DANIELLE MARIE VANDEHEI: SAILING TOWARD A MORE INTENTIONAL LIFE

What if a vacation could do more than help you escape? What if it helped you reconnect with yourself, strengthen your family, and return home with a new perspective?

In this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Danielle Marie Vandehei, a nomadic, world-schooling mother who lives aboard a sailboat with her husband and young son. Danielle shares how her family left conventional life behind and discovered a new understanding of home, education, freedom, and purpose.

Their journey began during the COVID era. Danielle was working long hours at a job she disliked while missing valuable time with her son. Her husband was also frequently away for work, and they realized their routine was keeping them from the life they wanted.

Instead of accepting it, they sold nearly everything, purchased a 27-foot sailboat, and learned how to sail. After practicing in Florida’s Port Charlotte Harbor and traveling to Key West and the Dry Tortugas, they moved onto a larger liveaboard boat. Their adventures have since taken them through Honduras, Belize, Bocas del Toro, and the San Blas Islands of Panama.

Danielle explains how world schooling transforms travel into education. Her son learns through cultural immersion, nature, practical experience, and his interests. He has developed skills in fishing, preparing food, building fires, recognizing marine life, and entrepreneurship. Traditional subjects remain part of his education, but curiosity and real-world participation guide the process.

That philosophy inspired Water World Micro Expeditions. Danielle’s family welcomes one small family at a time aboard their sailboat for an experience that goes beyond an ordinary tropical vacation. Guests explore the San Blas Islands while learning about sailing, marine life, ocean conservation, sustainability, and intentional living.

There is no rigid itinerary. Families may snorkel, fish, explore an island, study the wind, learn to handle ropes, practice breathwork, journal, or rest beneath the sun. If someone needs another quiet day instead of another sail, the plans change. Mother Nature runs the clock—and she does not accept meeting invitations.

Danielle also discusses living together in close quarters. Every family member needs personal space. That might mean swimming, paddling, journaling, practicing Kundalini, working on the boat, fishing, or visiting other boating families. The lifestyle requires communication, patience, flexibility, and healthy boundaries.

Some of their greatest experiences could never have been scheduled: watching eagle rays beneath the boat, swimming near sea turtles, encountering a seven- or eight-foot nurse shark, and seeing hundreds of newly hatched baby turtles surround their vessel. These moments strengthened Danielle’s gratitude and revealed the extraordinary world beneath the ocean’s surface.

Sailing has taught the family to cooperate with nature instead of trying to control it. Weather windows change, destinations must wait, and everyone must adapt. Four-day ocean passages demand endurance, discipline, and trust. For Danielle, being far from land also creates the stillness needed to look inward and ask deeper questions about purpose.

Danielle hopes to expand Water World Micro Expeditions, move to a larger boat, keep an expedition operating in San Blas, and eventually circumnavigate the globe. Her son dreams of visiting the Great Barrier Reef, while Danielle hopes to sail to French Polynesia.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why Danielle’s family sold everything and learned to sail

Danielle leaves listeners with a powerful reminder: You can accomplish what you want when you open yourself to possibility, find the right support, and pursue your life with intention.

Connect with Danielle:

Instagram: @legacy_throughmotherhood

Bring peace and love into your life. When necessary, bring a bat, hit your sweet spot, bring awesome thoughts, and live your best life.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #UncleDave #DanielleMarieVandehei #WaterWorldMicroExpeditions #WorldSchooling #SailingLife #IntentionalLiving #FamilyTravel #OceanConservation #MindfulTravel

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CJ MONEYWAY: KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN AND BUILD BRICK BY BRICK

What are you paying attention to—and what truths have you chosen not to see?

In this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Corwin “CJ Moneyway” Johnson, host of The CJ Moneyway Show, author, speaker, entrepreneur, and faith-driven storyteller. CJ shares how fatherhood, adversity, discipline, and faith transformed his life.

CJ grew up in Gary, Indiana, with parents who provided love, faith, structure, and discipline. He did not always appreciate those lessons, but they created a foundation he would need during one of his most challenging seasons.

