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Kate Bowler
  • ABOUTExpand

    • Meet Kate

      Hi, I’m Kate. I’m a Duke professor, podcaster, and author with a single mission: giving you permission to feel human. After years of being told I was incurable, I was declared cancer-free. But there’s no going back. I am forever changed by what I discovered: life is so beautiful and life is so hard. For everyone.

      ABOUT KATE

      Get to Know Me

      HUMAN
      AUTHOR
      PODCAST HOST
      SPEAKER

      How to Connect

      NEWSLETTER
      BOOKING
      EVENTS
      CONTACT
      PRESS
      Kate Bowler sitting in front of books

  • PODCASTExpand

    • Everything Happens.

      Are you living your best life now? Not always? This is a podcast for you. Duke Professor Kate Bowler is an expert in the stories we tell about success and failure, suffering and happiness. She had Stage IV cancer. Then she didn’t. And since then, all she wants to do is talk to funny and wise people about how to live with the knowledge that, well, everything happens. 

      See All Episodes
      Tomáš Halík

      Doubt, Depth, and the Future of Belief

      Listen Now Doubt, Depth, and the Future of Belief
      Nadia Bolz-Weber | Sarah Bessey

       How to Love the World Anyway

      Listen Now  How to Love the World Anyway
      Jenny Lawson | Rhett McLaughlin

      Joy, Absurdity, and the Weird Ways We Survive  

      Listen Now Joy, Absurdity, and the Weird Ways We Survive  

      Joyful Anyway (Yes, Even Now)

      Listen Now Joyful Anyway (Yes, Even Now)
  • BOOKSExpand

    • Books

      Let’s untangle our culture’s obsession with toxic positivity and self-help, shall we? Kate studies the cultural stories we tell ourselves about success, suffering, and whether (or not) we’re capable of change. She is the author of seven books including three instant New York Times bestsellers.

      All Books

      Joyful, Anyway

      Everything Happens for a Reason

      (And Other Lies I’ve Loved)

      Have a Beautiful Terrible Day!

      Daily Meditations for the Ups, Downs & In-Betweens

      No Cure for Being Human

      (And Other Truths I Need to Hear)

  • RESOURCESExpand

    • Resources

      Our goal with Everything Happens is to create rich language and vibrant community that sustains us when life comes apart. Below, you’ll find categories that may be good starting points for you. Inside are a mix of podcasts, blessings, support guides, and bonus resources that we hope will be useful.

      ALL RESOURCES

      Types

      BLESSINGS
      DEVOTIONALS
      SUPPORT GUIDES
      COURSES
      FREE DOWNLOADS
      Discussion Guides
      FOR MINISTRY

      Topics

      ILLNESS
      GRIEF
      WHAT NOT TO SAY
      RESILIENT FAITH
      INSPIRING LIVES

      NUANCED HOPE
      CARING AT HOME
      CARING AT WORK
      COMPLICATED FAMILIES
      MOVING FORWARD

  • MERCHExpand
    • Sweatshirts
    • Shirts
    • Hats
    • Goodies
  • SUBSTACK
Kate Bowler
Kate Bowler

Raising a Rare Girl by Heather Lanier

Discussion Questions

More Like This

Far from the Tree by Andrew Solomon

Option B by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant

Leaving Church by Barbara Brown Taylor

A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis

All BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

Every week I usually forget most of the basics:
a) you are loved. b) life is absurd. c) it’s hard to be a human.

If you want some smart, kind, and funny encouragement to get you through your week, sign up for my newsletter. I’d love to be your reminder. 

Follow along on socials

@katecbowler

In case you need a little reminder that despair is loud, but you can be louder.

Tag the person (or people) that have sat IN IT with you.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 17891277366470753
In case you need a little reminder that despair is loud, but you can be louder.Tag the person (or people) that have sat IN IT with you.

2 suitcases. 18 events. 3 countries.

