The Mastery Of The Thing!: Transcendence In Counseling And Sports - Softcover

Finn, Charles C.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1452065780 ISBN 13: 9781452065786

Publisher: AuthorHouse, 2010

Synopsis

The worlds of counseling and sports have things vital in common. Both are arenas for facing and overcoming adversity, for going beyond the limits of ordinary experience, for transcending. In sports it is easy to see. Beyond cheering on our favorite player or team, what we secretly hope and watch for is this potential at any moment for transcendence. Even if it's but one superlative play, one dazzling move in the entire game, our watchful spirits see it and soar. Dazzling moments may be less apparent in counseling, because less tangible, but the elation there can be even greater with so much more than a game at stake. Seeking out help is itself an achievement of spirit given our extroverted culture's reluctance to see admission of vulnerability as anything but weakness. Finding the courage to scale heights and dare depths, whether on the playing field or in the counselor's office, is precisely what invites transcendence. The coach's role in the one arena, not unlike the counselor's in the other, is critical. Both serve as guides knowing well the arduous journey. Both urge utilization of resources, inner more even than outer. Both call for preparation and practice, alertness and ardor, refusal to give up when discouraged. Both believe in transcendence, make room for transcendence, hearten and embolden towards transcendence. And then, when thresholds are crossed and obstacles overcome, both cheer in heart if not bow in soul before, in Gerard Manley Hopkins' words beholding a falcon rebuffing a big wind, "the achieve of, the mastery of the thing"

About this title

About the Author:

Finn spent ten years in the Society of Jesus after graduating from high school in Cincinnati. With degrees in literature and psychology from Chicago's Loyola University, he taught high school and then became a mental health counselor before relocating to Virginia with his wife in 1979. He lives near Fincastle with his family and commutes to nearby Roanoke where he is a licensed professional counselor. Among Finn's writings is the internationally-known poem "Please Hear What I'm Not Saying" . His published works, which can be obtained through his website (www.poetrybycharlescfinn.com) or e-mail address (charlesfinn@ntelos.net), include the following; Circle of Grace; In Praise of Months and Seasons Natural Highs; An Invitation to Wonder For the Mystically Inclined Contemplatively Sweet; Slow-Down Poems to Ponder Earth talks; Conjectures on the Spirit Journey The Elixir of Air; Unguessed Gifts of Addiction Deep Joy, Steep Challenge; 365 Poems on Parenting Earth Brother Jesus; Musings Free of Dogma Embraced It Will Serve You; Encounters with Death If a Child, Why Not a Cosmos; Lovesongs to Earthand Evolution Fuel for War; Patriotic Entrancement Earth Pleasures; Pets, Plants, Trees and Rain Ithaca is the Journey; A Personal Odyssey Steppingstones to the Civil War; Slavery Integral to Each Aging Liberal Nostalgic for Vision Empathy is the Key; Toward a Civil War Healing Gentle Warrior John Yungblut; Guide on the Spirit Journey Full Heart Singing; Letters and Poems to a Girl child All of Finn's writings relate to the spirit journey. His own has been grounded in Catholicism and nourished by Jesuit, Taoist, Native American, Creation-Centered, and Quaker spiritualities.

About this edition

• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1452065780
• ISBN 13: 9781452065786
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 212