In the late 1990s, CJ faced the consequences of his choices while preparing to become a father to multiple children. Overwhelmed and uncertain, he searched for answers. One day, his father found him reading the Bible and knew something was wrong. CJ now sees that moment as God calling him back to solid ground. In 2000, he began reading Scripture for himself and viewing his purpose through different eyes.

CJ explains the meaning behind Both Eyes Open, Both Eyes Shut. Many people keep their eyes open to society’s glitz, money, popularity, and attention while closing them to faith, character, and purpose. He compares his earlier decisions to building a house on sand: whenever pressure arrived, everything collapsed. Today, he is building his life on rock.

Uncle Dave and CJ discuss why Being Authentic Today requires honesty about mistakes, weaknesses, ego, and unfinished work. Growth does not come from pretending to have all the answers. It happens brick by brick through consistency, accountability, feedback, and the willingness to continue after disappointment.

That approach helped CJ build The CJ Moneyway Show into a podcast ranked among the top two percent globally. Still, rankings are not his reason for doing the work. Impact matters more than applause. Victory happens when listeners recognize their own story and return because the message helped them.

CJ also reveals the hidden work behind success. Audiences see the finished podcast, book, interview, or post, but rarely see the preparation, editing, thumbnails, setbacks, and long hours. Lasting success means showing up when no one is watching or encouraging you.

Faith guides The CJ Moneyway Show, Both Eyes Open, Both Eyes Shut, Faith Through Trial, and his book, Planting Seeds with CJ. He believes meaningful conversations happen when people remove their masks and speak honestly.

The conversation also explores choosing the right voices during difficult seasons. Not everyone has the wisdom or empathy to guide you. Some respond by projecting their own experiences onto you. Genuine support requires listening, compassion, honesty, and a foundation stronger than personal opinion.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why discipline builds lasting legacies

CJ closes with a reminder from Psalm 23: We are meant to walk through the valley—not build a house there. Difficult seasons are real, but they are not permanent addresses. Tear down the house you built in the valley, keep walking, and rebuild on stronger ground.

Connect with CJ:

Social Media: @CJMoneyway

Bring peace and love into your life. When necessary, bring a bat, stand for what matters, bring your awesome thoughts, and hit your sweet spot.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #UncleDave #CJMoneyway #Faith #Discipline #Purpose #AuthenticLiving #BrickByBrick

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Uncle Dave welcomes Alecia Iwanchuk, founder of Intentions Yoga, somatic yoga coach, Kundalini yoga teacher, and wellness guide based in Saskatoon, Canada, for a thoughtful conversation about yoga, breathwork, self-love, nervous-system regulation, trauma healing, and learning how to reconnect with the wisdom of the body.

Alecia shares how her journey began with a gradual spiritual awakening around 2012. She started questioning the stories and systems around her, but eventually realized that focusing only on what was happening outside of her did not provide the healing or direction she needed. Her deeper transformation began when she turned inward.

Yoga first entered her life through a gym class in 2015. She did not begin with a spiritual goal. She simply wanted to exercise. Over time, however, the practice changed the way she responded to stress, conflict, and emotional intensity.

Alecia recalls a defining moment during an argument with her former husband. Instead of becoming completely lost inside the conflict, she suddenly recognized where her energy ended and his began. She could observe what was happening without becoming fully entangled in it. That moment showed her that yoga was doing much more than increasing flexibility—it was creating clarity, awareness, and emotional space.

Following her divorce and the disruption of the pandemic, Alecia committed more deeply to her own healing. She completed yoga teacher training, launched Intentions Yoga, and eventually left a 17-year corporate career to build a soul-led business centered on helping others develop a healthier relationship with themselves.

Alecia explains that “holding space” means creating an environment where people feel safe enough to explore what is happening within them. They are allowed to cry, slow down, feel, question, and go deeper without pressure or judgment. The coach or teacher does not force healing. They create the conditions in which healing can become possible.

A major theme of the episode is the nervous system. When someone has unresolved pain inside, that pain often searches for a way to express itself through relationships, reactions, tension, or emotional triggers. As the nervous system becomes calmer, people gain the ability to witness what is happening instead of automatically reacting.

