The HERE.together Podcast

If you think of Buddhists as quiet, gentle people who meditate all the time, think again.  Our guest this week is a proponent of engaged Buddhism, a movement within the philosophy that turns contemplation into action, practice into purpose.  We learn from Pete that it’s not enough to acknowledge the suffering in the world, engaged Buddhists strive to do something to relieve suffering where they find it.

If your efforts to help others - friends and family OR out in the world - fall short of your expectations, or if you are confused about how to start making a difference, this episode might be for you.

Welcome to the weekly podcast for people craving

Pete Pierson has been a man of action his whole life, so it makes sense that he would be attracted to a practice and community that embraces action.  Once an Outward Bound instructor, as well as a firefighter and Mobile Intensive Care Paramedic in remote and extreme areas of Minnesota and Alaska, Pete knows how to help.  He’s seen death up close, and as a UU lay minister, he was asked the big questions – Why?  Not finding a good answer to that question eventually led him to Zen and engaged Buddhism, which, as you will hear, taught Pete to make peace with not knowing.

He also knows the value of community and has been active in the many communities he’s called home.  While living here in Prescott long enough to go to grad school, he allowed himself to be recruited to run for the state house of representatives against an incumbent republican with dubious personal history.  He agreed to run, not because he thought he could win, which he didn’t, but in order to force the public conversation on vital issues.

Now working as a farm laborer in Kansas, Pete is finding solace in physical work and taking care of family through the pandemic.  He is serving on the township board, doing freelance writing and non-profit consulting, and he doesn’t know what’s next.  But he’s ok with that.

In this episode, Pete reads from the essay “A Gift of Not Knowing”. His story takes us to a hot, windy day at the Wounded Knee Memorial in SD and a concrete example of how to engage with history, suffering, and cultural divides. As he explains, Not knowing is a good place to start.

Link to full show notes with references and RECIPES!

How are you, dear listeners?  We are recording this on Sunday, November 8th.  This has been a week full of all the feels... the stress and joy and fear and sorrow and hope.  We hope you are coping and coming through it ok.  We checked in with a couple of our besties yesterday to process all these feelings and find out what comes next.  

Use this link to see full show notes and photos of the guests.

In case you missed the big news (yes election, yes covid numbers, but the other big news) - this podcast just had its 1st anniversary. To celebrate, we released a Greatest Hits episode, threw a party, AND renamed/rebranded the dang thing.

If you missed the party, fear not!  We harvested some of the best moments and arranged them in this thoughtful audio wreath for you to enjoy.

We were so happy and grateful to have some of our favorite humans join us as guests and as audience members on Friday to celebrate, as we said, our one-year anniversary as a podcast.  Drew and Candace sang us a couple of awesome songs.  Bill Konigsberg, Jim Natal, and Matt Ruff read the perfect passages, and some of our smartest pals talked over how to save the world.

We also made the big announcement that we are re-branding this very podcast.  After much consideration, we felt that a new name would serve our audience and get our message out into the world a bit better.  Welcome to the HERE.together Podcast. 

Click HERE for full show notes, full guest list, and links to resources and references. 

How many 1-year-olds can say they conversed with 47 notable geniuses, fomented community, provided solace to at least dozens of friends and strangers, and emboldened others to take a creative plunge into unknown waters?

You know a toddler like that??  Cool.  We need to interview that kid.  But seriously.  The one-year-old I’m talking about is, of course, the RocketFeather podcast.  And while we have had a blast building this first year, and only a few arguments, we could not have done it without you - the intrepid Rocketeers.

You have been willing to go with us to the difficult places, the challenging places, the confusing, painful, weirdly joyful places.  And it’s made all the difference, especially in the year of covid, for us not to have to make this journey alone.  Sharing our fears and questions and solutions with our 47 amazing guests and with our brilliant and beautiful listeners has made the most challenging year - debatably - of our lives, not only tolerable, but full of meaning and real joy.  So come with us on a walk through some of our favorite moments over the last year as we remember, make meaning, and plan for what’s next.

One of the big themes of this podcast - the Rocketfeather podcast - is that we do the personal work in order to be in relationship, so we can be of service.  This is how we have designed this walk down memory lane today.  While most of our interviews touched on all three of these phases, we have grouped them according to where we remember having our minds blown and our hearts opened.

This episode would be 14 hours long if we included every bit of goodness, so by necessity, we pared it down to the high points that struck us this week as we were assembling it, which was a delicious torture. It was like cutting up a gorgeous piece of velvet yardage - so hard to cut into when the whole thing is so stunning, but necessary to make the garment we wanted to make.  So we hope you like what we made.

Nobody ever promised that creativity was devoid of tough choices.

See the Show Notes for this Episode at www.rocketfeather.com/pod

What’s it like to take an unpopular stand for something you know is important?  What’s it like to make public service a pillar of your life?  What’s important in making a good life for your family? Join us for a chat with the First Family...of Cottonwood, AZ as we learn about leadership, service, entrepreneurship, adventure, and more.

Tim and Ruth Ellen Elinski are right in the thick of it. Tim is the current and recently re-elected mayor of cottonwood, and his wife, Ruth Ellen, a long-time non-profit leader and entrepreneur, is a Business Analyst for the Small Business Development Center at Yavapai College. Together they are working to build the economic and community strength of Cottonwood and the Verde Valley, while raising two daughters and launching their own small business.

We get into what it was like for Tim, as mayor, and for the Elinskis as a family, to face protesters in front of their house after Tim’s controversial mayoral proclamation.  We go exploring with them to the wilds of Miami, Arizona and the birth of their most recent business venture.  And we find out what it means to them to serve and support their community - the whole community, even the people who boldly disagree.

