Welcome to The Contemplative Life!

Episodes

Ep 111 Getting Unstuck
111
March 6, 2023

Ep 111 Getting Unstuck

Send us a text Today we are joined by Zil Eiler, an intuitive business coach and mentor who is sharing with us about how to “get unstuck,” whether those points of struggle are about our decisions, our circumstances, our relationships, or something else. This 20-minute interview is jam-packed with tips on how to reframe your thinking, how to increase your experience of joy, how to follow your intuition, and what to do when you’re feeling overwhelmed by the decisions you need to make. Additio...
Ep 110 Spiritual Bypassing
110
Feb. 27, 2023

Ep 110 Spiritual Bypassing

Send us a text Spiritual bypassing can take many forms. We may find ourselves avoiding difficult emotions or trying to explain-away negative experiences. And in truth, spiritual bypassing turns out to be the opposite of the connection we seek, ultimately leading us to feel emotionally confused or worse. On this week’s podcast, we take a look at some of the common phrases we might hear or say when spiritual bypassing is at play. Join us as we talk about ways to work through what we’re experien...
Ep 109 Lament
109
Feb. 20, 2023

Ep 109 Lament

Send us a text This week, we are joined by Kristen Emerson, licensed social worker and founder of Breaking Light Counseling who is sharing with us about the impacts of grief, loss, and trauma. Many of us experienced the effects of cumulative grief as we struggled to adjust and adapt during the height of the pandemic. We were often forced to forego the usual rituals and outlets for processing our losses, both in our homes and in our institutions. Join us as Kristen shares her wisdom with us re...
Ep 108 Our Empowered Voices
108
Feb. 13, 2023

Ep 108 Our Empowered Voices

Send us a text On this week’s podcast, we’re taking some time to talk about how rituals can help us find our empowered voices - particularly in those moments where we just don’t feel permission to have a voice. Do you sometimes struggle with a negative ticker-tape of words going through your head? Maybe you truly feel that something isn’t right but, for whatever reason, you just can’t seem to find it within yourself to speak up. Today’s podcast talks about ways to strengthen this aspect of wh...
Ep 107 Expanding Your Self-Care
107
Feb. 6, 2023

Ep 107 Expanding Your Self-Care

Send us a text Today we’re talking about the expansiveness of self-care because, as it turns out, there are no less than six types of Self-Care. What we need in one season of life may look very different from what we need in another. What our internal list of “shoulds” tells us we ought to be doing may or may not be what we really need in order to nourish our souls right now. And so join us as we talk about what it looks like to offer kindness to our whole selves and to grow into being able t...
Ep 106 Can Gratitude and Hope Co-Exist
106
Jan. 30, 2023

Ep 106 Can Gratitude and Hope Co-Exist

Send us a text At first blush, it may feel like an easy yes to imagine that gratitude and hope can co-exist. But on today’s podcast, we ask the question: Is it true? Can we hold space for the things we hope for? Or does having hopes make us ungrateful? We further ask the question: What is hope anyways? And if we were to have hopes, how do we have hopes in a way that doesn’t devastate our day-to-day experience? Join us as we explore the many questions connected to, “Can Gratitude and Hope Co-Exis...
Ep 105 Engaging the Contemplative in College
105
Jan. 23, 2023

Ep 105 Engaging the Contemplative in College

Send us a text What does it mean to have contemplative practices in college? Today we’re joined by Evan Digman, a senior at UW-Madison, who’s talking to us about his spirituality journey - from his first experience of guided meditation in middle school to now. Do you sometimes wonder how to manage the stresses of day-to-day life, feel the need to consider what sort of community could be meaningfully supportive to you, or ask yourself where you’d even get the time to have a meaningful spiritua...
Ep 104 Living with Overwhelm
104
Jan. 17, 2023

Ep 104 Living with Overwhelm

Send us a text Feeling overwhelmed is unavoidable. On today’s podcast, we talk about how to live in the midst of our overwhelm as well as what we can do to ease the pain of it. Have you ever felt yourself begin to spiral? Maybe you had a physical reaction, like an upset stomach or a racing heart. Or perhaps your thoughts were the thing to start racing. For many of us, overwhelm is wrapped in imagining our worst-case scenarios or supposing we don’t have what it takes to handle what’s com...
Ep 103 Curiosity Around Chakras
103
Jan. 9, 2023