Alecia describes how she now notices difficult information moving through her body without the same clenching or panic she once experienced. This did not happen through one dramatic breakthrough. It came through disciplined practice, including meditation, yoga, breathwork, mantras, mudras, and intentional 40-day commitments.

The conversation also explores self-love. David shares how being asked whether he loved himself felt like hearing a question in another language. He had lived more than 50 years without recognizing self-love as something he was allowed to practice.

Alecia explains that self-love can be approached through the body and energy system. In her work, she may use heart-centered movement, intentional postures, breath, chanting, and focused awareness to help people connect with feelings they cannot always reach through thought alone.

Healing may not arrive during the session itself. Sometimes a person practices consistently and then, on an ordinary Tuesday, realizes that something inside has shifted.

Alecia also introduces the idea of somatic breathing. “Somatic” simply means body-based. The breath is unique because it happens automatically, but we can also consciously guide it. By slowing down and following the breath into the body, a person can return to the present moment.

She discusses Breath of Fire, a powerful Kundalini breathing practice used to awaken energy, move stagnation, and create a sense of renewal. Alecia compares it to a forest fire clearing away old growth so that something new can emerge.

For beginners, her advice is simple:

Start with five intentional minutes every day.

Those five minutes might include gentle movement, breathing, journaling, meditation, or simply turning attention away from the outside world and back toward yourself. One long class each week can be valuable, but five consistent minutes every day may create a deeper shift.

The practice does not require perfection. When the mind wanders, return to the breath. When the body becomes tired, recommit. When a posture does not feel right, listen to the body rather than forcing it.

Alecia also discusses her somatic yoga coaching for people living with trauma. Trauma may remain in the nervous system even after someone has told the story many times. Some people disconnect from their bodies as a way of surviving. Somatic work helps them slowly rebuild safety, awareness, and capacity so they can release some of the emotional charge without becoming overwhelmed.

Her Magic Garden seed is a vision for a world that values human wellness as much as productivity and economic output. Rather than measuring success only through money or growth, she hopes humanity begins asking whether people feel safe, healthy, peaceful, connected, and genuinely alive.

Alecia’s message is a reminder that yoga is not simply sitting on a mat or achieving the perfect pose. It is the practice of returning to yourself, listening to your body, calming your nervous system, and creating enough space for truth and healing to emerge.

To connect with Alecia Iwanchuk:

https://www.intentions-yoga.ca/

Search Intentions Yoga with Alecia on Instagram.

Search Intentions Yoga on YouTube.

To support us:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Uncle Dave welcomes Jay Setchell, U.S. Marine Corps veteran, entrepreneur, author, speaker, and founder of Never Quit Trying, for a powerful conversation about surviving the impossible, leading by example, trusting God, and refusing to let pain determine the rest of your life.

Jay grew up on a working farm in north-central Illinois, surrounded by livestock, crops, machinery, and responsibilities that could not be postponed. Farm life taught him discipline, adaptability, and the importance of finding another useful task when the original plan falls apart. Those lessons shaped how he later approached military service, business, disability, leadership, and recovery.

After enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1967, Jay suffered catastrophic injuries in 1969. He spent approximately a year in a naval hospital, including months in traction and time in a coma. During one medical crisis, he describes watching doctors work on his body from above before believing he was gone. A physician returned, performed an emergency tracheotomy, and helped bring him back.

That was not Jay’s final encounter with death. He later survived a drunk-driving collision, a broken neck that left him paralyzed from the shoulders down, numerous surgeries, severe COVID after doctors told his wife to prepare for his death, and a highway crash that sent his vehicle across multiple lanes. Through every setback, Jay returned to the same belief: if God has kept you alive, there is still work for you to do.

When employers could not accommodate his physical limitations, Jay created his own opportunities. He launched businesses, led teams, entered the graphics and trade-show industry, developed homes, and continued finding new ways to contribute. Even after being placed on long-term disability at 41, he refused to treat his life as finished.

