Linger Here — Season One: Wintering

Selected Bibliography & Influences

Foundational Text for the Series

• Kerry Parsons. Linger: The Art of Presence
  → A core text for the podcast series. This work frames presence as a spiritual discipline rooted in attentiveness, embodiment, and honest staying. It establishes the theological and practical grammar of Linger Here, especially its emphasis on lingering as resistance to urgency, honoring ordinary moments, and practicing faith at human pace. The Wintering season draws directly from this work’s commitment to embodied awareness, grief-honest spirituality, and quiet formation.
  
  

Grief, Suffering, & Honest Faith

• Kate Bowler. Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved
  → A cornerstone text for rejecting spiritual bypassing and prosperity theology.

• Kate Bowler & Jessica Richie. Good Enough: 40ish Devotionals for a Life of Imperfection
  → Gentle liturgies for tired people; deeply aligned with Quiet Well tone.

• Henri Nouwen. The Wounded Healer
  → Theological grounding for accompaniment rather than fixing.

• Shelly Rambo. Spirit and Trauma: A Theology of Remaining
  → Essential for understanding faith that stays with devastation rather than rushing resurrection.

Trauma, the Body, & Somatic Wisdom

• Bessel van der Kolk. The Body Keeps the Score
  → Foundational for Episode Four: The Body as a Prayer.

• Peter A. Levine. Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma
  → Gentle, body-led healing that respects pacing and nervous system wisdom.

• Resmaa Menakem. My Grandmother’s Hands
  → Somatic awareness, safety, and embodied presence across generations.

• Deb Dana. Anchored: How to Befriend Your Nervous System
  → Practical nervous-system language without clinical coldness.

Contemplative Spirituality & Winter Wisdom

• John O'Donohue. To Bless the Space Between Us
  → Poetic theology of thresholds, belonging, and seasons.

• John O'Donohue. Anam Cara
  → Spiritual companionship, soul-friendship, and quiet presence.

• Parker J. Palmer. Let Your Life Speak
  → Discernment through listening rather than striving.

• Belden C. Lane. The Solace of Fierce Landscapes
  → Wilderness, silence, and the spirituality of harsh seasons.
  
  

Embodiment, Prayer, & Presence

• Tilden Edwards. Spiritual Friend
  → A model of non-directive, presence-based spiritual accompaniment.

• Richard Rohr. Falling Upward
  → Spiritual maturity through descent, loss, and unknowing.

• Esther de Waal. Living with Contradiction
  → Benedictine rhythms and faithful ambiguity.
  
  

Optional Companion Texts (Highly Aligned)

• Francis Weller. The Wild Edge of Sorrow

• Krista Tippett. Becoming Wise

• Pema Chödrön. When Things Fall Apart
  (Interfaith resonance; grief-honest without bypassing)