Ep 103 Curiosity Around Chakras

Send us a text Today we’re joined by Ann Kowaliczko as she shares her wisdom about the vast and ancient topic of chakras. In this episode, we ask Ann many questions: What is a chakra? How do you access the energy of chakras? What caused you - a person who didn’t grow up hearing about chakras - to pay attention to them? Ann graciously answers our questions, while also pointing out her desire not to steal or misappropriate the traditions and practices of others. Check out our “Additional Resour...
Ep 102 The Value of Retreats
102
Jan. 2, 2023

Ep 102 The Value of Retreats

Send us a text On this week’s podcast, each of us shares a bit about our deep love and appreciation for retreats - and in a variety of ways! Join us as we talk about best practices for preparing, what to do if you don’t feel like you have the time, and why different seasons of your life may call for a different sort of retreat. Additional Resources Website: Foundry Spiritual Center - Tailor-Made Retreats Water Filtration: Spring Well Water Filtration Systems #SpiritualPractice #Retr...
Ep 101 Three Ways to Engage the New Year
101
Dec. 26, 2022

Ep 101 Three Ways to Engage the New Year

Send us a text On this week’s podcast, each of us takes a moment to share things we are excited about as we enter into the New Year. Join us as we discover together that, while some of us have plans that involve our family and friends, others of us intend to spend some time in reflection by ourselves. Can you guess who is who? Additional Resources Video: Bringing Eco Spirituality into Your Home Video: Earth Altars Aim to Offer a Path to Healing #Traditions #Ritual #Resolutions #Eart...
Ep 100 The Power of Pause
100
Dec. 19, 2022

Ep 100 The Power of Pause

Send us a text Taking a moment to pause is a practice that can enrich both our inner and our outer lives. Have you ever finished a meal only to feel like you hadn’t even tasted it? Maybe you know all too well the experience of running from one thing to the next. Do you ever feel pressed for answers you don’t have? Pauses allow us the time we need in order to process our experiences, feel our emotions, and become more appreciative of the people around us. Join us as we explore - and celebrate ...
Ep 99 Childhood Memories
99
Dec. 12, 2022

Ep 99 Childhood Memories

Send us a text Did you know that childhood memories can be insightful and generative parts of your prayer times? In one moment, perhaps they help us identify a long-standing pattern. But in another moment, perhaps they connect us more profoundly to our interests, or even allow us to reconsider the meaning of a particular life event. Join us as we talk about the value of embracing the entirety, the preciousness, of our life story. Additional Resources Podcast: Ep 21: The Sacred Space Inside To...
Ep 98 The Value of Lectio Divina
98
Dec. 5, 2022

Ep 98 The Value of Lectio Divina

Send us a text Lectio Divina is a Latin phrase that literally translates to mean “Divine Reading.” It’s a contemplative practice that can help us slow down and immerse ourselves in what we’re seeing (and hearing) on the page, which often leads to experiences of deeper spiritual connection. Whether you’ve been engaging forms of Divina for many years, only recently, or have never given it a try, may this week’s reflection be an inspiration to all of us. Additional Resources Website: www.e...
Ep 97 Do My Ancestors Matter
97
Nov. 28, 2022

Ep 97 Do My Ancestors Matter

Send us a text On today’s podcast, we take some time to think about where we come from and why that might be something we’re interested in knowing more about. American culture has tended towards individualism in almost every aspect of life. But in fact, in how many ways do we embody those who have come before us, whether knowingly or unknowingly? And how much does it matter? Today, we consider the invitation to think bigger than ourselves. Join us as we consider the vastness of who we are.&nb...
Ep 96 “Being with”/ “Doing For”
96
Nov. 21, 2022

Ep 96 “Being with”/ “Doing For”

Send us a text How do we relate to the Divine? It’s easy in our cultural context to interact in the world as a fixer, a doer, a mover and a shaker. We’ve all been trained to engage in these transactional ways. And yet, another way is possible, a way that values our belovedness and allows us to become more comfortable with our tensions, our questions, and our not knowing. In today’s podcast, we consider the paths we can take in order to strengthen our ability to simply be, for “simply being” t...
Ep 95 Sound Healing
95
Nov. 14, 2022