Jay’s leadership philosophy is rooted in responsibility rather than titles. Leaders should be willing to clean the restroom, pick something up from the floor, park farther away so the customer gets the best space, and help move materials before the rain arrives. Leadership means doing what is right, following through, and never asking someone else to do work you consider beneath you.

He also emphasizes genuine human connection. In a “microwave society” obsessed with speed, automated outreach, and instant results, Jay still believes in looking someone in the eye, shaking their hand, learning how their business works, and demonstrating that you care. People may hear what you know, but they respond when they understand how much you care.

The conversation explores planning, flexibility, and action. Plans provide direction, but no business or battle unfolds exactly as expected. Strong leaders dream big, take manageable steps, and remain flexible enough to adjust. Faith and hope matter, but they must be paired with discipline, movement, and a willingness to meet God halfway.

Jay’s book, The Strength Within You: It’s Always Too Soon to Quit, encourages readers to draw strength from everything they have survived. Pain, frustration, faith, upbringing, adversity, and previous victories can all become resources for the next challenge.

His Magic Garden seed is simple but demanding: find something meaningful, build a vision, stay flexible, practice discipline, and keep moving forward. Progress may be slow, but the tortoise wins because it does not stop.

Jay shares the story of an 88-year-old widow who had lost interest in living to 90. After reading his book several times, she wrote to say she was now planning her 95th birthday. That message captures the purpose behind Jay’s work: one person’s refusal to quit can become another person’s reason to keep going.

As Jay says, “It’s always too soon to quit trying.”

To connect with Jay Setchell:

https://neverquittrying.com/

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Uncle Dave welcomes Genevieve “Jen” Pool, writer and host of the With Genevieve Podcast, for a special cross-podcast conversation about therapy, coping mechanisms, suicide survival, self-love, creativity, community, and becoming more present.

Jen explains why she began podcasting in English after first creating content in Dutch. A planned move to Toronto did not happen, but the dream behind it remained. She continued building a platform where therapists, business owners, writers, and mental-health advocates could share ideas that help listeners grow. That decision connected her with a worldwide community—including Uncle Dave.

The conversation explores the ways people cope when life feels unsafe. Jen identifies humor as one of her strongest coping mechanisms. Growing up with a narcissistic father and experiencing parentification, she often became responsible for reducing tension, carrying other people’s emotions, and keeping everyone comfortable. Humor helped her survive, but it also made others assume she was always strong and did not need support.

Therapy helped Jen recognize that being funny and being emotionally well are not always the same thing. She also learned that finding the right therapist is personal. Someone may be professionally qualified and still not be the correct match. Healing requires a relationship where a person can be direct, vulnerable, and honest without feeling judged.

David shares his own experience with therapy, suicide survival, recovery advocacy, and the Havening Techniques. He explains how gently rubbing the hands can act as a personal reset button during stressful moments. It does not erase the problem, but it can help someone feel safer and respond with greater intention.

Both hosts speak openly about surviving suicide attempts and receiving the message that their lives were not finished. David was told to return and tell his story. Since then, he has written books, delivered a TEDx talk, helped others reach stages, and built Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat into a platform for healing stories.

Jen once believed she would never reach 30. Now, at 32, she is building a podcast, writing her first full manuscript, and learning to see herself as a work in progress rather than a broken person. Her writing explores psychology, self-love, childhood experiences, and rebuilding after painful relationships.

David encourages her to keep writing without becoming trapped by perfection. A book does not have to please everyone to matter. If writing it brings healing and one reader feels understood, it has already created value. Deadlines may offer direction, but grace matters more than forcing a project before it is ready.

The episode also examines self-love and forgiveness. Loving yourself does not mean approving of every decision. It means refusing to abandon yourself when you make a mistake. Other people may never apologize, understand, or offer closure, but we can still forgive ourselves and choose a healthier next step.

Jen shares how yoga, breathing, and body awareness help her slow down and listen to what she needs. When a migraine begins or exhaustion appears, she no longer automatically pushes through. She treats those signals as information and gives herself permission to rest.

David explains that his recent heart procedure created a similar reckoning. Watching doctors place a stent inside his own heart made the need for change immediate. Recovery forced him to slow down, leave a stressful role, reconnect with his podcast, and discover that spending time alone no longer had to feel frightening.