Link to more information in the show notes: www.rocketfeather.com/pod

What would it be like for the businesses near us to be owned by our friends and neighbors?  What would it be like if the money we spent in those businesses stayed in town and enriched our whole community? What if we all felt like partners in our economy instead of just customers?

Today’s guest, Thomas Barr, is the Executive Director of Local First Arizona, the largest coalition of local businesses in North America. A proud Arizona native and graduate of Arizona State University, Thomas leads the business coalition of Local First Arizona by advocating for the economic and cultural benefits provided by building strong local economies.

Thomas’s work is fueled by his values. In this episode, he reveals some of the personal and family stories that forged his values around justice and inclusion. He also explains how his  advocacy for a strong local business community contributes to building vibrant, equitable prosperity across the state.

In his free time, Thomas volunteers with many causes and organizations throughout the Valley including Young Nonprofit Professionals, Equality Arizona, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Heritage Square Foundation and Phoenix Legal Action Network. Thomas was honored in 2018 as one of Phoenix Magazine’s 40 Under 40, he’s an alumnus of Arizona Leading for Change, and the Valley Leadership Institute's 40th cohort.

We were so happy that Thomas Barr was able to join us this week to share his passion and plans for a thriving economy. He also shared the sometimes wrenching stories of businesses and business owners that Local First Arizona is working to keep afloat during Covid, the biggest challenge to small business in a century. Keep listening to the end when Thomas reveals his secret “smell test” to find out instantly whether a business is locally owned or not, and for his powerful vision for the next 20 years.

For comprehensive show notes with links to Local First AZ programs, tips for shopping local, and resources for local business, go to www.rocketfeather.com/pod

What would make you get off the couch and take to the streets in the name of justice?  Justice for people like you?  Justice for people who are “different”?  We continue to struggle with these questions, but our guests today got off their respective couches long ago.  Find out what activism is like here in the Prescott area for Ren Manning and Rosemary Dixon, as they fight for healthcare, freedom, and basic respect for all of our neighbors.

Rosemary Dixon lived all over the world before settling in Prescott 9 years ago. She earned her graduate degree at the University of the Western Cape, in South Africa, and lectured in gender, race, racism and whiteness at the University of Nevada, Reno for eleven years. She is a steering committee member of Prescott Indivisible and the of chair of the recently formed AREA-P (Anti-Racist Education and Action-Prescott). This group operates to educate primarily white people on the hierarchical system we have created, but also acts to spotlight racial injustice and white supremacy in all its forms.

Ren Manning, is a community organizer, educator, and artist who has lived and organized all over the world.  Ren has taught courses on US/Mexico border studies, anti-racist organizing, landscapes of neoliberalism, art & agency, and community outreach. Ren works on immigration reform, and is currently helping Judy Stahl get elected to the AZ State House.

See the show notes for the full scoop on our accomplished guests. www.rocketfeather.com/pod

I’m amazed that we could even get time with them to record this podcast, they are so busy, but I’m thrilled that we did.

This is an intense conversation, but we left it feeling inspired, hopeful, and most important, ready to take action to make things better for ALL of our neighbors.  We hope you’ll come along with us for this talk and then we’ll see you at the meeting after. I’ll bring the cookies.

What story are you living and who wrote it?  You?  Or did your family or society or the advertisers of America write the script for the life you’re currently living?  Are you an entrepreneur struggling to live a healthy life while making your business successful?  What does success even look like?

What would it be like to be able to answer those questions?  More importantly, what would it be like to intentionally set your own direction and meet your own authentic expectations, free from old stories and self-imposed obstacles?

Our guest this week is Mary Hodges.  Mary is the host of the Abundantly Being Podcast where she and her guests share tips for creating fulfillment from within and taking ownership of your life and business. Mary's mission is to help entrepreneurs create a thriving life and business from the inside out so they can experience more flow, more fun, and more freedom while they share their gifts with the world. She’s also owner of STL Startup Lawyer where she provides advice and peace of mind to small businesses and startups.

Do you like poetry? Do you care about art? Do you wonder, sometimes, how art fits into society? How creativity fits into your life?

This week’s guest is Jim Natal. Jim wrote his first poem when he was in high school but let poetry go when adult demands got in the way. Jim had a successful but ultimately unsatisfying career working for the National Football League, shepherding big corporate deals, and polishing the brand. After 25 years, and in spite of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s assertion, Jim managed to create a second act for himself. Six books later, Jim is an award winning poet, teacher, and event promoter.

For the last 12 years, Jim has worked to draw renowned authors for readings and interviews to the little city of Prescott, Arizona. His efforts have built a literary culture where Jim had originally found none.  This week on September 25th, we’ll be watching online as Jim welcomes Lisa Ko to the Literary Southwest Virtual stage. Lisa Ko’s novel The Leavers is a 2017 National Book Award Finalist and was on Best of lists at NPR, LA Times, Buzz Feed and, yes, Oprah Magazine.

The link for the event. 

Although Jim joined us ostensibly to talk about Literary Southwest, we wrung him dry for his insight into the purpose of poetry, that nature of creativity, and whether there is a place for art in the apocalypse. Jim also reads two of his poems, both of which are incredibly relevant to the moment.

Our original interview with Jim lasted two and a half hours and was full of fascinating anecdotes, inside stories, and generous ruminations. We whittled the audio down to something a little more digestible for the average listener, but if you would like to hear the whole conversation, email us at [email protected] and we’ll send you a Dropbox link to the unedited version.

In the meantime, stay tuned as we talk writing, connection, and self-discovery with Jim Natal. We think you’ll finish uplifted, more hopeful, and see a pinch more beauty in your world.