Dr. Carol Orsborn has written over thirty books translated into fifteen languages on quality of life, spirituality and aging.
Her latest book is now available on Amazon.
The Making of an Old Soul: Aging as the Fulfillment of Life’s Promise is the healing vision of a woman who is a scholar in the fields of adult and spiritual development as well as a lifelong seeker.
Based on a mystical experience that sheds light on the entire arc of life, Orsborn’s latest work revisions age not as diminishment but as the fulfillment of life’s promise. Bursting through the stereotypes into a world of old souls, Orsborn shows you how to embrace the luminous spirit within that beats steadily beyond the wounds of childhood, beyond the unintended consequences of your best-intentions, beyond the twists and turns of fate over which even at the peak of the developmental pyramid you have no control. This gem of a book affirms that hope is merited and that seekers of all ages and circumstances have what it takes to grow not just old, but old souls.
EXCERPT: “Prelude” from The Making of an Old Soul
We who are growing old may well appear to have been diminished by time. But if you think so, you would be wrong. There are some amongst us not dulled but burnished by long lives, twists of fate, impossible choices, and grace into something most unexpected. We have not just become old. We have become old souls.
Burning with invisible passion and purpose, we live largely backstage in an alternate universe both wondrous and dangerous. We are at once inspired, beleaguered, and brave. This is the secret world of aging inhabited by the handful of hardy old souls who have found what we were looking for all our lives in the most unanticipated of times and places. What we discovered is nothing at all like what we’d anticipated but more than we’d hoped for. It is a state both small and humble and, at the same time, the peak of spiritual development. In this parallel universe, we gain access to the inner workings of the entire arc of life. At last, everything makes sense, and we come to understand that nothing of what we’ve been through from the moment we were conceived to the present was ever wasted. We have, in fact, burst through age to freedom.
The portal to this hidden dimension is hard to find under normal circumstances. Rather, it’s a place that finds you, but only when you have given up trying to find it on your own. Do you have a sense of what I’m talking about? Do you persist in believing, despite the negative stereotypes of aging, that however old you are, there is enough time to get what you came here for? Then let this book affirm that your hope is merited and that youare a candidate for the fulfillment of life’s promise. But be forewarned. It will take more than you’ve got, but in the end, you wouldn’t have had it any other way.
About the Book
Carol Orsborn’s new book is a tour de force—heartfelt, honest, helpful, and healing.
—Andy Achenbaum, Old Age in the New Land: The American Experience since 1790
What is an “old soul,” but someone who has observed, explored, reflected, and seen the deeper patterns beneath the surfaces of life. In The Making of an Old SoulCarol Orsborn shares her story of continuity amid change, and depth amid the daily detritus. Her shared insights will stir the reader to similarly reflect on what abides amid changes, and what brings depth and dignity to our life.
—James Hollis, Living Between Worlds and Prisms: Reflections on this Journey We Call Life.
Bursting with revelations, Carol’s amazing book has set my mind spinning from insight overload! Healing and full of the fierce grace of enlightened aging, it may even help your grown children understand their parents’ new and joyous weirdness. Dive in and discover the sacred mystery of your own life. This book will change you.
—John C. Robinson, The Divine Human
At 76 years old, I found this book to be a gift that I will treasure for as long as I live.
It was the poet John Keats who spoke of our life as “the vale of soul-making.” Alas, Keats knew nothing of old age, since he died at the age of 25. But his phrase is exactly what Carol Orsborn’s book offers us: a passionate belief that later life can be a time of discovery, creation, and unfolding—becoming the person we were meant to be
—Harry (Rick) Moody, retired Vice President for Academic Affairs, AARP
Carol Orsborn has written a stirring book to guide readers along a journey to “something more”— an intense, liberating spiritual merger with the divine. The Making of an Old Soul leads readers toward this final spiritual awakening, thus rewarding the struggles and lessons accumulated through a long life. This book wisely teaches why and how.
—Brent Green, Questions of the Spirit: the Quest for Understanding at a Time of Loss
Carol Orsborn’s book pulsates with the life and wisdom of an old soul. Through personal revelation, she encourages us to live our own lives hopefully, through both shadow and light, trusting that there is “something more” than we might see in the moment.Upon concluding her book, I wept, as I appreciated how remarkable this being human is. Carol and her book are gifts to the world, gifts that will gestate more life in us to be tasted and savored each day.