Jen’s guiding mantra is:

“Take up space with grace.”

People are allowed to be confident, visible, ambitious, and fully themselves without becoming cruel or dismissive.

David’s guiding practice is presence. The past can teach us, and the future can guide us, but power exists in the choices we make today. We can acknowledge mistakes, apologize when needed, learn from what happened, and still refuse to remain trapped inside an old version of ourselves.

They close by discussing baseball and the meaning behind “Bring a Bat.” The bat represents balance, boundaries, authenticity, and finding your personal sweet spot. Success does not always look like a home run. Sometimes it means showing up, swinging with intention, and knowing you did the best you could.

This episode is a reminder that healing is not a straight line, community matters, and nobody has to figure everything out alone. We are all works in progress, still learning how to care for ourselves while becoming the people we are meant to be.

To connect with Genevieve Pool:

Search With Genevieve across major podcast platforms, social media, and LinkedIn.

To connect with Uncle Dave:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Uncle Dave welcomes Holly Porter—entrepreneur, transformational leader, author, philanthropist, wife, mother of eight, and grandmother of 19—to discuss surviving COVID, experiencing a near-death event, rebuilding after trauma, and discovering a deeper mission.

Holly had spent decades launching businesses and raising a large family when COVID changed everything. She entered the hospital with an oxygen level of 63 and spent 70 days receiving intensive care. She was intubated twice, received a tracheostomy, developed sepsis, and endured extensive treatments. Her husband was also dealing with COVID and blood clots, so he could not manage her care. Holly considers it a miracle that family members were permitted to stay with her when so many patients faced illness alone.

Leaving the hospital on November 11—11/11—began a difficult recovery. She lost most of her hair, experienced severe pain, and needed more than a year to begin feeling functional again.

Her daily philosophy became: “Better is better.”

Instead of comparing herself to who she had been before the illness, Holly focused on one question: What can I do today to become slightly healthier than I was yesterday? That shift helped her stop seeing herself only as a victim and begin asking what the experience might be teaching her.

During her hospitalization, Holly experienced out-of-body events, a spiritually transformative experience, and a near-death experience. She describes visiting places connected to her family history and receiving messages that gave her a renewed sense of purpose. Holly says she was sent back with a mission.

Those experiences became the foundation for her book, Near Death SHIFT: What Life Taught Me About Life, Business, and Purpose. SHIFT stands for Surrender, Hope, Intuition, Faith, and Transformation. Holly explains that surrender and transformation are the bookends of meaningful change. We cannot fully transform while holding tightly to every former identity, expectation, habit, and plan.

Her journey also inspired the International Retreat Association, created to serve retreat leaders, venues, travel professionals, wellness providers, chefs, attorneys, software companies, and other partners. Holly saw an industry with enormous growth but no central association providing shared ethics, education, standards, best practices, or resources. Rather than waiting for someone else to build it, she accepted the assignment.

The conversation also explores Holly’s nonprofit work. Adventure Bucket Wish Foundation originally focused on long COVID, but its mission shifted toward helping women move through adversity and rediscover purpose through RBL Women—Rise, Build, Lead. Her longer-term vision includes supporting children, foster youth, and young people aging out of care.

Holly closes with the message that transformed how she sees other people. During a hypnosis session revisiting her near-death experience, she asked why her life review had shown her only the good moments. The answer she received was:

“I’m showing you the good because that’s what matters.”

Then came the lesson that continues to guide her:

“Love them where they’re at.”

We cannot control another person’s path, timing, understanding, or choices. We can maintain boundaries and protect ourselves while releasing judgment and meeting people where they currently stand. Holly’s story reminds us that transformation begins with surrender, purpose can emerge from pain, and love remains one of the most powerful ways to shift the world.

To connect with Holly Porter:

Explore her Linktree, book, nonprofit work, retreat resources, and the International Retreat Association through the links included with this episode.

