Camus, centered around a particular theme relevant to midlife.

The Format

In each 90m meeting, participants will be invited to select a passage from the reading to do a live-read, opening up the conversation on what that reading contributes to the theme of the week. While other meetups often riff on ideas from other philosophers, this group will not be doing that. Rather, the goal is to stay close to that particular philosopher and put their ideas to the test for this topic, with some time at the end to put them in dialogue with other existentialists to be discussed in this series.

You are welcome to attend if you have not read for that week. But we will prioritize comments from people who have actually done the reading, so that discussions can remain close to the source texts. We will attempt to really put these ideas to the test, bringing their ideas into dialogue with our own lived experience. Rather than philosophy for philosophy’s sake, we will endeavour to take an applied or practical philosophy approach.

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Topics:

Jan. 20: Midlife and the Great Unknown

**While not required, you might also enjoy “The Three Marriages” by David Whyte, available on Audible/audiobooks

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Jan. 27: Work, Vocation, Mission

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Feb. 3: Love and Relationship

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Feb. 10: Friendship

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Feb. 17: Home, Belonging, Community

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Feb. 24: Doing vs. Being - Attention and Presence

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Mar. 3: Authenticity - Living Down to Who We Are

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Mar. 10: Death and Time Running Out

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