Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty by Neil Hanson

neilhanson

Neil Hanson's Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty is truly a love letter. I felt deeply moved by every page in the book. At times the journey through the book felt intense and painful. Still, I wanted and needed to travel down this road with Mr. Neil Hanson and his brother and sister. Neil, his mother and siblings are watching there father as he lies in a coma. Each moment of his father's passing is a moment filled with thought and sometimes a flight into a mystical world, one of Divine Light. The author makes peace with the shortcomings of his father. He also makes peace with the heartaches and headaches he caused his father. I especially liked the moments when the author read beside his father's bed.

He also made me think about the fact that there is a difference between silence and quietness. I was gently reminded that too often radios and other noises are used to separate us from quietness. In the quiet times the meaning of forgiveness is made clearer. Also, we can hear our voice in different puzzling relationships.

"Quiet is a skill, I think. A moment wrapped in quiet can offer a window through which great understanding can flow. Silence is not the same thing as quiet, but often it is a prerequisite."

Each moment in the book is so tangible and real. Did I have a seat in the hospital room? I felt like it. Was I there when Neil Hanson told Bill, his father's friend, about  the death? Did I see the light cone settle in the hospital room during the dance of death? It all felt so very near to me. I suppose it was Neil Hanson's spirit wanting me to truly receive what he had discovered and learned in his life.

I also felt but did not quite understand the separation of his mother from these experiences. Their was a circle unbroken between the brothers and sisters. How did the mother deal with not being a part of that circle? Perhaps, only she could answer that question. However, I'm grateful for a magnificent reading experience. The book leaves me knowing that there is so much to wonder about life. Life is an adventure all the way until God takes us away.

"Every party must end, just as every lifetime here on earth comes to a close. At the end of the party, when that last dance is called, it will be called by the voice of angels. The arms of G-d will reach for us, and we will smile as we accept that embrace."