—Robert L. Weber, The Spirituality of Age
Age and wisdom are not synonymous. Age and liberation are not synonymous. But they could be, and Carol Orsborn’s Making of an Old Soul shows you how. This book offers both a vision of what aging has to offer and a roadmap for getting there.
—Rabbi Rami Shapiro, Surrendered: Shattering the Illusion of Control and Falling Into Grace with 12-Step Spirituality.
Carol Orsborn’s Classic
Carol Orsborn’s critically-acclaimed book Older, Wiser, Fiercer: The Wisdom Collection is available in both paperback and Kindle ebook. To order, click HERE.
WHAT THE REVIEWERS ARE SAYING:
“Like all the great voyagers, Carol Orsborn has brought back to us, not a story of her travels, but a gift which can belong to us if only we summon the courage to follow in her footsteps. Carol Orsborn has written a remarkable classic. It is an unbelievable privilege to engage with what she’s given here to the world.”
— Harry R. Moody, Ph.D., author of The Five Stages of the Soul.
“Older, Wiser, Fiercer gets that aging is neither fairytale nor curse, but instead a parable, journey and ultimate awakening. Filled with short, easy-to-digest subjects on all the relevant topics of age, the author catalogs the changing landscape of aging in ways that make it worth living. Work your way slowly and reverently through this timely book and you will find the transformational gems of your own enlightenment. Older, Wiser, Fiercer is a gift basket of insight and wisdom.”
–John C. Robinson, Ph.D., author of The Divine Human
“Dr. Carol Orsborn has been a thought leader and inspired author for over forty years. In Older, Wiser, Fiercer, Dr. Orsborn clears new pathways that aging generations can follow: to find meaning and opportunities in the encore phase of life—to live fully with beauty, earnestness, and heightened purpose. She shares these insights within the context of her own experiences, reinterpreting and augmenting lessons learned from the masters of aging well.
Older, Wiser, Fiercer: The Wisdom Collection is the culmination of years of scholarship, conscious living, advocacy, and practical understanding of the demands and opportunities associated with becoming an elder. This readable revelation of a book helped me learn how we can grow more courageously into a new season of life. I will return to it often for sage advice and spiritual support… and to get my fierce on.”
–Brent Green, Ph.D., author of Are You Still Listening
To purchase Older, Wiser, Fiercer: The Complete Wisdom Collection in eBook or paperback editions, click HERE.
TO READ ALL THE 100 per cent FIVE STAR REVIEWS ON AMAZON AND ELSEWHERE, CLICK HERE
ANGELICA’S LAST BREATH
“Try to live with the part of your soul which understands eternity, which is not afraid of death. And that part of your soul is love.”
–Leo Tolstoy
In the span of her final breath, a celebrated self-help guru confronts, absolves and ultimately transcends the disappointments and shortcomings in herself, her life story and her relationship with God.
Inspired by The Death of Ivan Ilyich, Leo Tolstoy’s 1886 masterpiece, Angelica’s Last Breath, a novel by Carol Orsborn, is as honest as it is spiritual, leading to a deeper understanding of life, death and the true meaning of love.
To Buy Angelica’s Last Breath in Kindle or Paperback Version, click HERE
To read About the Book, click HERE
To Read an Excerpt of the book, click HERE
For the Biography of the Author, click HERE
To Access the Reader’s Guide, click HERE
The Spirituality of Age: A Seeker’s Guide to Growing Older
(Coauthor Robert L. Weber, Ph.D./Inner Traditions, 10/15) was recently awarded a Gold Nautilus Book Award in the category of Consciously Aging.
The Art of Resilience
(Coauthor Robert L. Weber, Ph.D./Inner Traditions, 10/15) was recently awarded a Gold Nautilus Book Award in the category of Consciously Aging.