Ep 95 Sound Healing

Send us a text Sound healing is the practice of using sound to improve your physical health as well as your emotional, mental, and spiritual wellbeing, and is accessible to people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds. In this week’s podcast, guest speaker Jim Powell speaks to us about his many years of experience with this healing and restoring practice, sharing stories of astonishing improvements in people’s overall health. Join us in hearing about how even a simple playlist, or singing “...
Ep 94 Growing our Awe-wareness
94
Nov. 7, 2022

Ep 94 Growing our Awe-wareness

Send us a text When was the last time you saw something so beautiful and inspiring that it caused you to stop in order to really take it in? Maybe you heard a story about how someone else was doing something to make the world a better place, and it moved you to feelings of hope and excitement of your own. Awe, as we’ve learned through the sciences, is experienced on a continuum, everything from mild amusement to complete overwhelm. And while it’s easy to notice the things that completely amaz...
Ep 93 Measuring Spiritual Growth
93
Oct. 31, 2022

Ep 93 Measuring Spiritual Growth

Send us a text Measuring “spiritual growth” can be tricky. Many of us have been taught to explore metrics that are easily quantifiable, which makes sense. Numbers help us feel like we have a solid answer. They help us set goals. But as you can probably guess, on this week’s podcast, we’re taking time to look at alternative ways to “measure” our spiritual growth. Join us as we talk about the different sorts of questions we’ve found helpful when considering spiritual maturation. #Spiritua...
Ep 92 Inclusive Outdoor Spirituality
92
Oct. 24, 2022

Ep 92 Inclusive Outdoor Spirituality

Send us a text Today we are joined by Amy Hoyte, founder of Beautifully Made Adventures who speaks to us about the power of nature to speak to us, inspire us, and teach us. Stress, anxiety and lists of shoulds are common in today’s world. But whether we’re sitting on a park bench or hiking a trail that challenges our limits, nature has the ability to teach a myriad of powerful lessons, including the lesson that everyone matters. Do you desire some grounding and connection in your life? Join u...
Ep 91 Engaging Calm
91
Oct. 17, 2022

Ep 91 Engaging Calm

Send us a text “Being calm” seems to be all the rage these days. But what we need at any given moment isn’t always the same. On this week’s podcast we share about how desperately each of us has needed this calm lately and the wide array of things we’ve been doing in order to get back to those places of stillness. What are some of your go-to ways of finding your center? We’d love to hear from you. Additional Resources App: Calm app Book: My Deepest Me by Janice Lynne Lundy Website: Fork...
Ep 90 Spirituality and Trauma
90
Oct. 10, 2022

Ep 90 Spirituality and Trauma

Send us a text Today we are joined by Claudia Greco who speaks to us about the intersection between spirituality and trauma. Oftentimes, it feels hard to be present to what goes on in the world. We struggle to know who to talk to about our experiences and feelings. But what we know is, with trauma, we often experience life as feeling fractured, as if we have a before and an after. Claudia offers us hope today for reconnecting our bodies, minds, and spirits. Join us as we explore our need for ...
Ep 89 Art, Creativity, and the Contemplative
89
Oct. 3, 2022

Ep 89 Art, Creativity, and the Contemplative

Send us a text Art and creativity can be a useful way of opening our awareness. So many moments in our lives can leave us feeling disconnected and out of touch. Today we talk about how engaging our creative side can help us slow down and open to possibility. We name our own struggles with feeling vulnerable and inadequate. And we share our moments of feeling like we’ve broken through the veil in order to encounter the Divine. We hope you’ll join us as we engage in the reality that art is ever...
Ep 88 Mental Health and Spiritual Journey
88
Sept. 26, 2022

Ep 88 Mental Health and Spiritual Journey

Send us a text Today we are joined by Sister Denise who speaks to us about her own spiritual journey, the struggles and the surprises. We hope that hearing her story will be a source of inspiration for others looking to connect with the Divine Spark within. We hope it will allow us to ask ourselves about our own stories, to look compassionately at the dynamics we’ve lived in the middle of, and to lovingly seek out spaces where we can experience healing and freedom to become our authentic selv...