sHeroes Journey

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment #1

Hitting a dark spot, completely changed her life. “Picking a wild card”, it is the basis for the Lucid Body.  She was a modern dancer, had a company called Impact Theater.  Was married, had a child, living on a houseboat.  Great times.  Then her marriage fell apart, she picked up more work, around 1988.  AIDS was circulating, didn’t seem real back then.  Part of the “demonization” of gay men.  She slept with someone after marriage fell apart, that person came back to her and told her he had the virus.

She remembers that moment the doctor told her.  AIDS was now ravaging and killing people all around her. 

Her world changed instantly.  Doors started closing on her.  She started working with chakra healer.  Also worked with russian folk healer.  They all told her the same thing, “you must be comfortable with death”. Once you accept it, your body will relax, it will stop going into stress mode trying to fight off everything.

It calmed her, knowing that any day could be her last day. She then meant with a shaman woman who then helped accept that fact that her life was still a gift.

She felt she could not talk about it at all, as her being a single white privileged woman, she did not want her daughter to be ostracized because of her.

Shaman told her to pick up rocks, rearrange them and assign each one a purpose.  So you can then change your relationship with the virus. She had to do that for 14 days.  

Each rock assumed an identity such as anger, blame, the body of the virus.  This work allowed her to push that bad negativity around and to pull love and life closer to her and it helped her gain acceptance and move on.

 

Segment #2

What came next was an unraveling, the death of the ego.  She had an appreciation for old age, even though she was only 33 at the time.  She celebrated each year and could not see how people tried to reverse age.  She celebrated because she was a survivor.

She was adverse to taking the medicine at first, because people were dying.  Then she took the triple drug cocktail, and present day she is healed.  Not present in her body.

About The Lucid Body: it was not her plan, she was helped a lot.  She was fighting for her life, trying to beat the clock.

She was trying to come up with a dance that would reflect all that was going on in her life.

She started working on dances, one of the first was one that channeled her ex-husband and it helped her see “his way” of things and it came from a place of understanding, not anger

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment 1:

Shamnaistic healer, guide, visionary, and a mom

Medicine carrier/woman her voice, her visions, her wisdom to share

12 years ago in NYC as a student she had a moment, in a yoga class, that jolted her and made her take the training

The past year a lot of people have had to acknowledge the “dark side” of everything around us, and ourselves

For shamanic folk, they look at the elemental things in order to understand things and ourselves.  Most in nature is dark, empty, void.  Natural balances.  Dark is also just the unknown, the un-illuminated, not yet known. 

How do we illuminate the dark?  Helping others with purification.  Purify yourself, you don’t have to go through all of the challenges, all of the mud. Think of yourself and your world as a kaleidoscope, with all of the different outside invasions, media, society, etc.  Purify yourself and get to your innermost self 

Some things that stop people from getting to those inner most caves: familial problems, trauma, self doubt, no confidence.  The other side is over confidence, arrogance

How to find time to journey inward?  So little time, with all of life’s responsibilities.  In order to contribute to the great good of what is your purpose, you need to make sure that you are being good to yourself in order to function and be a part of the greater good you are servicing.  Take time for yourself, and ask for help, and realize that you are not meant to do it all alone.

Segment 2:

On surrendering, it is more a deep state of acceptance.  It is a feeling of feeling loved and accepted, and surrendering to others.  How can I open more deeply?  Sometimes the mind is too limited, and you need to expand beyond that.  How can I more deeply receive this act of surrender, of opening?

She was a young mother, at 23.  She felt that it was supposed to be a “gift from the divine”, and it didn’t always feel like that.  She was “not ready”

How do you accept the disconnect between the head and the heart?  It was hard to, as a new mother, accept the “death” of the former self.  When leading others on a path, she sees in others a reluctance to accept and grieve the “death” of all that you used to be, before you can accept the “birth” of the new

Husband died 6 years ago, she was pregnant at the time. It was a true initiation, some really dark potentials and a dark cave.  The shamanistic community is not immune to jealousy and greed, like all other communities. It can feel more acute because these individuals are really focused on seeing the truth.  It was hard to navigate and move forward.  It took a long time, and she did try to rush through it, but she appreciated how long the journey took. 

