Playing the Second Half

Heraldo Sales Cavalcante
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Conversations and stories about life, purpose, transitions, and living the second half well. playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  1. 3d ago

    The Nine Meet

    Nine conversations. One summer. And then we met.Over the summer, I had nine conversations with nine very different people. At the end of it, we came together to reflect on what had happened - and on what we had heard in each other’s stories.We talked about loneliness, connection and community. Recovery and healing. What we choose to share — and what we keep private. Authenticity in an age of AI. Time, hope, curiosity and the generosity of telling our stories.For me, those conversations became something more than individual interviews. They became connections between people who, in many cases, had never met.And now, finally, we have.The full individual conversations - and the 18-minute Summer 2026 film with Nala and the grain fields - are all below. You can also find the complete series on the Playing the Second Half YouTube channel.What Lives Between Us - with Pontus Holmgren: Constant Remenbering - with Marie-Louise Larsson From Banking to Self-Awareness - with Tina Tornell Reinventing Myself - with Leonardo Fuks Finding Joy and Peace After Trauma - with Aminah Ådin Where the Lantern Hangs - with Steve Newman Ancora Imparo - with Henning von Beetzen The Adventure of the Spirit - with Ida Helena Rust Crisis. Healing. Leadership - with Andreas Granström Summer 2026 (18 minutes video mentioned) Viva a vida!Music licensed through Soundstripe.Endless MotionCode: UKVAJTSKOHNEOO81 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  2. Sep 12

    What Is Playing the Second Half?

    Playing the Second Half is about lived stories, not recipes for how to live.Through personal reflections, conversations and films, I explore the many second halves we experience in life - the ones we choose and the ones life chooses for us.A place for curiosity, connection, time, change and people trying, in their own way, to live a good life.Viva a vida!Music licensed through Soundstripe.Endless MotionCode: XZJ69AQVUOZYBUR5 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  3. Sep 5

    The Forest

    For ten years, the little forest behind our house was simply there.We threw garden waste over the hawthorn. An old and rather sinister bird trap stood hidden among the trees. Parts of it were overgrown and forgotten.We bought it after a long process.Then we started clearing it.What began as weeks of cleaning, cutting and carrying slowly became something completely different - a place I began to know, care for and spend time in.Along the way there were chainsaws, ravens, a little Nordic mythology, Rachmaninoff - and eventually three hammocks among the trees.This is a story about a small forest. But perhaps also about what happens when we begin to pay attention to something that has been beside us all along.Playing the Second Half.Viva a vida!Music licensed through Soundstripe.Beethoven’s 5th GradeCode: RA0HH0FJZUQXVS4A, Lucky DuckCode: CYIIJQVAHTVFEIWRSergei Rachmaninoff — Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18II. Adagio sostenutoRecording: MusopenSource: Wikimedia CommonsRecording released into the public domain by Musopen.#PlayingTheSecondHalf #TheForest #Nature #LifeAfter60 #SecondHalfOfLife #Sweden #VivaAVida This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  4. Aug 29

    The Photobooth – and the Look in Those Eyes

    There are moments when you can see happiness in someone’s eyes. Moments when you can see sadness. And there are moments when you simply don’t know. This is a story about my daughter Maria, a memory from when she was little, and a day we recently spent together in Malmö. A train journey. A beautiful city. A restaurant she had long wanted to visit. An unexpected first job interview in her new career. And, at the end of the day, a photobooth. A small story about parenthood, what we sometimes fail to see in the people we love, and those wonderful moments when happiness becomes impossible to miss. Playing the Second Half. Viva a vida! PlaytimeMusic licensed through Soundstripe.Code: 4C8QJHXMITQ2HNI7 Lucky DuckMusic licensed through Soundstripe Code: GKNSFUXZM6SFH7OMSunrise Music Licensed through SoundstripeCode: CL2C3VG5DLFNV8HR RadiantMusic Licensed through SoundstripeCode: PXWTOBJWE6Z94K3G This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  5. Aug 22

