Last week my post was about finding magic and meaning in the messiness and madness of life. I made the point that you can always count on life to be messy, AND sometimes it morphs into madness. Any fairly functional human being is expected to be able to find some magic and meaning in the messiness of their lives. Otherwise, what’s the point. When events beyond our control (or self-imposed) drift into madness, however, then life can just seem too much. We simply want to retreat into whatever bubble or refuge we can find and hope that things change enough for us to feel safe to engage once again.
This post will drop on Election Day, November 3, 2026. We are about to find out where we are on the messiness-to-madness continuum. I’m hoping the results will make it possible for us to begin to clean up the messes and end the madness created over the past ten years. I’m assuming we are going to have a few more blue skies and a bit less red blood pumping from what’s left of our Nation’s heart. But that’s about perspective. I want to talk about possibilities for finding meaning in that context.
With the assumption of a blue win in mind, I want to follow up on last week’s post with a brief perspective on the possibilities for finding meaning in a world that has stepped back from the edge of madness to the more normal messiness of life.
So the question is, What makes a life meaningful? What might we contribute to the world, to other people, and to the human experience? How might we help to clean up the mess we are in?
Here are four possibilities to consider: love, wisdom, potency, and magic. Each represents a different way of making a difference. Each serves a distinct human need. And each offers a different answer to the question of what it means to live a life worth living in a world that’s always going to be messy. We can think of them as four potential callings: Love Connector, Wisdom Seeker, Potency Provider, and Magic Maker.
The Love Connector: Building Bonds That Make Us Human
Love Connectors bring people together. They build communities, nurture relationships, foster belonging, and practice loving-kindness. They understand that our lives are enriched not simply by what we accomplish individually, but by the quality of our connections with others. They remind us that we are not meant to live alone. They create the conditions in which trust, compassion, and human connection can flourish.
Their work may involve healing relationships, supporting people through difficult times, creating inclusive communities, or helping others feel seen, understood, and valued.
People who hear this calling tend to be psychologists, therapists, social workers, ministers, nurses, community organizers, mediators, counselors, hospice workers, and nonprofit leaders.
A good example of a Love Connector from the literature might be Samwise Gamgee in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Sam’s heroism rests not on power or intellectual brilliance but on steadfast love. His loyalty to Frodo sustains a seemingly impossible journey. He offers companionship when hope fades, courage when fear takes over, and care when exhaustion threatens to overwhelm his friend. Sam demonstrates that love is not merely a feeling; it is a commitment expressed through action. Sometimes the person who saves the world is the person who refuses to abandon someone along the way.
Another example might be how The Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu, in the Book of Joy, demonstrate how compassion, humor, forgiveness, and human connection can sustain us even in the face of suffering. Their lives illustrate that love is not simply a feeling; it is a practice that helps other people flourish.
The Wisdom Seeker: Making Sense of the Human Experience
Wisdom Seekers explore the enduring questions of existence: Who are we? What is true? How should we live? What do suffering, freedom, responsibility, and death teach us?
They turn to ancient texts, philosophy, religion, spiritual traditions, literature, and lived experience. But wisdom is more than accumulating knowledge. It requires reflection, discernment, humility, and the willingness to question what we think we know. Wisdom Seekers help us see beyond the assumptions and certainties that limit our understanding. They deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world, helping us distinguish information from insight and certainty from wisdom.
People who hear this calling tend to be scholars, philosophers, historians, theologians, spiritual directors, writers, literary critics, and contemplative practitioners. A good example might be Gandalf, another character in The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf possesses knowledge of history, ancient powers, and the nature of the struggle confronting Middle-earth. Yet his greatest wisdom lies in his judgment. He recognizes possibilities others overlook, understands that seemingly insignificant people can change history, and knows that courage and compassion matter as much as strength. He does not simply tell others what to think; he helps them discover what they are capable of becoming. Gandalf represents wisdom that serves life rather than elevating the wise person above it.
In Man’s Search for Meaning, another example from the literature, Viktor Frankl explores the human search for meaning in the face of extreme suffering. His work challenges us to consider how we respond to circumstances we cannot control and how purpose can help us preserve our humanity. The wisdom seeker does not merely accumulate knowledge but searches for understanding that can guide a life.