Whenever you are on the path, there is no mistake of the “hell yes” moment to go into the cave

LINKS AND INFORMATION

www.facebook.com/ayamrachaelsessions

www.instagram.com/rachael_sessions

www.untetheredsoul.com/surrender-experiment

www.amazon.com/Heros-Journey-Joseph-Campbell-Collected/dp/1608681890

https://rachaelsessions.bandcamp.com/?fbclid=IwAR2aeW9G3Is5J66SrFHqpcvlUvg1Vd8jOKMNPNcVnqa58j4c8CXlDc_DFnY

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment 1:

Recent time she has felt ungrounded- pandemic hit, lost her job at To Kill A Mockingbird

Brother is ER physician, was keeping family informed, telling them how everything was going to shut down.  To Kill was seeing it’s audience diminish, everyone masked, no way it was going to continue in this fashion.

Was tired or run down, she slept for 2 weeks after play was cancelled. After that she got up, starting doing things, but felt really unmotivated and ungrounded.  Her husband was the total opposite, he was doing 7 different things…got them both agents…

Started getting back and getting physical, started walking, going to beach. Got back to teaching online, gave her purpose and felt more meaning in her life again

Quote: “I often say that to my students, you have to work in spite of how you feel, in service to the audience. So doing that, is what got me going again.”

How does she feed herself? To be around other creative people.  Get in somebody else’s class, somebody else’s talk, other theater productions.  Reading scripts, watching new things.

In spite of how she feels, students often still admire what she does and have questions for her.  That “pours” into her as well

Husband has been a rock through all of this. You have your independent time in life, your “salad days”, building strength, resilience.  Then you have “inter-dependence”, and you have your power source and strength.  Definitely during child raising years.  

Got married later, but when she did she felt she partnered well and had a person who could help her solve problems and she didn’t have to do it all by herself…an ally

Trying to teach her son that having an ally is not an excuse to let your own goals be leveraged because of someone else’s goalposts.  You have to want your education to help you, not someone else’s vision of you

Quote: “Sometimes you need that person who’s gonna be more so the truth teller, that’s a true ally, that’s a true person who is on your side who is your friend who’s helping you.

Segment 2:

Been very painful to watch the suffering of Black people in the past year.  At first she was grateful to see so many white people and youth participating.  Then it was really exhausting, having to explain her oppression to so many people.  So many people were earnest and wanted to help, but she did not have the answers to give them.

She had to step back from all of that, she did not have the answers to tell people.  Awareness is a good thing, of course.

Her son has shut down from all of it.  Trump did that to him, as well as so much talk about color, where he tries not to see all of that.

She is in the generation that had to “deal” with all of the racism and how the world treats black people.  The younger generation still surprises her with how they are navigating the issue and being able to ask for more equality.

She also knew that her white friends meant well, but it was a lot to take in from all aspects

She feels a certain responsibility to her son to teach him certain things about the world/racism, but she does not want to project her fears onto him, that does not have to be his experience, but he does need to be aware of it all

Quote: “I have this belief, that even if it doesn’t work out, you’re still OK. Because if I leave, if i get fired, if they don’t want me anymore, I’m still me. So If I leave, the party comes with me. So I don’t have to worry about if that one particular situation didn’t work out.

Ther

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment 1

Actor, director, writer, activist

Went to grad school and got invited by a friend, Zoot, to come out to teach at a women’s prison

Initially she did not want to do it and felt fearful.  It was supposed to be a movement class

On her first visit she thought she really messed up and made them angry but she actually really connected and felt the energy within them in the room

The bond was made in that first class, then she made it to 9 months, they made a play in that time through a grant from the CA Arts Council

Next year, another play “The Buckners”

She started having issues with segregation and the women were not working together.  She brought all of the feelings in the room together by screening “American History X”

This is what happens when you divide

The play was born out of watching the movie and talking about what they all had in common, and the play started to take shape

 

Segment 2

Slumber Party Massacre- made her a cult star.  She took it because she was not finding work. She took the role, had a lot of fun, but it was a movie with T+A and blood and guts

Her Catholic guilt nagged her! But she was OK with it and was able to do it

This one movie may be the one thing she is remembered for because it has followed her in her whole life.  But she embraces it and loves the fact that it means so much (for whatever reason) to the fans of the movie

