What if you could access the depths of your past trauma in order to set yourself free? Would you? In this episode, Amelia interviews one of her dearest longtime friends, singer-songwriter and restorative justice advocate, Maya McNeil. Maya was the special soul who recently held space for a radical and powerfully transformative healing immersion Amelia experienced on a recent retreat in the Mojave desert. 

In this episode, we talk about the unearned power and privilege that comes with being white, and what that has to do with healing and the spiritual journey. We will take a deep dive into the transformational moments of Amelia’s entheogenic healing journey, and preview an acoustic release of Maya's song, Avalanche, a powerful song addressing sexual violence.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why being a multi-passionate woman is a blessing, not a curse

• How creativity and songwriting can heal 

• Unwinding white privilege to better serve the world

• How to question the stories which shape us

• Why discomfort is an essential part of the spiritual path

• How nature and prayer support the healing of trauma

Maya McNeil is a Modern Mystic, Ceremonial Musician, Songwriter, bodywork based health care practitioner, Space Holder, healing friend and day dreamer. If Maya had one super power, it would be to activate full understanding of one another, and all of life around us. If they could make a wish right this moment, it would be for the human concepts of inferiority and superiority to evaporate. Maya lives in the Bay Area, loves every single dog that they meet, and regularly puts too much maple syrup in their coffee, with no regrets. 

Editor's Note

We respectfully issue the following corrections regarding tribal territory recognition:

A•wee•swaz, not Awaswa, is the correct pronunciation of Awaswas-Ohlone tribal land commonly known as Santa Cruz mountains. Joshua Tree National Park is the tribal land of the Serrano, Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, and the Mojave people.

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Stay Connected

Amelia’s IG: instagram.com/stoked_yogi

Maya's IG: instagram.com/maya_mcneil_music

Maya's Patreon: patreon.com/mayamcneilmusic

Maya's SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/mayamcneil  

Maya's Indie Gogo: indiegogo.com/projects/waiting-for-the-light-to-change-album-fundraiser

Maya's Resource List: 

White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack Peggy McIntosh 

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

10 Tips on Receiving Critical Feedback: A Guide for Activists by Brooke Anderson 

Me and White Supremacy Workbook by Layla Saad

White Supremacy Culture by Tema Okun

Intersectionality & Positionality by Zetta Elliot 

Kimberlé Crenshaw TedTalk on Intersectionality

Shuumi Land Tax: a voluntary annual financial contribution that non-Indigenous people living on traditional Chochenyo and Karkin Ohlone territory (SF Bay Area) make to support the critical work of the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust, an urban Indigenous women-led community organization that facilitates the return of Chochenyo and Karkin Ohlone lands to Indigenous stewardship.

If you do not live in the SF Bay Area, please research what local tribal land you live on or spend time on in your state. Learn how you can acknowledge their history and discover where you may contribute to or support tribal community restoration work and tribal causes. What is the health of the water in your area?

*This is a brief and potent resource list, meant as a gateway into deeper self education for those dedicated to understanding and unwinding from whiteness, white supremacy, racism, and maintained internalized systems of injustice. There is a wealth of information available on all areas briefly mentioned in the podcast, please do your own research, compile a resource list, share with your community, and always, give credit and compensation where it is long overdue, which is Black, Indigenous, and People of Color authors, educators, and content creators. Thank you.