To support us:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Your Best Health Is Hiding in Your Calendar: Mo Cooper on Nutrition, Self-Awareness, and Sustainable Change

Uncle Dave welcomes Mo Cooper, healthy lifestyle coach and founder of Mo Mind Body Soul, for an honest and practical conversation about food, weight loss, time management, self-love, movement, sleep, and creating a healthier life without attempting to change everything overnight.

Mo explains that although many people initially seek her help because they want to lose weight, weight loss is often the byproduct of building a healthier lifestyle. Her approach developed through her own experience as a busy mother trying to care for three children at different stages of life while feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and disconnected from herself.

Her transformation began with one small decision: waking up before the rest of the household. What started as early-morning exercise became protected time to enjoy breakfast, sit quietly, and care for herself before everyone else needed something. Over time, that simple routine became the foundation for greater peace, strength, confidence, and health.

David shares how his recent heart-health scare forced him to reconsider choices he previously believed were relatively healthy. Their green-room conversation revealed one surprising example: beginning the morning with a sugary cereal may create a very different start to the day than a meal built around protein and healthy fats.

Mo encourages listeners to pay attention to how breakfast influences hunger, energy, and cravings throughout the day. Rather than limiting breakfast to traditional foods, she recommends considering satisfying combinations such as eggs, avocado, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, nuts, lean meats, fish, or even leftover taco meat and vegetables. Her message is not that everyone must eat the same foods, but that people should understand what they are putting into their bodies and make intentional choices.

The conversation also explores the difference between information and application. Most people already know that heavily processed foods, excessive sugar, and frequent fast food may not support their goals. The real challenge is translating that knowledge into daily decisions—especially when people are tired, stressed, alone, busy, or looking for comfort.

Mo shares her personal journey of gaining more than 65 pounds during pregnancy, living with multiple sclerosis, struggling with low self-esteem, and feeling like an alien inside her own body. She did not begin exercising seriously until her late 30s, proving that a healthier life does not require a childhood filled with sports or decades of perfect habits.

At 55, Mo values strength, mobility, energy, and independence. She may not always enjoy waking up early for boot camp, but she deeply values how movement allows her to feel inside her body.

David and Mo also discuss community as an essential part of wellness. David shares his Sunday tradition with his 97-year-old neighbor, Connie, who prepares food and spends time talking with him. The meal represents more than nutrition—it carries connection, care, history, and love. Mo explains that relationships, purpose, and belonging can be just as important to long-term wellness as food and exercise.

A central theme of the episode is becoming unapologetic about your health. Family members, friends, and coworkers may not always understand new boundaries or lifestyle changes. They may encourage someone to abandon a goal because “one more piece won’t hurt.” Mo reminds listeners that their health is not a public vote.

That does not mean never eating pizza, pasta, dessert, or celebration food again. It means making those choices consciously rather than allowing convenience, pressure, or habit to make them automatically.

Mo’s five foundational areas of a healthy lifestyle include:

Time management

She explains that mindset is often the result of consistently investing in these areas. When people nourish themselves, protect their sleep, move their bodies, manage stress, and use their time intentionally, confidence and self-respect begin to grow naturally.

One of Mo’s most powerful tools is the time audit. She encourages people to review their days in 30-minute increments and ask:

What was I doing?

The exercise is not intended to create shame. It develops awareness. Once people understand where their time is going, they can recognize where their health goals are being supported—and where time is quietly leaking away.

Mo also emphasizes that coaches must recognize the boundaries of their expertise. Some people carry trauma, shame, or emotional wounds that require help from a qualified therapist. A responsible coach can listen, guide, and support healthy habits while also recognizing when another professional is needed.

Her seed for the Magic Garden is simple:

Your best health is closer than you think—and it may already be hiding inside your calendar.

Do not attempt to overhaul your entire life overnight. Begin with one small action you can repeat consistently. Protect one bedtime. Improve one breakfast. Take one walk. Review one day of your time. Treat yourself like someone deeply worthy of care.

Small decisions, practiced consistently, can change the direction of a life.

To connect with Mo Cooper:

https://timewithcoachmo.com/

https://momindbodysoul.com/

Schedule a conversation with Mo to discuss where you are in your health journey and identify practical changes that may help you move forward.

