Today we are joined by spiritual director Heather Watts exploring the journey of deconstructing faith.  We discuss how spiritual guidance can provide space to be heard, wonder together and sit with uncertainties one faces in these seasons.

Additional Resources
Listening and Caring Skills by John Savage

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Today we welcome Dr. Jan Lundy to the podcast who is talking with us about what it looks like to companion people through their grief. Though grief is something many people find difficult to talk about, it's likely that each of us is experiencing loss continually. Join in as Jan shares with us about what it looks like to stay with someone through their experience of wilderness in ways that help us experience integration and transformation. Because grief isn’t meant to be something we get over or repress. It’s there because we love and care deeply. If you’d like to learn more, be sure to check out the Additional Resources section below.

Additional Resources
Website: mettacentertraining.com
Program: Grief Companion Training

Hashtags
Grief, Loss, Spirituality, Spiritual Direction, Wilderness, Counseling, Anticipatory Grief, Trauma

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On this week’s podcast we hear from Tom Buhler, a certified spiritual guide offering mindfulness to prisoners. Tom shares with us about the powerful transformations possible when using mindfulness, particularly in the midst of high-stress situations. Join us as Tom relays how formal practice can lead to shifts in perspective that help us become more aware of our thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations so that we can be more empathetic overall. And don’t forget to check out the Additional Resources section for more information.

Additional Resources
Author: John Kabat Zinn
Organization: The Path of Freedom
Workbook: The Stress Reduction Workbook for Teens by Gina M Biegel
Website: PrisonMindfulness.org
Facebook: Wisconsin Prison Mindfulness Initiative
Documentary: Dhamma Brothers
Film: Holding Still
Retreat: A Day of Mindfulness for Helpers and Healers: June 20, 2024. Siena Retreat Center.
Training: https://www.uwhealth.org/services/mindfulness-based-stress-reduction (UW-Health MBSR courses)

Hashtags
Jon Kabat Zinn, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, Empathy, Interconnection, Awareness, Awareness, Ego, Prison Ministry

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Many of us have heard that we ought to do unto others as we would have done unto ourselves. But how many of us have heard that we ought to treat ourselves with the same kindness and respect we offer to others? Certainly, loving ourselves sounds good in theory, but the daily practice of it is quite another thing. It can be helpful to ask ourselves: What protective measures have we put in place that now keep us from being in touch with what we really enjoy and need? Join us as we talk about how the contemplative life can help us create more space for tending to what our deepest selves need most.

Additional Resources
Movie: America’s Sweethearts
Podcast: Ep 166 Stress vs Stressors from The Contemplative Life
Poem: For One Who Is Exhausted, A Blessing by John O’Donohue

Hashtags
Inner Critic, Outlook, Noticing, Spirituality, Self-talk, Retreat, Life Rhythms

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Stress is a part of life and can happen in both big and small ways. On today’s podcast, we consider how the contemplative life can help us recognize what’s happening so that we can respond in more balanced ways more and more often. Do you find yourself sometimes feeling flush with emotions? Or, on the opposite side of that, do you sometimes try to ignore emotions in favor of just the facts? When we are feeling more at ease and connected, our brains are able to engage with both of these instead of having to choose just one or the other. Join us as we talk about how this can look in our day to day lives.

Additional Resources
Book: Raising Kids with Big Baffling Behaviors by Robyn Gobbel
Book: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Hashtags
Jenny Taitz, Emotion Mind, Reason Mind, Wisdom Mind, Naming Emotions, Playfulness, Curiosity, Mindsets

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On this week’s podcast, we’re talking about what it takes to be present to those things that are taking up mental real estate in our heads, buzzing in the background, ticker taping through our heads, and the like. Do you sometimes find yourself blowing up when you normally would have been able to remain calm? Having trouble sleeping? Feeling the need to put everyone and everything on mute? All of these, and more, can be signs that you are experiencing undue loads of emotional labor. Join us as we talk about how a contemplative life can help us lessen our emotional-labor-load so that we can ride the waves of our emotions without being taken over by them.

Additional Resources
Podcast: Ep 159 Community Care from The Contemplative Life

Hashtags
Surface Acting, Deep Acting, Emotional Intelligence, Division of Labor, Spiritual Direction, Group Spiritual Direction, Awareness, Community Care

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Do you ever find yourself feeling frustrated or confused about which way to go next? In this episode, we talk about the helpfulness of being able to take a pause as a way of getting our bearings again, whether those pauses are related to something in particular, a season of life, or the need for discernment within a larger group. Wondering if you have enough capacity for what’s being asked of you? Asking questions about how to navigate a tricky situation? Feeling like you’re just going in circles? Sensing that what used to work for you isn’t working anymore? Join us as we talk about the many contemplative possibilities for recalibrating so that you can experience the Beauty of life again.

Additional Resources
Poem: Clearing by Martha Postlethwaite
Poem: Coleman’s Bed by David Whyte

Hashtags
Counseling, Therapy, Discernment, Seasons of Life, Benedictine, Family Relationships, Work Relationships, Spiritual Practices, Anxiety

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Join us as Dr. Jeanette Banashak shares with us about a new certification program being offered in Outdoor Companioning that has come about as a result of her own lifelong desire to connect with the more-than-human world. Are you a spiritual guide or working in some form of service profession? Outdoor Companioning teaches us how to integrate the natural environment, both in our work lives and in our experience of life overall. Join us as Jeanette speaks about how engaging with the great outdoors can lead to building communities that are sustainable, equitable, culturally proficient, socially just, healing, and so much more.

Additional Resources
Website: Spiritual Guidance Training Institute - Outdoor Companioning Training
Book: Belonging by Toko-Pa Turner
Book: Eco-Emancipation by Sharon R. Krause

Hashtags
Forest Bathing, Mindfulness, Deep Listening, Eco-Justice, Tree Equity Index, Eco-Activism, David Abram, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Thich Nhat Hanh

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is here to stay and is rapidly changing our world. For some, a tool like this can bring about equity in their lives. But in our individualistic society, where we are applauded for the ways in which we can stand out, will everyone be willing to applaud this equity? At the same time, many have taken to warning us about the dangers of AI. Join us as we talk about how the contemplative can aid us in these kinds of dialogues. What spaces exist for us to learn? To name our emotions? To have conversations? What contemplative ideas might aid our discernment and implementation processes? May all be well as we process these questions, offering one another gentleness, generosity, and graciousness.

Additional Resources
Website: Spiritual Guidance Training Institute

Hashtags
Reid Hoffman, Geoffrey Hinton. Luddite, Ethics, Equity, Curiosity, spirituality

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Do you ever feel lonely, even if you’re in a room with other people? Do you sometimes feel like you’re missing that sense of meaningful connection in your life? If so, you’re not alone. For a variety of reasons, common social interactions have shifted over the years, leaving us with an epidemic of loneliness. Join us as we talk about how the contemplative life can be of use to us in our current environment. Let’s take a long, loving look at what’s real and discover what’s there for us to build on.

Additional Resources
Podcast: Ep 159 Community Care Episode from The Contemplative Life

Hashtags
Technology, Esther Perel, Vivek Murthy, Ghosting, Awareness, Rituals, Rule of Life, Balance

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