The GILY Pod

Bonus: The One on Where We Come From

Listen Later
Bonus — The One on Where We Come From

In this bonus episode of GILY, Devany and Meredith offer a warm welcome — in the old English sense: you are a desired guest. From that same spirit of hospitality, they share their stories. Meredith moves from evangelical certainty through postpartum collapse to energy work, the Fourth Way, and a living, clear-eyed Christianity. Devany reflects on her contemplative roots, a season inside evangelicalism after grief, and how stillness, Centering Prayer, and decolonially informed somatics continue to guide her home to her own voice.

Together they trace the spiral of deconstruction — funny, humbling, sometimes self-righteous — reclaim Jesus beyond punitive theology, and name their shared lens: we start where it hurts and stay for the healing — mind, body, spirit, community, and land. We hope you feel welcome in your own story, too.

Gentle note: Strong language at times — use care if little ears are nearby.

Takeaways
  • Welcome = desired guest — your story and questions belong here.
  • Deconstruction is a spiral — certainty can feel safe; humility keeps us awake.
  • The body is a teacher — pain and fatigue can guide us home.
  • Stillness steadies — contemplation widens compassion.
  • Many paths, one Source — Love runs through them all.
    • Sound Bites

    “We’re done tidying our souls for anyone.”

    “I had been borrowing someone else’s motherhood.”
    “All of you is welcome here — your tears, your growls, your weird movements.”
    “I stopped outsourcing certainty — and started listening in.”
    “If you want to hear yourself, turn up the silence.”

    Terms as We Understand Them Today
    • Contemplation — A long, loving look at the real; stillness that widens perception.

    • Fourth Way (Gurdjieff/Ouspensky) — Awakening through the intellectual, emotional, and moving centers — monks in the world, not the monastery.

    • Self-Observation / Non-Identification / Self-Remembering — Noticing thoughts, loosening attachment to them, remembering essence.

    • Somatics — From the Greek soma (living body). A way of understanding and practicing life through the body as an intelligent, adaptive, interdependent system — shaped by family, community, culture, land, Spirit, and relationship. Modern somatic practice is deeply informed by the survival wisdom of Black, Indigenous, and other marginalized peoples who have used body-based knowing to endure, heal, and resist oppression. 

      • Devany’s somatic journey has been shaped by Sonya Renee Taylor, Staci K. Haines, Dra. Rocío Rosales Meza, and mentor Marisa Guadalupe, with learning also supported by The Embody Lab.


      • Deconstruction — Unraveling belief systems and power structures; humility over certainty.

        • We also mention Thomas Keating (Centering Prayer), the Fourth Way, Four Winds/Andean-informed teachings, Human Design, and The Trevor Project (LGBTQ+ youth crisis support).

        Books We Read Together (COVID Book Club)
        • The Universal Christ — Richard Rohr
        • The Wisdom Jesus — Cynthia Bourgeault
        • Untamed — Glennon Doyle
        • The Way of Integrity — Martha Beck

          • 🌱 A Gentle Reminder

          We share from lived story and practice. This isn’t medical, mental-health, or legal advice. Use your own discernment and seek professional support as needed. Care for yourself as you listen. Take what resonates; leave the rest.

          Invitations

          • Come Home to Your Center (Illumine Within) — Devany’s Centering Circles offer stillness, somatic grounding, Centering Prayer, and reflective listening. Explore offerings at illuminewithin.com.

            • Energetic Support (Hibernate Healing) — Meredith offers energy work and spiritual guidance in Austin or online. (Rebrand in progress; sessions available now.) www.sparklecirclehealing.com

            ...more
            View all episodesView all episodes
            Download on the App Store
            The GILY PodBy GILY!