To catch a glimpse of someone in that moment when the real person shows through. The noise, their story fades away and the real, full human being is revealed.
May 27, 2021•39 min•Ep. 15
Being listened to by another sincerely and compassionately can help us believe in ourselves, and in our better nature.
Mar 29, 2021•36 min•Ep. 14
“If you have the chance to be compassionate with somebody or to do nothing at all, I hope that you choose compassion.”
Mar 17, 2021•42 min•Ep. 13
And not on the righteousness of telling them what “they” should be doing, or not doing. "They" probably don't have all of the right answers, but then neither do we, or anyone. Affording everyone the dignity of having agency over their own lives.
Feb 23, 2021•42 min•Ep. 12
Rehabilitation and rejuvenation thanks to the grace of those who remained supportive even when it felt undeserved. Holding onto the light of compassion through years of disappointment.
Jan 28, 2021•37 min•Ep. 11
What if even in your worst moments, you could still love yourself and look upon your past behaviors not through the lens of shame, but accept that you were taking care of yourself in the best way that you could at the time? Could you expand and strengthen this practice by relating with others in your community not with judgment and shame but with compassion?
Dec 29, 2020•19 min•Ep. 10
In a very personal conversation, Stephen talks to his son about the challenges facing the generation coming of age today. The ability to focus on their own passions and creativity has been so exhausted by ceaseless stimulation and endless anonymous streams of ambiguous uncertainty that they often “fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way”.
Dec 15, 2020•56 min•Ep. 9
Early trauma can cause fear to become our first thought because we are afraid of getting hurt again and may feel that we don’t matter. Can we find the compassion and courage to focus on the memories and voices of those who believed in us more than on our fear, and anger, and negative self-talk?
Dec 04, 2020•29 min•Ep. 8
A world-class athlete is struck down by injury due to an unknown genetic condition triggered early by the effects of childhood trauma. After a decade of missed diagnoses, abusive treatment, judgment, and self-doubt, she learns to harness her own tenacious determination to accept and have empathy for her body, herself, and others with struggles of their own.
Nov 20, 2020•31 min•Ep. 7
How do we handle the shame that seems to keep derailing our own personal journey toward wellness? Every time we take a positive step forward, or sometimes even when we just contemplate taking that step, shame arises and we often retreat into our learned avoidance behavior: isolation, overeating, substance misuse, distracting ourselves with work, shopping, or other activity. Can we learn to sit with that sense of shame, share it with others, listen as they share their own? In that shared experien...
Oct 29, 2020•41 min•Ep. 6
The coronavirus pandemic has laid bare the inequities experienced by many in our community. Access to the great equalizer that is public education is no longer a matter of heading down to the local school in the morning, but of technology and resources that are not always readily available to all. Even when access can be arranged, the lack of relationships fostered in the local school community can lead vulnerable students to remain silent and invisible.
Oct 06, 2020•49 min•Ep. 5
The stories in our own head around shame can become so unbearable that it leads to avoidance; of family, of friends, of our own better self through addiction. Someone who can quietly listen to that story with empathy can allow us a path back. Exposing our vulnerable self to others and letting them do the same with us can be the hardest, but most valuable service we can perform.
Sep 21, 2020•40 min•Ep. 4
Trauma, anxiety, shame. Sitting with ourselves when we couldn't imagine anyone wanting to. Sitting with someone who is in the midst of that struggle.
Sep 03, 2020•33 min•Ep. 3
A brilliant young woman talks about the process of opening up to her own emotion life. Coming to terms with her childhood traumas, issues with alcohol, and motherhood lead her to examine her way of living and to consider breaking open to her long buried emotions.
Aug 18, 2020•41 min•Ep. 2
Stephen talks with an old friend, Rodney Mashia. A Black man who grew up in the rural South in the fifties and sixties, Rodney reflects on his journey and his renewed desire to share his voice and his story.
Aug 04, 2020•35 min•Ep. 1
