So Far From Home
Lost and Found in our Brave New World

Helping humanity find its way home
by Margaret J. Wheatley
Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2012

Reviewed by Joyce Marshall

I have not read anything with which I resonate more strongly than this book. Drawing on her work with systems, Wheatley lays out the elements of the world we now live in – robber barons, millions oppressed, ideological dumbing down, manufactured selves, consumerism, distraction, etc. – and how these elements interact, resulting in humanity being Lost.

The first step toward being Found is to recognize how profoundly we are Lost.  To motivate ourselves by the outcomes we hope to achieve is not appropriate. That kind of hope is the flip side of fear.  But there is a different kind of hope – that we will BE hope, be warriors of the spirit.

This requires looking directly into the darkness of our times and being brave and decent human beings who face deeply challenging circumstances.  As Wendell Berry put it: “No matter how bad things get, a person of good will and some ability can always do something to make it a little better.”  

Maybe our work won’t be different from what we are now doing, but the context shifts.  Expectations and attitudes shift. One aspect of that spirit is avoiding getting caught up in outrage and righteous anger.

The truer feeling is being overwhelmed with grief. Allowing ourselves to experience our grief will leave us with greater clarity about how to respond.

Wheatley, articulating what I have been sensing for some years now, clarifies a context that I have fuzzily tried to talk about.  Her mentors are Chogyam Trungpa and Pema Chodron, and though they are Buddhist, I am happy to follow her call to arms and become a Christian spirit warrior.  I would like for all my friends and colleagues whose vocation is serving the world to read this book – yesterday.

This review first appeared in the “Realistic Living Journal”, November 2012 issue.

Joyce Marshall is an ICA colleague.