A Life of Dialogue

A Life of Dialogue

by Kenneth Paul Kramer
A Life of Dialogue

A Life of Dialogue

by Kenneth Paul Kramer

Paperback

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Overview

In A Life of Dialogue: Love Letters to My Daughters, one finds an honest, unflinching, and authentic voice that creates a unique outlook on multiple sclerosis. Kramer juxtaposes the quest for spiritual awakening with hiding from the effects of his MS. In so doing, he offers poignant insights into living with an illness that is even now too little understood. Composed of short autobiographical letters to his two daughters, Kramer gracefully connects the personal with the universal, and the devastating emotions of MS with the unfinished joys of parenting--each bringing glimpses of new light. His spirituality informs seemingly mundane interactions with a refreshing candor. Turning toward others, trusting what is given, and responding openly, led him to becoming uniquely human in each interaction. This book is written in an uplifting and surprising way. It finds essential humanity through documenting triumphs within a life of ever-narrowing confines. ""In this moving and inspiring memoir, Kenneth Kramer presents us with his remarkable spiritual journey. The work is beautifully written as letters to his daughters, which illustrates the overwhelming and unconditional love between them. In spite of his lifelong struggle with MS, Kramer continues to 'bow before the universe with profound gratitude for its overwhelming generosity.'"" --Harold Kasimow, Author, Interfaith Activism: Abraham Joshua Heschel and Religious Diversity; George Drake Professor of Religious Studies Emeritus, Grinnell College. ""Whether you sit with this book at a cafe or your kitchen table, you hold an intimate, honest, and passionate love story told by an amazing teacher, seeker, and scholar. [The book] takes the reader into the most honest, humorous, heartbreaking reality. Kramer can't help but be a teacher, and what he teaches is the power of genuine conversation. You will most definitely have one with him as you read it."" --Ziggy Rendler-Bregman, Author, The Gate of Our Coming and Going ""The letter format was an inspired choice: each one is a parable that works more tellingly than any continuous narrative would have. They all have a clear point, conveying a wide range of feelings and gracefully linking the particular with the universal."" --RD Bolam, Certified Hakomi Therapist ""As I read over this remarkable life story in the form of letters to his daughters, I recall a passage from the poet Yeats, that we praise the soldier who returns victorious from the trenches, but rarely do we praise the person who goes deeply within himself and emerges victorious. I am convinced [Kramer] has emerged victorious."" --Robert C. Morgan, Author, The End of the Art World Kenneth Paul Kramer is a Professor emeritus of Comparative Religious Studies at San Jose (CA) State University. He has published Learning Through Dialogue: The Relevance of Martin Buber's Classroom (2013), Martin Buber's Spirituality: Hasidic Wisdom for Everyday Life (2012), Redeeming Time: T.S. Eliot's ""Four Quartets"" (2007), Martin Buber's ""I and Thou"": Practicing Living Dialogue (2003); he also edited Dialogically Speaking: Maurice Friedman's Interdisciplinary Humanism (2011).

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781498289559
Publisher: Resource Publications
Publication date: 05/23/2016
Pages: 242
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.51(d)

About the Author

Kenneth Paul Kramer is a Professor emeritus of Comparative Religious Studies at San Jose (CA) State University. He has published Learning Through Dialogue: The Relevance of Martin Buber's Classroom (2013), Martin Buber's Spirituality: Hasidic Wisdom for Everyday Life (2012), Redeeming Time: T.S. Eliot's "Four Quartets" (2007), Martin Buber's "I and Thou": Practicing Living Dialogue (2003); he also edited Dialogically Speaking: Maurice Friedman's Interdisciplinary Humanism (2011).

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Stage I Formative Years (1941-1963)

Earliest Memory 3

The Bright-Eyed Boy 6

No! 8

Mom and Dad 11

Walking with Roy 14

Lipton Tea with Rose 17

Alpha Baptist Church 21

The Childhood Door 23

Baptism 25

Decision 28

Sports, Sports, Sports 31

Never Before 33

Missed Free throws 35

On First Meeting Eliot and Buber 39

Setting Forth 42

Stage II Leaving Home (1963-1974)

Andover Newton 47

"The Travesty" 51

Yale's Unexpected Calling 54

First Class: First Day 56

Finding Out 59

"I'd Like to Get to Know You" 62

Temple University Professors 64

Phillips' "Let That Dilemma Be Your Way" 66

DeMartino's "True Self is Awakening Awakening to Itself" 69

Friedman's "All Real Living is Dialogic Encounter" 71

Fidelity to the Task 73

Baptist to Buddhist 76

The Materializing Guru 78

Loneliness 82

The Forbidden Kiss 86

The Gypsy Lady 89

Leila Ann 92

Stage III Traveling West (1974-2000)

Santa Cruz 97

Yvonne Rose 102

SJSU 105

"The Castilian Rose" 108

"You No Longer Need to Sit" 110

Holy Trinity Brothers 113

October 11th 117

Separation and Divorce 121

In Each Other's Hearts 124

Halfway Between University and Church 126

From Crayons to Perfume 128

The Faces of MS 132

"I" Exam 135

"Jesus, as a Jew, Would Never Have Said That" 138

The Divine Comedian 140

The Right Question for the Wrong Person 142

Teaching on the Narrow Ridge 144

The Limits of Dialogue 148

"The Search Will Make You Free" 150

What's Missing? 152

Bowing Deeply 155

Dialogic Awakening 157

Dad's Death 160

Mom's Death 164

An Anonymous Student 167

Stage IV Retiring (2000-…)

Retirements 173

Risking Enchantment 175

A Large Cup of Java 177

Sacramental Existence 178

Still Swimming at Sixty-Five 182

Twin Lakes Prayers 184

Tuesdays with Todd 186

Ever-Narrowing Confines 191

The Turn Not Taken 195

Weddings 196

A Day in the Life at Seventy-Three 199

Dark Moments 202

The Rhythm of Sitting Here 204

No More Needs to Be Said 206

Trust with a Capital 209

My Brother 211

"I Carry Your Heart" 213

Cyberknifing 216

Growing Up 219

The Great Light 222

Acknowledgments 225

About the Author 229

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"In this moving and inspiring memoir, Kenneth Kramer presents us with his remarkable spiritual journey. The work is beautifully written as letters to his daughters, which illustrates the overwhelming and unconditional love between them. In spite of his lifelong struggle with MS, Kramer continues to 'bow before the universe with profound gratitude for its overwhelming generosity.'"
—Harold Kasimow, Author, Interfaith Activism: Abraham Joshua Heschel and Religious Diversity; George Drake Professor of Religious Studies Emeritus, Grinnell College.

"Whether you sit with this book at a cafe or your kitchen table, you hold an intimate, honest, and passionate love story told by an amazing teacher, seeker, and scholar. [The book] takes the reader into the most honest, humorous, heartbreaking reality. Kramer can't help but be a teacher, and what he teaches is the power of genuine conversation. You will most definitely have one with him as you read it."
—Ziggy Rendler-Bregman, Author, The Gate of Our Coming and Going

"The letter format was an inspired choice: each one is a parable that works more tellingly than any continuous narrative would have. They all have a clear point, conveying a wide range of feelings and gracefully linking the particular with the universal."
—RD Bolam, Certified Hakomi Therapist

"As I read over this remarkable life story in the form of letters to his daughters, I recall a passage from the poet Yeats, that we praise the soldier who returns victorious from the trenches, but rarely do we praise the person who goes deeply within himself and emerges victorious. I am convinced [Kramer] has emerged victorious."
—Robert C. Morgan, Author, The End of the Art World

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