Foreword by Jeff Gundy    9
Author’s Preface     11

Part One: Place  •  15

Knowing One’s Place
Grandmother and the Coburgs
At the Corner of Powerline and Diamond Hill Roads
Contradictions—Insiders and Outsiders
Words and “the Word’’
Aunt Daisy
Intimations

Part Two: Fortuities  •  45

Fortuities and Convergences
California
Growing Up and Liking It
Expressing the Inexpressible
Africa—Time Out
Chaos
Home

Part Three: The Large Questions  •  71

Fate, Destiny, and Calling
Three Questions
Nudges
In a Dark Time
Dreams and Nightmares
Identity: The Education of a Mennonite Farmer’s Daughter
The Man in the Stacks
Just Say Yes

Part Four: Finding the Way  •  105

Keeping Things Straight
Learning My Mother’s Language
Laundry and Other Mysteries
The Woman Question
Speaking and Silence
Finding the Way
Convergences: the Ascending Stairs

Part Five: Seasons of the Presidency  •  129

The Accidental President
The Lady of Laughter
Alligator Alley
The Vision Thing
Only the Wisdom of Humility
Chopping Onions
Keep Me from Stupid Sins

Part Six: Life Work  •  159

For Love of the Work
Conversation at the Bathroom Sink
“Tell Me Your Plans”
Leadership: Possibilities and Limits
Rumors of Power
Life Work: The Country of Marriage
Life Work: Postscript

Epilogue  •  185

The Man in the Rain
Maggie and Cynthia
The Mind’s Life

Notes     195
Credits     199
Acknowledgements     200
The Author     202