New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.

---

You may remember hearing a massively viral story from a few years ago about a school in Baltimore that gave students meditation, instead of detention.

Ali Smith, Atman Smith, and Andres Gonzalez founded the Holistic Life Foundation and are the authors of Let Your Light Shine, which recounts the story of their work helping traumatized children in one of America’s most underserved cities, and how mindfulness tools can help children and communities not only survive, but thrive.

In this episode we talk about:

The story behind their meditation-instead-of-detention initiative
Their experience asking principals to give them the most challenging students
What it’s like working in one of the most violent cities in the world
The results from teaching students yoga and meditation
How we can apply the lessons they’ve learned to meditation and life

Content Warning: Explicit language. For a clean version of this episode, please listen on the Ten Percent Happier app or at tenpercent.com

Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/ali-smith-atman-smith-andres-gonzalez-513

Episode 259 - Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit to those who keep His commandments - Sunday June 8, 2025 - Jn 14:15-16, 23b-26