Got another horror movie part recently after shooting a PSA, the director of the commercial showed off his Slumber Party related tattoos

Does this contradict her role as an activist and someone who helps women find their voices?  Only if one is being judgmental

Dream big!  Her dreams came true because of her imagination and what she dreamt about.  She truly believes that is how she achieved her goals and visions

 

LINKS AND INFORMATION 

https://www.debradeliso.com/

https://www.instagram.com/debradeliso/

https://arts.ca.gov/

 

SHEROES JOURNEY

Website: sheroesjourney.com

Instagram: instagram.com/sheroesjourney

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment 1

Star Wars/Lion King take on mentoring: dead male figure looking over everyone, guiding everyone

Robert Edwin was her main mentor in her teaching career. Not the “man” she follows but the “person” she follows.

they should have your best interests in heart. 

your mentor can be a motivator to the direction a career goes

can we self-mentor? Listen to your heart, your instincts

Mentor now is Anna Sun Choi

Listen to your heart...but does “follow your heart and everything follows” ring true? You need to be able to pay rent, make money. Role of the mentor is to show you what is possible and what you can do…

As you mentor someone, opening your heart means you also have to let go of your own self and not project your own self onto what their experiences should be...similar to parenting

Segment 2

The element of time in mentoring. N Bos says that she feels like she has a guardian angel guiding her, giving her focus. Always hands her a ladder and she may not know where it leads but it will lead to somewhere.

Every time she works with a mentor, she questions, “can I do this? Should I do this? Am I worthy?” A good mentor will see what is in you and say “hell yes!”

What is next? Envisioning a lot...the world needs to sing more and she envisions that it will. Singing is at the heart of giving and receiving and it has been taken away from us...we are more passive with our listening to music and not participating in it with others

Every solid substance has a sympathetic vibration (acoustics). Resonance. If we are being resonant, then our body is vibrating in a way that is optimal for sound production...or ideas

What role does fear play? You need to embrace the fear. Stepping into the unknown. Not subtle: you only have one life, one shot. Get out of your own way.

LINKS AND INFORMATION

https://nancybos.me/https://www.annasunchoi.com/https://www.robertedwinstudio.com/biography.phphttps://www.sonyareneetaylor.com/the-body-is-not-an-apologyhttps://marknepo.com/books_awakening.php

SHEROES JOURNEY

Website: sheroesjourney.com

Instagram: instagram.com/sheroesjourney

Twitter: twitter.com/sheroesjourney

Facebook: facebook.com/sheroesjourney

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdnuDhn70ROacNQIJz1wfFA?view_as=subscriber

Email: [email protected]

INTERVIEW NOTES 

Segment 1: Ekatarina talks about her beginnings in Tibetan studies - Phowa “Dying in Consciousness” When you die, you are knowing and you can control the process. 

Non buddhist parents did not approve, they were scared of what was going to happen! 

Made her pause for 12 years, went to St. Petersburg University - Was overcome by doubt and insecurity, manifested as physical illness 

She realized after awhile that she was a “highly sensitive person” - “If i don’t change my life now, I could die this week, anything could happen to me” 

And then there was a reconnection with Tibetan studies and Tibetan medicine 

But she only wanted to be a patient, not to learn the language or medicine 

Her doctor changed her mind and made her an ardent student of Tibetan medicine 

Stephane Mallarme “"much of Mallarmé's work influenced the conception of hypertext, with his purposeful use of blank space and careful placement of words on the page, allowing multiple non-linear readings of the text.” 

His last work, “The Book” was never finished, more of a concept. Blank pages, you discover the truth through your one self. - He never finished, but it affected her because she realized you cannot find absolute truth through relative things like languages. 

Segment 2: Ekaterina discusses her career in academia and Tibetan medicine. 

Bumped into the right person at the right moment, who reintroduced her to the teaching. 

Became a translator at the academy for years

Met her husband when she was about to start her Tibetan medicine career and they moved to London...another pause 

She had to start over again and started something new. Started teaching accents, first in a college setting, then onto actors and actresses to be more believable in film/TV. 

