Anyone caring for or ravaged by a chronic illness, a need for hope and healing, or an interest in spiritual exploration, will be interested in Dr. Purdy's journey. This is a soul-searching human interest story for all.
Our Sportive Origin: An Archetype for Healing (A Personal Story) is an autobiography, combining narration, journaling, and poetry to describe the life lived, being lived, by Dr. W. Randolph Purdy. At times it presents more-or-less like a stream of consciousness beginning with early childhood athletic experiences, early adulthood successes, and then the unraveling of professional and personal life due to a devastating, disabling illness. He reveals his life-long involvement in athletics, with its attendant injuries as well as its joys and values, along with his life-long need for learning. The context throughout the book focuses on the intellectual and ultimately spiritual underpinnings of athleticism. There is a cogent argument that our "sportive origin" provides the author and potentially any one of us with an archetype for healing and remembered wellness.