To support us, check out:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

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Uncle Dave welcomes Kneet, a Punjabi Sikh artist raised in Thailand, psychology graduate, mother, and founder of Protect Children New York, for a powerful conversation about music, identity, domestic abuse, family court, mental wellness, and rising after life attempts to rewrite your story.

Kneet shares how her song “Rise” grew from an honest conversation with her producer about domestic violence, coercive control, and the painful family-court battle she experienced after coming to the United States. What began as emotional venting became a deeply personal song about refusing to let another person define her identity. Returning to the location where her story began to film the music video—and bringing her son with her—became an empowering part of her healing.

The conversation explores the mission behind Protect Children New York, an initiative created to bring greater attention to children affected by coercive control, psychological abuse, emotional trauma, and harmful family-court decisions. Kneet explains that these forms of abuse may not leave visible marks, making them difficult for courts to recognize. Children may also lack the language to explain their experiences or form trauma bonds that prevent them from speaking openly.

David and Kneet discuss how family-court cases can become battles over who presents the stronger legal narrative rather than a complete investigation into what is best for the child. Kneet hopes to use her music, education, advocacy, and public platform to encourage courts and communities to recognize the emotional and psychological realities children face.

Kneet also shares the cultural influences behind her music. Born and raised in Bangkok while maintaining her Punjabi Sikh heritage, she brings Indian, Thai, Asian, and Western elements into her artistry. Her song “My Man” celebrates her Punjabi roots, while “To the Moon” began as a lullaby inspired by the phrase her father used with her son: “I love you to the moon and back.” Although listeners may hear it as a romantic song, its original meaning centers on the bond between a mother and child and their dream of escaping together to a peaceful place.

Music has become more than a career for Kneet—it is a vessel for healing, storytelling, and reclaiming the identity she felt she lost under another person’s control. Each song represents a part of her life, allowing her to transform pain, love, struggle, and hope into something others can connect with.

Kneet explains that reclaiming your voice begins with getting to know yourself again. When other people repeatedly tell us who we are, we can lose track of our preferences, boundaries, passions, and direction. Self-reclamation requires pausing long enough to ask what you believe, what you enjoy, and which path you choose.

The episode also highlights the importance of community. Kneet credits her parents, producer, son, and trusted supporters with helping her remain grounded. When she forgets who she is, the right people remind her—not of the identity created by someone else, but of the authentic person they have always known.

Her seed for the Magic Garden is simple: no one is an island. Healing, creativity, parenting, and advocacy all require the right support system. Faith can guide us, but we must also help ourselves, accept support, and surround ourselves with people who encourage us to rise.

Kneet’s message is one of resilience: falling does not make us failures. We are human, and difficult seasons will come. What matters is recognizing when it is time to stand, reclaim the truth, and rise again.

To follow and support Kneet:

Search Kneet Music on social media:

Find her music on streaming platforms by searching:

Listen for songs including:

Follow her advocacy work with Protect Children New York and her mission to protect children affected by coercive control, emotional abuse, and family-court trauma.

To support us, check out:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Uncle Dave welcomes Kurt Bush, leadership coach, former manufacturing leader and pastor, co-founder of Brimstone Coaching Group, and co-author of Live Fully: Lead Authentically, for a thoughtful conversation about authentic leadership, emotional regulation, resilience, and helping overwhelmed leaders become unstuck.

Kurt shares how his understanding of leadership developed through two very different environments. He began his career inside a manufacturing plant, where he learned to lead both people and production processes. He later attended seminary and spent approximately a decade pastoring churches, where leadership meant guiding volunteers, developing other leaders, and helping people manage anxiety during uncertain seasons.

During the pandemic and the cultural upheaval of 2020, Kurt discovered how much he valued coaching anxious leaders. He found purpose in helping people lower the emotional temperature, regain perspective, and focus on the work and people in front of them. That realization eventually led him to transition from pastoral ministry into full-time leadership coaching.

David and Kurt discuss why leadership is not about being the smartest person in the room or possessing every answer. A leader may have authority, but people still decide whether that person is worth following. Authentic leadership begins with becoming clear about who you want to be, how you want to show up, and whether your daily behavior aligns with those values.

