I didn’t set out to write a book.
It began quietly—with a question:
Is it still possible to flourish in the final third of life?
That question arose from real life—a health challenge, a shift in time, and a desire to live fully and leave nothing undone. What I found was unexpected: hope. Not just in research, but in the lives of others who weren’t winding down, but growing deeper and more intentional.
This book is for anyone asking: What now? What next? Can this chapter be the most meaningful of all?
I’m Gordon Parry—author, coach, and fellow traveler in the “final third” of life. (You can learn more about me here.)
I’d love to share occasional insights and updates about thriving, transition, and legacy in the later seasons of life.
Subscribe and receive those updates and an announcement when my book, Along the Road: The Art of Thriving in the Third Period of Life is released.
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Recent Insights
Everybody Loves Betty: Courageous Acceptance, Holland, and a Life Lived Beloved
Everybody Loves Betty: Courageous Acceptance, Holland, and a Life Lived Beloved Last week, I reread the latest CaringBridge update from my friend...
The Transformative Power of Turning the Other Cheek
“A feeling of lack is simply a call to give.” — Gene Plumstead “It will feel better when it quits hurting.” — Ron Searcy These two insights, one...
Reclaiming Hope in the Midst of Chronic Illness
Recently, I’ve talked with friends and family dealing with chronic health issues, each of them strong, capable, and once very healthy. For all of...
Flourishing With Eyes Wide Open: The Real Story of Positive Psychology
Positive psychology is often misunderstood as a “feel-good” project centered on happiness and optimism. While this misconception is easy to repeat,...
The Return to Possibility
There was a time, not so long ago, when I found myself standing at the edge of cynicism. I was not only standing but also moving toward it. After...
Joy in the Third Period
Last week I wrote about walking with our elders, about listening instead of leading. That same posture of humility, patience, and attention is also...
Walking With Our Elders: A Challenge to Listen and Learn
In the final months of my father’s life, every moment felt like a lesson in presence, humility, and listening. As I walked alongside him, I entered...
Acorns, Oaks, and the Power of Noticing: Reclaiming Potential in Life’s Third Period
This past weekend, I tried out the advice of two voices in human flourishing, Arthur Brooks and Ellen Langer. Their message is simple but powerful:...
The Third Period of Life
One of the reasons I first began thinking about life in “thirds” came from an unexpected place: my son’s youth hockey career. He played goalie, and...
What Aging Reveals About Us
Aging is not just a personal journey; it also reflects society's values. How we treat our elders, how we discuss aging, and how we get ready for it...
The Power of Ideas that Stay With Us
When asked about three books that influenced me, my response came quickly. Some works leave a lasting impact, not because they provide easy answers,...
Why I Chose to Write About Aging
Aging is inevitable, undeniable, and deeply part of the human experience. However, despite its universality, it is often described inaccurately and...
Coming December 2025!
Along the Road:
The Art of Thriving in the Third Period of Life
Is it possible to flourish in the final third of life?
Too often, aging is framed only as decline—marked by limitations, losses, and endings. This book challenges that narrative.
Blending research in positive psychology, neuroscience, and well-being with practical tools and lived experience, Along the Road reframes the final third of life as a season of growth, meaning, and contribution. It offers frameworks for navigating life’s later chapters, exploring how mind, body, and soul can remain sources of vitality. It provides practical approaches to cultivating generativity, resilience, optimism, and wisdom—while crafting a lasting legacy and achieving a fulfilling end.
The book is both roadmap and companion: a guide for anyone entering—or already in—their mid to later years who longs not just to endure but to flourish.
“Live fully. Contribute wisely. Leave a legacy.”
Gordon Parry is an author, consultant, and coach dedicated to helping people flourish at every stage of life. A graduate of Penn’s Master of Applied Positive Psychology program and co-founder of Authentic Impact and The Hesly Center, he blends research and practice to unlock human potential. MORE ABOUT GORDON
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GORDON PARRY
12306 Emmet Street
Omaha, NE 68164
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Recent Posts
Everybody Loves Betty: Courageous Acceptance, Holland, and a Life Lived Beloved
Everybody Loves Betty: Courageous Acceptance, Holland, and a Life Lived Beloved Last week, I reread the latest CaringBridge update from my friend Betty’s sister, Mary Jo. She closed with a simple line that has become a familiar refrain: Everybody loves Betty. Every...
The Transformative Power of Turning the Other Cheek
“A feeling of lack is simply a call to give.” — Gene Plumstead “It will feel better when it quits hurting.” — Ron Searcy These two insights, one from Gene Plumstead, father of my friend, mentor, and professional colleague, the other from a man I love and admire, my...
Reclaiming Hope in the Midst of Chronic Illness
Recently, I’ve talked with friends and family dealing with chronic health issues, each of them strong, capable, and once very healthy. For all of them, the onset occurred later in life, an unexpected part of their sixties and beyond. Their stories are different, but...
Flourishing With Eyes Wide Open: The Real Story of Positive Psychology
Positive psychology is often misunderstood as a “feel-good” project centered on happiness and optimism. While this misconception is easy to repeat, it is far from reality. The field is deeply rooted in ancient philosophical traditions, grounded in rigorous science,...
The Return to Possibility
There was a time, not so long ago, when I found myself standing at the edge of cynicism. I was not only standing but also moving toward it. After decades of leading, teaching, and believing in human potential, I had lost touch with the very qualities that once...
Joy in the Third Period
Last week I wrote about walking with our elders, about listening instead of leading. That same posture of humility, patience, and attention is also the soil in which joy grows. As C. S. Lewis wrote, “Joy is the serious business of heaven.” It is not a feeling that...
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