    Summer 2026

    Nine Saturdays. Nine stories. One unforgettable summer.I never imagined that Playing the Second Half - Summer 2026 would become something that, in many ways, changed me as a person.Nine very different lives.Stories of crisis, healing, reinvention, adventure, contentment, curiosity, community - and what it means to keep playing the many second halves of life.In this film, I look back at one moment from each conversation that meant something special to me.Some made me laugh. Some made me think. And some moved me deeply.I laughed a lot this summer. And yes, sometimes I cried after these conversations. But never out of sadness. Out of admiration.And perhaps one of the most beautiful things happened afterwards.Henning shared his conversation with his daughter, who was deeply moved by it. Marie-Louise shared hers with her mother, opening new conversations between them.That was when I began to understand that perhaps these conversations had become something more than I imagined when I started.Thank you, Pontus, Marie-Louise, Tina, Leonardo, Aminah, Steve, Henning, Ida and Andreas, for trusting me with your stories.Thank you for making this summer so special.And for changing my life.Viva a Vida! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

  6. Aug 15

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #12: Crisis. Healing. Leadership - with Andreas Granström

    And here we are. Our Episode 9 with Andreas Granström and indeed a Grand Finale! Crisis. Healing. Leadership - was the theme chosen by Andreas. Crisis – Diagnosed with Bipolar Type I, Andreas had to fight through periods of depression and mania. It was so courageous and moving to hear him so openly describe his struggles. Healing – Father of four, a loving father and an impressing work life and career. What defines Andreas is not his diagnosis but the belief that we should never be prisoners of our existing thought behaviour. Learn more about that and his path to healing. And finally, Leadership. Honestly, having worked with Executive Development myself, I thought I had seen all different sorts of perspectives about leadership. But what Andreas means and believes leadership is all about is the most powerful perspective I have ever witnessed. Enjoy this conversation. Afterwards it took me a while, and I must admit I cried quite a bit of admiration. This is the end of the Summer series…well, no way. Hope you, like Churchill, also think that: “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” Viva a vida! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #12: Crisis. Healing. Leadership - with Andreas Granström

  7. Aug 8

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #11: The Adventure of the Spirit

    Wow! Our Episode 8 takes us to the Azores for a fascinating conversation with Ida and The Adventure of the Spirit. A conversation about what it means to keep becoming. So many second halves in one remarkable life. Dutch team chess champion at the age of 12. Theatre, photography and filmmaking. Philosophy and high-tech. A break in Mongolia to ride horses across the open steppe. And eventually, the Azores. From there, Ida is now exploring one of the biggest questions of our time through her PhD: Human Critical Thinking and Creativity and the Rise of the Artificial Superintelligence God. What does it mean to be human in the age of AI? And how do we continue to think critically, creatively and deeply in a world increasingly shaped by intelligent machines? What struck me most, however, was not Ida’s impressive journey or her remarkable intellect. It was her curiosity, her openness to life, and her willingness to keep choosing adventure over certainty. I have rarely met someone so intellectually curious and so passionate about life. I have a feeling you too will fall in love with Ida during this conversation. Enjoy Episode 8 of the Summer Series. Nine Saturdays. Nine Stories. Nine Wonderful People. Viva a vida! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #11: The Adventure of the Spirit

  8. Aug 1

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #10: Ancora Imparo with Henning von Beetzen

    I met Henning only once, face to face. He arrived at my summer house in his beautiful Aston Martin, together with Sana, a friend of my wife Annika. We had dinner, they stayed overnight, and during that short time, I simply felt that I wanted Henning to be part of the Summer Series. And I was so right to trust that instinct. What does it mean to keep learning throughout an entire life? Henning chose the words Ancora imparo - “I am still learning” - as the theme of our conversation. He spent 40 years with DHL, joining when the company was still largely unknown in Sweden and growing with it into the global organization it is today. But this conversation is not mainly about his career. It is about what comes next. After losing several people close to him far too early, Henning decided to leave work while he still had the time and health to explore life in a different way. Today, he is learning Italian, playing the saxophone with his daughter, restoring an old wooden sailing boat, caring for the island that has been part of his life since childhood - and, yes, enjoying his beautiful Aston Martin. But perhaps the most important thing he is learning is something much simpler: how to be content. How to appreciate what is already here. And how to give something back. This is a warm conversation about curiosity, friendship, family, retirement, and the preciousness of time. Enjoy my conversation with Henning von Beetzen. Viva a vida! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

    Playing the Second Half - Conversation #10: Ancora Imparo with Henning von Beetzen
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About

Conversations and stories about life, purpose, transitions, and living the second half well. playingthesecondhalf.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Heraldo Sales Cavalcante
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    17
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Heraldo Sales Cavalcante
  • Show Website
    Playing the Second Half