The Potency Provider: Expanding What Is Possible
Potency Providers increase our capacity to act. They develop the technologies, knowledge, institutions, skills, and human capabilities that allow individuals and societies to accomplish what was previously impossible. Here, potency means effective agency: the power to create, heal, learn, solve problems, and shape our circumstances. It is not necessarily political power or control over others. At its best, potency expands what people can do for themselves and for the common good. They turn possibilities into realities. They develop the tools, capabilities, and discoveries that advance civilization and expand human potential.
People who hear this calling tend to be doctors, teachers, scientists, engineers, technologists, inventors, entrepreneurs, researchers, architects, and organizational developers. A good example from the literature might be Daedalus from Greek mythology.
Daedalus is the master craftsman and inventor whose ingenuity produces extraordinary solutions to difficult problems. His creations, including the wings that enable flight, embody the human drive to transcend physical limitations through skill, imagination, and technical knowledge. His story also reminds us that capability alone does not guarantee wisdom. His inventions can liberate, but they can also create danger when their limitations are ignored. Daedalus illustrates both the promise and the responsibility of potency: increasing what we can do requires judgment about what we should do. Think AI.
The Magic Maker: Creating Wonder, Joy, and Transformation
Magic Makers awaken something in us that ordinary life can leave dormant. Through music, poetry, visual art, theater, storytelling, humor, and extraordinary human experiences, they make the familiar unfamiliar and the ordinary extraordinary. Their magic need not involve artistic genius. A teacher who inspires a lifelong love of learning, a friend who creates an unforgettable experience, or a person who helps another see the world differently can be a Magic Maker. They remind us that life is not simply a problem to be solved, a body of knowledge to be mastered, or a community to be sustained. It is also an experience to be felt, celebrated, and transformed. They bring beauty, delight, imagination, and wonder into our lives. They help us feel more alive and discover possibilities we could not previously imagine.
People who hear this calling tend to be musicians, poets, novelists, painters, actors, dancers, filmmakers, comedians, designers, storytellers, and experience creators. A good example from the literature might be Prospero in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Prospero uses his extraordinary powers to orchestrate events that transform the lives of those around him. Through spectacle, illusion, and carefully staged encounters, he creates experiences that reveal hidden truths, provoke reflection, and make reconciliation possible. His magic is not merely entertainment; it changes how people see themselves and one another. Prospero’s final renunciation of his magical powers adds an important dimension to the archetype. The deepest magic may not be the ability to control events, but the ability to create something transformative and then let it go.
Love, wisdom, potency, and magic are not competing definitions of a meaningful life. They are complementary contributions to it. Love without wisdom can become misguided attachment. Wisdom without love can become detached intellectualism. Potency without wisdom or love can become destructive power. And magic without substance can become spectacle without lasting meaning.
At their best, these four callings reinforce one another. Love gives us a reason to act. Wisdom helps us discern what matters. Potency gives us the capacity to make a difference. Magic reminds us why life is worth living. Perhaps the more important question is not which category we belong to, but which we cultivate, which we neglect, and which our circumstances call upon us to develop. We can all become better Love Connectors, Wisdom Seekers, Potency Providers, and Magic Makers. We can build relationships, deepen understanding, expand human capabilities, and create experiences that make life more meaningful for ourselves and others. The question is not simply what we do for a living. It is what we bring to life. Not so much what we do as who we are.
In short, Love connects us and creates a sense of belonging and community. Wisdom guides us and enables perspective and discernment. Potency empowers us by developing capabilities and agency. And magic awakens and inspires us to make life beautiful, joyful, and wondrous. These actions may be more useful measures of a meaningful life than wealth, status, achievement, or recognition alone.
I’m hoping, on this election day, the world will return from the brink of madness to the ordinary messiness of living. I’m hoping that, together, we can build connected communities, deepen our perspective, sharpen our discernment, develop our capabilities, and awaken the wonder in our souls. Indeed, I’m hoping for more love, wisdom, potency, and joy in our lives and in the world. May it be so.
