Manda Carpenter is an author, speaker, advocate, and the co-host of A Longer Table Podcast, alongside her husband, Eric. Manda has written two books, the most recent being Soul Care to Save Your Life. Manda is very passionate, about “Seeing people own their full identity and do their inner work,” as she puts it. And that is exactly the kind of beautiful work she models and invites others into in her latest book. Foster care is also not only part of Manda’s family's life, but a large part of her advocacy work as well.

In today’s episode, I talk with Manda about why she’s so passionate about foster care, the importance of radical honesty in her own story, why tending to our inner world and wounding is so important, how slowing down is pivotal for self-awareness and soul work, and how beauty so often occurs in the unseen. This conversation left me feeling so grounded and encouraged. My hope is that it does the same for you.