Kurt challenges the idea that authenticity means acting without a filter or excusing hurtful behavior by saying, “That’s just who I am.” Authenticity is not permission to remain emotionally reactive. It is the willingness to hold up a mirror, acknowledge behavior that does not reflect your best self, and take intentional steps to respond differently.

The conversation also explores Kurt’s transformational framework:

E + R = T

Kurt explains that reflection rarely happens by accident. Leaders may need to schedule time for it, particularly when silence and self-examination feel uncomfortable. Transformation begins when we stop reacting automatically and become curious about what is happening inside us.

Kurt and David also discuss the inner critic. The goal is not always to silence it. Sometimes the inner critic points toward something that genuinely needs attention. The important distinction is whether that voice drives us toward curiosity and growth—or toward hiding, shame, and avoidance.

One of the most powerful parts of the episode explores protective promises. These are unconscious promises we make after painful or embarrassing childhood experiences, such as:

Those promises may protect a child, but they can restrict an adult leader.

Kurt shares how misspelling the word “farm” during a childhood spelling bee created a fear of appearing unintelligent. Years later, that protective promise still encouraged him to remain silent in important conversations. His healing required replacing it with a purposeful promise:

“I am here on purpose.”

That promise then supports a preferred action:

“I say what is true for me.”

The conversation closes with an important reminder for exhausted leaders: frustration, burnout, and overwhelm do not have to be accepted as permanent parts of adulthood. Hard seasons will still happen, but people can learn to navigate them in a way that creates greater peace, sustainability, and wholeness.

Kurt’s seed for the Magic Garden is simple: find someone you trust and tell them how you truly feel. Naming exhaustion, anxiety, or overwhelm can be the first step toward discovering that another way of living and leading is possible.

To connect with Kurt Bush and Brimstone Coaching Group:

https://brimstonecoachinggroup.com/

Book:

Live Fully: Lead Authentically

Visit the Brimstone Coaching Group website to explore coaching, listen to the podcast, or schedule a free conversation with Kurt or his coaching partner.

To support us, check out:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

Uncle Dave welcomes Sayen Gates, shadow life coach, author, doula, and host of the Shadow Corner Podcast, for a deeply personal conversation about shadow work, childhood wounds, emotional triggers, self-awareness, and learning to accept every part of yourself.

Sayen explains that shadow work is not something dark or frightening. It is the process of recognizing the memories, beliefs, emotions, and behaviors we have suppressed because they did not seem to fit the person we believed we needed to become. Drawing from her own experiences with people-pleasing, overgiving, religious trauma, sexual assault, and emotional and physical abuse, she shares how confronting those hidden pieces helped her become more authentic and intentional.

David and Sayen discuss how unresolved experiences can become emotional “landmines.” Other people may unknowingly step on those triggers because they were never given a map. Instead of immediately reacting, shadow work teaches us to pause, separate the person from the problem, identify the memory attached to the reaction, and ask whether the situation deserves our time and energy.

Sayen also explains why healing does not happen once. As we grow, new levels of awareness reveal patterns we could not previously see. Life may retest us—not as punishment, but as an opportunity to demonstrate growth, practice accountability, and respond differently than we would have in the past.

The conversation explores Sayen’s work as a birth and postpartum doula, the emotional realities surrounding pregnancy and motherhood, and the importance of holding space without judgment. Sometimes people do not need advice or immediate solutions. They simply need someone who will listen, allow them to feel, and remind them they are not alone.

Sayen closes with her guiding lesson: give yourself permission. Give yourself permission to grieve, receive, rest, feel joy, forgive your past, choose yourself, and live according to what truly lights a fire within you. We often grant compassion and understanding to others while denying those same gifts to ourselves. Healing begins when we recognize that we are worthy of receiving what we so freely give.

To connect with Sayen Gates:

https://www.shadowcornerlifecoaching.com/

Listen to the Shadow Corner Podcast to hear Sayen’s personal journey and conversations with guests who have transformed their pain, patterns, and obstacles into growth.

To support us, check out:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547