Was I excited to pack up my whole life for a 35-day book tour? Absolutely. Did I have any idea how to do it? I did not.

The last time I went on tour, I wore the same pink suit to approximately every event and simply trusted the Lord and dry cleaning.

But this time I had help.

Enter Anne (@anneherring_), my social media gal and style enthusiast, who gently convinced me that a little strategy could go a long way. Together we built a tiny touring wardrobe around:
• a color palette that matched the book cover
• silhouettes that still felt like me — teacher, writer, person carrying twelve snacks in a tote bag
• pieces that could survive airports, green rooms, interviews, faculty meetings, and the general emotional weather of travel

And honestly, it worked. I never once had the 5:42 PM hotel-room experience of staring at my suitcase like it had personally betrayed me.

Also: the women who did my hair and makeup along the way were extraordinary and they SHOWED UP. Every one tagged in these photos made me feel cared for, and ready for the night ahead.

If you’re looking for people who are deeply good at what they do — and lovely while doing it — follow them. I came home with a better lip stain and the confidence to wear white in public. Groundbreaking.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 18095812286165227
2 suitcases. 18 events. 3 countries.Was I excited to pack up my whole life for a 35-day book tour? Absolutely. Did I have any idea how to do it? I did not.The last time I went on tour, I wore the same pink suit to approximately every event and simply trusted the Lord and dry cleaning.But this time I had help.Enter Anne (@anneherring_), my social media gal and style enthusiast, who gently convinced me that a little strategy could go a long way. Together we built a tiny touring wardrobe around: • a color palette that matched the book cover • silhouettes that still felt like me — teacher, writer, person carrying twelve snacks in a tote bag • pieces that could survive airports, green rooms, interviews, faculty meetings, and the general emotional weather of travelAnd honestly, it worked. I never once had the 5:42 PM hotel-room experience of staring at my suitcase like it had personally betrayed me.Also: the women who did my hair and makeup along the way were extraordinary and they SHOWED UP. Every one tagged in these photos made me feel cared for, and ready for the night ahead.If you’re looking for people who are deeply good at what they do — and lovely while doing it — follow them. I came home with a better lip stain and the confidence to wear white in public. Groundbreaking.

You know the old saying, "What doesn`t kill you..."

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 18102260222095996
You know the old saying, "What doesn't kill you..."

To the graduates (or anyone in transition), may you be spared the courage to have it all mapped out, and given the courage to begin anyway in a world where Everything Happens.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 18072070322441013
To the graduates (or anyone in transition), may you be spared the courage to have it all mapped out, and given the courage to begin anyway in a world where Everything Happens.

Despair has a way of taking up all the air in the room right now—loud, insistent, impossible to ignore. But then something breaks through anyway. Joy does that. It doesn’t wait for things to get better or make sense. It just slips in and reminds us, almost stubbornly, that this life—complicated, aching, unfinished—is still worth loving.

Thank you to @peopleiveloved for bringing a part of my book to life in a way I never could.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 17966507472113534
Despair has a way of taking up all the air in the room right now—loud, insistent, impossible to ignore. But then something breaks through anyway. Joy does that. It doesn’t wait for things to get better or make sense. It just slips in and reminds us, almost stubbornly, that this life—complicated, aching, unfinished—is still worth loving.Thank you to @peopleiveloved for bringing a part of my book to life in a way I never could.

I’ve been on the road talking to readers and one thing keeps coming up — we’ve all been looking for joy in the wrong places.

So I made a list of what we actually know to be true. Dog-eared books. Hard-won friendships. The quiet relief of feeling less alone.

This is for everyone who showed up. 🖤

Comment TRUE and I’ll send you the link.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 18085689176613746
I’ve been on the road talking to readers and one thing keeps coming up — we’ve all been looking for joy in the wrong places.So I made a list of what we actually know to be true. Dog-eared books. Hard-won friendships. The quiet relief of feeling less alone.This is for everyone who showed up. 🖤Comment TRUE and I’ll send you the link.