Fierce with Age: Chasing God and Squirrels in Brooklyn
In her 2012 memoir, Fierce with Age: Chasing God and Squirrels in Brooklyn, Carol Orsborn relates the ups and downs of a tumultuous year spent facing, busting and ultimately triumphing over the stereotypes of aging. Along the way, she nurtures a love-starved friend through a doomed affair with a younger man, wrestles with the meaning of an exploding fish and regains her passion for life at the side of her squirrel-crazed dog, Lucky.
The message is as deep as it is engaging. In Carol’s own words: “Plummet into aging, stare mortality in the eye, surrender everything and what else is there left to fear? The way is perilous, danger on all sides. But we can be part of a generation no longer afraid of age. We are becoming, instead, a generation fierce with age.”
1969: Are You Still Listening Stories and Essays
1969 Are You Still Listening? Stories & Essays was named a 2019 winner in the 13th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards.
“Author Brent Green is joined by seven professional authors, each with a well-honed memory of an aspect of tumultuous 1969… Of particular note is the entry by Carol Orsborn, Ph.D, who writes, ‘At 70… I find myself feeling gratitude for the 20 year old who, above all, committed to living life to the full, come what may’”
–Judith Wolf Mandell
65 Things to Do When You Retire
65 Notable Achievers on How to Make the Most of the Rest of Your Life
With Mark Evan Chimsky, Jimmy Carter, Gloria Steinem.
Named Best Book 2019 for Age 65, Washington Post “100 Books for the Ages.”
Sellers Publishing, 2012
Solved by Sunset
How to Resolve Whatever’s Bothering You in Seven Hours or Less
Random House, 1995
Boom
Marketing to the Ultimate Power Consumer–the Baby Boomer Woman
Mary Brown and Carol Orsborn, Ph.D. Amacom Books, October, 2006
How Would Confucius Ask for a Raise
100 Enlightened Solutions to Tough Business Problems
William Morrow & Company, 1994 and Avon Books
“Supremely useful…fresh and funny and spiritual…an easily accessible guide for helping us live fuller lives.”
John Naisbitt, author of Global Paradox
“A reference book to keep and use again and again for many years to come. The questions it answers will never change, and its wisdom is timeless.”
James Autry, author of Love & Work
Speak the Language of Healing
Conari Press
“Each of us gets our share and kind of suffering as an inevitable part of being human: what happens in us as a result makes all the difference to the psyche…This is what these authors found separately, and then in reading each others’ stories, were moved to tears with a realization of the paradox: We are alone here, and yet at a profound level, we are not alone.”
Jean Shinoda Bolen, author of Close to the Bone
The Year I Saved My (downsized) Soul:
A Boomer Woman’s Search for Meaning…and a Job
Vibrant Nation Books, October, 2009
“With humility, humor and courageous honesty, Carol Orsborn invites us along on her journey from paralyzing fear through surrender top wisdom.”
Patti Breitman, author of “How to Say No Without Feeling Guilty”
The Silver Pearl
Our Generation’s Journey to Wisdom
By Drs. Smull/Orsborn, Ampersand, 2005 www.TheSilverPearl.com
“ This excellent book is about women who defied cultural stereotypes about aging to attain full physical, psychological and spiritual potential. Their stories empower all readers, regardless of age or gender.”
Stanley Krippner, co-author of “Personal Mythology and the Mythic Path”
Nothing Left Unsaid
Words to Help You and Your Loved Ones Through the Hardest Times
Conari Press
“This is the book I give to everybody in my congregation who is suffering a loss.”
Rev. Mary Beth Speer
Trust, Inc.:
Guide to the Alignment of Values, Organizational Goals and Success
Judith Rogala and Carol Orsborn, Ph.D., 2004 Excerpt at www.TrustIncTheBook.com
“Finally…a book that gets to the very core of leadership.”
Bill Catlette, co-author of “Contented Cows Give Better Milk”
Vibrant Nation:
What Boomer Women 50+ Know, Think, Do and Buy
Stephen Reily and Carol Orsborn, Ph.D. VN Books, October, 2010.
“Anybody who wants to know about the dual, converging trends of the longevity revolution and the increasing power of women should read this book…Kudos to our colleagues Carol Orsborn and Stephen Reily.”
Ken Dychtwald and Maddy Dychtwald, “Age Wave”
