The Shelf Life of Ashes

“Wit and wisdom are the accompanying guides in Hollis Giammatteo’s well-written and fully engaging memoir about aging and death. Richly spiritual yet solidly grounded, the author guides us through her quirky and humorous vignettes of self-discovery. As we travel together we find ourselves maturing along with the author into these perennial truths. This book is highly recommended for anyone seeking deeper understanding of our basic human condition.”
—Rodney Smith, Buddhist teacher and author of Lessons from the Dying and Awakening: A Paradigm Shift of the Heart

When Hollis Giammatteo sought a job working with the elderly, she did so with the intention of finding models of healthy aging. And she failed.

In The Shelf Life of Ashes, Giammatteo chronicles her experiences with her wards, as well as the trip she embarks upon when her mother, who is convinced she is dying, entreats her to come “home.” Trips back, traumas triggered, identity in crisis, equanimity gained—this quasi-comic, concentrated journey engages the reader in the process of naming and facing the tasks involved in growing old, while asking a simple but weighted question: Can aging be done well?

Author: Hollis Giammatteo

Publication Date: May 10, 2016

Categories: Memoir, Spring 2016

Description
About the Author

Description

“Hollis Giammetteo has assembled a multi-dimensional memoir about aging that encompasses her professional work with the elderly, her Buddhist spiritual practice, her own confrontation with life-threatening illness, as well as her own dying mother. On the way she introduces us to many memorable characters and situations, bringing to vivid life all the complexities, challenges, and gifts of growing old. Readers who are themselves aging, or are caring for someone who is, will discover many inspiring lessons.”
—Lewis Richmond, author of Aging as a Spiritual Practice

“Hollis Giammatteo invites the reader to leap into the reservoir of the heart with both profound insight and engaging humor. The Shelf Life of Ashes is a journey into identity, family, aging, and death with an infusion of Buddhist compassion. A searing and unforgettable memoir.”
—Diana Y. Paul, author of Things Unsaid: A Novel

About the Author

A practicing Buddhist for over thirty years, Hollis Giammatteo has sought experiences that would challenge her practice, from teaching a method of writing to working with the elderly. She co-founded, managed and wrote plays for The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia, PA; it is thriving still. She was also a playwright in residence for the Rhode Island Feminist Theater (RIFT). This was followed by participation in a women’s peace walk, On The Line, which she wrote about in a memoir of that title. She has published in a variety of magazines: Prairie Schooner, The North American Review, Ms., Calyx, Vogue, and Women’s Sports and Fitness, among others. She has also been granted an NEA, awarded a residency at the Cottages at Hedgebrook, and received a PEN/Jerard Award, honoring “a distinguished nonfiction work-in-progress for an emerging woman writer,” for her work On the Line: Memoir of a Peace Walk. The Shelf Life of Ashes, a chapter of which was excerpted in Prairie Schooner, is her first published memoir.