Giving honesty without toxic positivity?? Slay.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 17867042178618960
Giving honesty without toxic positivity?? Slay.

You can’t gratitude-journal your way into joy.
But you can wander into it—if you’re willing to be interrupted.

Book tour proved that to me.

Here are a few small California moments that broke through the usual noise and reminded me I’m alive—and, somehow, not invisible.

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Open post by katecbowler with ID 18054644045743816
You can’t gratitude-journal your way into joy. But you can wander into it—if you’re willing to be interrupted.Book tour proved that to me.Here are a few small California moments that broke through the usual noise and reminded me I’m alive—and, somehow, not invisible.

 

If you are reading this you have great eyesight. But also, thanks for being a person with me. The world is strange and hard for soft-hearted humans, but I think you’re a delight.

© 2026 Kate Bowler
Development by Penner Web Design

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grief
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what not to say
moving forward
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  • ABOUT

    • Meet Kate

      Hi, I’m Kate. I’m a Duke professor, podcaster, and author with a single mission: giving you permission to feel human. After years of being told I was incurable, I was declared cancer-free. But there’s no going back. I am forever changed by what I discovered: life is so beautiful and life is so hard. For everyone.

      ABOUT KATE

      Get to Know Me

      HUMAN
      AUTHOR
      PODCAST HOST
      SPEAKER

      How to Connect

      NEWSLETTER
      BOOKING
      EVENTS
      CONTACT
      PRESS
      Kate Bowler sitting in front of books

  • PODCAST

    • Everything Happens.

      Are you living your best life now? Not always? This is a podcast for you. Duke Professor Kate Bowler is an expert in the stories we tell about success and failure, suffering and happiness. She had Stage IV cancer. Then she didn’t. And since then, all she wants to do is talk to funny and wise people about how to live with the knowledge that, well, everything happens. 

      See All Episodes
      Tomáš Halík

      Doubt, Depth, and the Future of Belief

      Listen Now Doubt, Depth, and the Future of Belief
      Nadia Bolz-Weber | Sarah Bessey

       How to Love the World Anyway

      Listen Now  How to Love the World Anyway
      Jenny Lawson | Rhett McLaughlin

      Joy, Absurdity, and the Weird Ways We Survive  

      Listen Now Joy, Absurdity, and the Weird Ways We Survive  

      Joyful Anyway (Yes, Even Now)

      Listen Now Joyful Anyway (Yes, Even Now)
  • BOOKS

    • Books

      Let’s untangle our culture’s obsession with toxic positivity and self-help, shall we? Kate studies the cultural stories we tell ourselves about success, suffering, and whether (or not) we’re capable of change. She is the author of seven books including three instant New York Times bestsellers.

      All Books

      Joyful, Anyway

      Everything Happens for a Reason

      (And Other Lies I’ve Loved)

      Have a Beautiful Terrible Day!

      Daily Meditations for the Ups, Downs & In-Betweens

      No Cure for Being Human

      (And Other Truths I Need to Hear)

  • RESOURCES

    • Resources

      Our goal with Everything Happens is to create rich language and vibrant community that sustains us when life comes apart. Below, you’ll find categories that may be good starting points for you. Inside are a mix of podcasts, blessings, support guides, and bonus resources that we hope will be useful.

      ALL RESOURCES

      Types

      BLESSINGS
      DEVOTIONALS
      SUPPORT GUIDES
      COURSES
      FREE DOWNLOADS
      Discussion Guides
      FOR MINISTRY

      Topics

      ILLNESS
      GRIEF
      WHAT NOT TO SAY
      RESILIENT FAITH
      INSPIRING LIVES

      NUANCED HOPE
      CARING AT HOME
      CARING AT WORK
      COMPLICATED FAMILIES
      MOVING FORWARD

  • MERCH
    • Sweatshirts
    • Shirts
    • Hats
    • Goodies
  • SUBSTACK