Creative expression is a powerful way to process the losses in our lives- and sometimes takes unusual forms. For Carol Finizza, trying to understand her daughter's addiction led her to write a murder mystery. How did writing about a crime help? Was she able to understand more fully her daughter's (and her own) experience? Join us to uncover the mystery behind the mystery!

How do our deepest experiences guide our lives after? For i.b. casey cui, a cancer diagnosis at a young age sent her life in a different direction than anyone expected, ultimately helping her to defy the demands of her family and become a writer instead of an attorney. Her novel, Groovy Girl, incorporates elements of her own story to tell a tale of immigration, family pressures and perils, and what cancer and all of its challenges can lead to!

The profound experience of love and loss often lead an artist to a deep need to create. In fact, mourning itself is a creative process, helping us to evolve into our new selves. For Corey Madden and her husband, facing his end, capturing their relationship in a podcast offered the opportunity to express what they meant to each other, leaving a record of a deep love. The act of creating out of their loss was meaningful for both of them, and especially for Corey after her husband's death!

Nothing prepares a mother for hearing that their child is transgender. Along with protectiveness and confusion comes the stunning fact that the picture you had of your child must die and a new one take its place. Paria Hassouri faced this process when her child let her know she was a girl at 14. How did she not know? How would she protect her? How would they navigate the change; in their family, and in the world? Answering these questions would change all of them and deepen their love in ways they couldn't have predicted. This week, we'll talk with Paria about what she found during her child's transition.

Kelley Skoloda was a very healthy woman until she was diagnosed with cancer. Along with the brutal treatment came a new way of looking at her life. As a successful MBA with a thriving career, adjusting to a period of health challenge felt out of step. However, over time she applied her considerable skills to navigating her cancer and ultimately becoming a support for others going through cancer and treatment. Join us as we talk about what happened, what helped her, and what didn't.

When Gina Harris' parents died, she tried to stay connected to them through memory and music. As a jazz singer, over time she began to sing her sorrow, and her healing. The music that came out of this deep place in her led her to offer it to others, in performances and a podcast series dedicated to them and to her own grief process. Join us as we talk about what compelled her to create the series and how it helped her to move forward after loss.

How does a lifelong spiritual seeker face a serious cancer diagnosis? She commits to learning all she can from the experience. She gathers a team together of medical professionals, friends, healers and supporters who form a solid ground beneath her. She shares her experience for the benefit of others. She deepens her commitment to living in the moment and living life fully. She eliminates everything from her life that does not express what her heart is trying to communicate. She takes chances and tries new things. She observes. She loves herself through it. Be inspired by Bridgett Perry, coach and blogger, who truly lives with cancer!

Karen V. Johnson, a successful judge promised a lifetime appointment, was sure she would continue living the same way indefinitely. But when her son died of a heroin overdose she soon realized everything needed to change. Setting off on a quest to sooth her overwhelming grief, she found her way over time to a life she had never imagined, full of rich spiritual experiences, new practices and a freedom she had never allowed herself. Join us as we talk about how she learned to follow her own inner guide and leave behind what she had been taught to do- succeed and listen to others!

Little House on the Prairie personified a simple, pioneering and wholesome lifestyle, bringing love and family into our living rooms. It is still loved around the world long after the series ended. But what of the real people who created and starred in the show? Karen Grassle had struggled with building her acting career but was finding success in New York. She never imagined herself on t.v. until she was offered the role of Ma. How did her own struggles impact her in those years and how did she fight to be recognized as a costar- including the pay that should go along with it? Join us as we talk about her father's alcoholism (and her own) her passion for acting and a behind the scenes look at the iconic Little House on the Prairie. All these experiences led to a deep passion for women's rights.

When Rachel Michelberg's husband crashed into a vineyard, suffering a severe brain injury, she'd been thinking about leaving the marriage and even entertaining the idea of an affair. How would she find it within her to take care of him and their children? Shouldn't a wife naturally rise to the occasion? But she didn't feel able to do so. She faced her own judgement and disdain from some of the people around her (especially his family). In the process of coming to terms with what she could and couldn't do, she learned the power of supporting herself and being honest with herself about what was best for her, and maybe even the rest of her family!