What is it that Jane Goodall, Walt Whitman, Susan B. Anthony and Harriet Tubman all share? At first glance, the lives of these impressive people don’t have much in common. But peer a little closer and you’ll find a common denominator: all understood their gifts, found and embraced their purpose in life and made great contributions to others.

Now consider your life and these questions: What are your gifts? What is your purpose? How are you using yourgifts to contribute? If you’re longing to discover a path with more meaning and fulfillment, join longtime Enrichment instructor and purpose guide Shari Caudron for a class that will help you begin to explore these questions and connect with what the French call your raison d’etre—reason for being. Caudron holds a deep belief that in order to live a purposeful life, it’s essential to connect with and express what is uniquely yours.

To that end, and in preparation for the course, she has you read The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling by Stephen Cope. In it, Cope deconstructs the 2,000-year-old classic, the Bhagavad Gita, an ancient allegory about the path to purpose, by highlighting Western lives that embody its principles. Learn—and draw inspiration from—the stories of Goodall, Whitman, Anthony, Tubman, Robert Frost, Henry David Thoreau, Mahatma Gandhi and many others—including ordinary people working out of the spotlight. Then, Caudron helps you begin your own journey of discovery, first by reflecting on the lessons in the book and then through a series of writing exercises and discussions to help you uncover your natural gifts, reexamine your values, clarify your vision and discover your unique soul-level purpose. Enroll, learn and grow.

NOTE: This is a two-session class. The first is Saturday October 17, from 9 a.m. to noon; the second is a week later, on Saturday October 24, from 9 a.m. to noon.