Next step was moving on to the voice 

Then onto the school and teachings of Yantra yoga 

Anyone who is interested can find classes and teachings online 

 

LINKS AND INFORMATION 

Ekatarina’s Contact Information:

https://betweenheadandheart.co.uk/

 

Links and additional information:

Phowa “Dying in Conciousness”:

INTERVIEW NOTES

Segment 1 - Emilia talks about what started her own "Call to Adventure" and how the Finnsih tradition of "SISU" has informed and fueled her own adventures.

What started the journey?

10 years ago she had a traumatic experience.

Recovery was a long process with support, strength, and growing

"Look into the abyss" Campbell describes it as the serpent which symbolizes awakening

With domestic violence a big narrative is that you are somehow the cause, and she fell into believing that for a while, until she reawakened the strong inner activist within herself.

What is "sisu" for Emilia?

It is the thing that is our lifeforce, it is the thing that keeps us going

Magical thing that everyone in Finland grows up with, integral to the culture. Character and identity that everyone identifies with, having courage in the face of extreme adversity, a "different kind of power supply" Everyone in Finland feels ownership with it.

Intuition, the brain and the gut, it is all connected

Emilia had a mentor in Angela Duckworth, who told her "you don't have to get everything right, you just have to be honest"

Segment 2 - Emilia talks more about how she came to hear and nurture her sisu, and offers perspective on how others can thrive and channel this as well on their own journeys.

What do you put in your "backpack" when you are embarking on a new journey?

Literal - water, nutrition bars

Spiritual - which translates to what sustains us and our soul. Reach back to our sisu again. Who are the people? Mentors can be positive and negative.

What happens at the "40 mile mark"?

You need to be prepared, for both what you know and what you don't know. You need to thrive and survive and unleash your sisu.

Getting past your fears, and learning how to embrace challenges and uncomfortable situations.

LINKS AND INFORMATION

Website: https://www.emilialahti.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sisunotsilence/ 

2014 TEDx with Emilia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTIizGyf5kU 

Angela Duckworth - Positive Psychology: https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/people/angela-duckworh 

Martin E.P. Seligman- Positive Psychology: https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/people/martin-ep-seligman 

Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233 // https://www.thehotline.org 

What is "sisu"?: (Sisu is a unique Finnish concept. It is a Finnish term that can be roughly translated into English as strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity. Sisu is not momentary courage, but the ability to sustain that courage. It is a word that cannot be fully translated.)

SHEROES JOURNEY

Website: sheroesjourney.com

Instagram: instagram.com/sheroesjourney

Twitter: twitter.com/sheroesjourney

Facebook: facebook.com/sheroesjourney

Youtube:

Introduction:

Welcome to the sHeroe’s Journey Podcast, a podcast for sHeroes and the people who love them. I’m Pamela Prather and for over twenty years, I have been empowering actors, executives, and curious humans with tools to unlock their voices and tell their stories.

Today’s episode begins with: The Ordinary World.  We focus on the beginning, seeing where we are, staring the journey and imagining the future. I spoke with Tiffany Rachelle Stewart (a bi-racial Black identifying Broadway actress and NYU professor about her project, The Listening 2020. She, along with her partner Tyler Rivenbark (a white-identifying  educator and playwright), are saying the things that often go unsaid around white allyship, and delivering those  messages in a way that emboldens and empowers.  I also speak with my 11-year-old son in a segment called “Me & The Kid”, where he shares his perspective on starting a new journey.

Talking Points:

A little history behind my passion project, The sHeroe’s Journey

New beginnings

Tiffany Rachelle Stewart and her project: The Listening 2020

What it means to be an ally

How Tyler Rivenbark has actionized his position as an ally

What The Listening is all about

Is The Listening a place for parents and people who might be ashamed?

How to slowly dismantle racism

Different generations, instant gratification, and how we can learn to make big changes

How Tiffany is encouraging the sustainability of action

Tiffany’s personal epiphanies around self-growth and facing personal gremlins

Paralyzing ourselves and not staying malleable 

Things we can do to truly teach our kids about diversity 

Tiffany’s goals for the future

Me and The Kid: Starting new journeys

Resources/Links:

Contact Info for sHeroes Journey: Website: sHeroes Journey  Instagram:  @sHeroes Journey Facebook:  Email:  [email protected]

Contact Info for Tiffany Rachelle St