Conscious Eldering with Ron Pevny

MP3 Download

Pevny points out that in order to become truly wise and vibrant elders we must actively participate in our ongoing growth and transformation. It is never too late to experience an ever unfolding, meaningful fulfillment of our potential no matter how old we are. He says, “Many people think that the best we can hope for as we age is to continue to be who we have been throughout mid-life….The reality is that in our psyches, our inner selves, we want to unfold and grow.” He cautions us that we can’t transform into our new cycle if we are continuing to carry what we have been in the past. He shares the three phases of coming into elderhood: severance, neutral zone, and reincorporation. The first phase of this transformation is severance, and it really is letting go, in a healthy and honoring way, of who we have been. Pevny describes the next phase, the neutral zone, as liminal time. “That’s an in between time of lying fallow. We’re not who we have been, we’re not clear who we’re becoming, but the seeds of possibility are there kind of gestating. It could be a time of feeling lost: there aren’t road maps; there aren’t any clear markers. We can feel that we will be stuck here forever. However, it is out of this ground of being in which wonderful new beginnings and new clarity can emerge.” Pevny underscores the idea that we have lost meaningful rites of passage in modern society, “If we feel a call to age consciously, a call to elderhood, and we don’t have rites of passage, then it’s important for us to at least be doing the inner work . . . and especially doing it in the company of others and having certain key moments when we are witnessed and supported by others. Then we can tap into some of that rite of passage energy.” (hosted by Justine Willis Toms) 

Bio 

Ron Pevny is the founder and director of the Colorado-based Center for Conscious Eldering. He’s a certified Sage-ing® Leader with Sage-ing® International and conducts workshop and retreats across North America. 

Ron Pevny is the author of:

• Conscious Living, Conscious Aging: Embrace & Savor Your Next Chapter (Atria Paperback 2014) 

To learn more about the work of Ron Pevny go to www.centerforconsciouseldering.com. 

Topics Explored in This Dialogue

• What was the experience that Pevny prayed for and received that set him on his path as a true teacher
• What is conscious eldering
• What is the Cherokee story of the two wolves inside
• Why we need to let go of our mid-life identities in order to move into the next chapter of our lives
• How this inward journey needs the support of a community of kindred spirits
• What are the typical living arrangements offered as we age
• What are elder wisdom circles
• How can elders reach out to a younger generation
• What is the Intergenerational Writing Project
• Who is Patricia Sun and how has she been instrumental in guiding Pevny
• How to notice moments of grace in our lives
• How the experience of gratitude is seeing from the eye of the soul rather than the personality
• How we can make up our ceremonial rites of passage and be witnessed by our circle of friends
• How our dreams can guide us and how creating a dream group can help interpret them
• How to pay attention to synchronicities which can be guideposts in our transition to elderhood 

Host: Justine Willis Toms          Interview Date: 6/15/2017          Program Number: 3617

Music Playlist

From Album: Intervention
Artist: Helen Jane Long
2012 BLE Music Records #9790900213570 

Opening Essay: Track 01 Intervention
Music Break 1: Track 02 Free
Music Break 2: Track 04 Willow
Music Break 3: Track 11 Renewed