Philip Simmons, PhD, was just 35 years old in 1993 when he learned that he had ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, a fatal neuromuscular condition that usually kills its victims in two to five years. With two young children, and at the start of a promising academic and literary career, he suddenly had to say goodbye. And by learning the art of dying he succeeded, against the odds, in learning the art of living. Already a widely published author of fiction and literary criticism, he now shares his hard-won insights in this book. Simmons tells the story of his spiritual journey with wisdom and humour, finding answers to life's deepest questions in everything from turtle behaviour to Buddhist philosophy to the mating practices of toads. He aims to show us how, no matter what life throws at us, to live lives of depth, compassion, and courage.