We are far from powerless… though we often we imagine we are. And neither are we able to control how life goes… though we often long to be able to. Our making ourselves too small or too big rarely serves life. So what would it be to find a way to be in a responsive partnership with life itself - acting into life and then opening ourselves to life’s response, bringing the qualities we have to offer as humans and letting ourselves be changed by what comes?



This week’s conversation is hosted, as always, by Lizzie Winn and Justin Wise of Thirdspace.



Episode Overview

00:00 Welcome and Introduction to Turning Towards Life

02:50 The Emergence of a Collective Self

06:07 Exploring Uncertainty and Aliveness

09:05 Navigating the Unknown: Embracing Change

11:50 The Dance of Certainty and Uncertainty

15:07 Partnership with Life: Making Our Moves

17:50 The Nature of Human Qualities in Crisis

20:57 Reflective Practice and Self-Discovery

24:00 Being Human in Uncertainty

26:49 Closing Reflections and Gratitude





Here’s our source for this week:



We look with uncertainty



We look with uncertainty

beyond the old choices for

clear-cut answers

to a softer, more permeable aliveness

which is every moment

at the brink of death;

for something new is being born in us

if we but let it.



We stand at a new doorway,

awaiting that which comes…

daring to be human creatures,

vulnerable to the beauty of existence.

Learning to love.



Anne Hillman



Photo by Karissa Mason on Unsplash





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Join Us Live in 2026



Turning Towards Life Live Season 2, from March 2026

Our Turning Towards Life live programme of community, learning and reflection runs in six month seasons, in person on Zoom once a month. We're very excited about it. A chance to expand beyond the bounds of a podcast into forming a community of learning and practice.

You can find out more and join us here: www.turningtowards.life/live



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About Turning Towards Life

Turning Towards Life, a week-by-week conversation inviting us deeply into our lives, is a live 30 minute conversation hosted by Justin Wise and Lizzie Winn of Thirdspace.  Find us on FaceBook to join in the lively conversation on this episode. You can find videos of every episode, and more about the project on the Turning Towards Life website, and you can also watch and listen on Instagram, YouTube, and as a podcast on Apple, Amazon Music and Spotify.



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Keywords:

uncertainty acceptance, essential qualities, human aliveness, partnership with life, permeable existence, doorway metaphor, vulnerable beauty, reflective practice, present moment awareness, control letting go, death brink living, softness cultivation, new birth allowing, offering making, response receiving, qualities emerging, steadfastness courage, generous heart, human goodness, unpredictability embracing, participation dance, life partnership, essential self, turning towards life, relationship reflection