New Dimensions

Here we explore the complex emotion of awe which frequently involves a sense of surprise, unexpectedness, or mystery. Wonder and awe have many benefits and here you’ll find many ways to invite more of these most positive emotions into your life. Klein shares many inspiring examples of how we can tap into the power and benefits of awe. Allen Klein is the former Director of Life and Death Transitions in San Francisco. He's a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor. He is the author of many books including The Healing Power of Humor (Tarcher/Putnam 1989), The Courage to Laugh, Change Your Life: A Little Book of Big Ideas (Tarcher 1998), Learning to Laugh When You Feel Like Crying: Embracing Life After Loss (Goodman Beck Publishing 2011), Embracing Life After Loss: A Gentle Guide for Growing through Grief (Mango 2019) and The Awe Factor: How a Little Bit of Wonder Can Make a Big Difference in Your Life (Mango Publishing Group 2020 or Conari Press 2020)Interview Date: 2/26/2021     Tags: MP3, Allen Klein, wonder, awe, Cirque du Soleil, Beau Lotto, stress, creativity, Dacher Keltner, Khrushchev, intention, synchronicity, Jenny Odell, John Cage concert, Sam Keen. Personal Transformation

Here we explore an alternative to looking at our bodies through the lens of the brutal forces of cultural bias that highlight the personal shaming that tears down the expression of our intelligence, power, and beauty. Bedrick gives many enlightened examples of women he’s worked with. He takes us into the deeper mysteries of the deeper hungers we are going for. David Bedrick JD, DIPL PW is an attorney, educator, and process worker. He founded the Santa Fe Institute for Shame-Based Studies where he teaches and works with individuals from around the world. He is the author of Talking Back to Dr. Phil: Alternatives to Mainstream Psychology (Belly Song Press 2013), Revisioning Activism: Bringing Depth, Dialogue, and Diversity to Individual and Social Change (Belly Song Press 2017) i You Can’t Judge a Body By Its Cover: 17 Women’s Stories of Hunger, Body Shame, and Redemption (Belly Song Press 2020)Interview Date: 2/23/2021   Tags: MP3, David Bedrick, body image, shame, dieting, weight loss, hunger, lose weight, sexism, racism, body positivity, Psychology, Personal Transformation, Health & Healing, Women’s Studies

Here we explore the Native American influence on the founding of the United States and how putting our country back together in full integrity requires us to remember and respect the living roots of our nation. Parry states that the ultimate reason he is interested in politics is so that we can get to more kindness, compassion, and respect for Mother Earth. Glenn Aparicio Parry, Ph.D. is an educator, international speaker, entrepreneur, and visionary whose life-long passion is to re-form thinking and education into a coherent, cohesive whole. He's the founder and past president of the SEED Institute, and is currently the president of the think tank The Circle for Original Thinking. Parry organized and participated in the groundbreaking Language of Spirit Conferences from 1999 - 2011 that brought together Indigenous Native Elders and Western scientists in dialogue. This series of conferences was moderated by Leroy Little Bear. Parry is an avid outdoorsman and makes his home in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains in Albuquerque, NM, with his wife, dog, and cat. He is the author of Original Thinking: A Radical ReVisioning of Time, Humanity, and Nature (North Atlantic Books 2015) and Original Politics: Making America Sacred Again (Select Books 2020)Interview Date: 2/19/2021  Tags: Glenn Aparicio Parry, Paula Gunn Allen, sacred, genocide, Pilgrims, Plymonth Rock, Haudenosaunee, The Peacemaker, Roger Williams, Benjamin Franklin, Chief Canasatego, caucus, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Matilda Gage, Women’s movement, suffragists, Vandana Shiva, Turtle Island Renaissance, Leroy Little Bear, reconstruction, Van Jones, John McCain, Ramana Maharshi, Know-Nothing Party, Social Change/Politics, History, Indigenous Wisdom

At a very young age, Gendler became enamored with elements of creativity such as words, colors and beauty. After years of writing, painting and teaching, she has come to know herself as an “Anthropologist of the Imagination.” She offers insight into qualities that make us human, such as joy, beauty, curiosity, and courtesy. She suggests some ways to spark our creativity.  J. Ruth Gendler is an artist and a writer, and has been a teacher of writing and art for more than twenty years. She leads workshops in writing and creativity throughout the United States, and has been an artist in residence with California Poets in the Schools and Young Audiences of the Bay Area. She has worked with elementary, middle school and high school students teaching through California Poets in the Schools, and writes about the transformative power of art. In October 2007 the Lineage Dance Company presented a theater piece based on her book The Book of Qualities (Harper Perennial 1988), now in its 52nd printing. Her books also include Changing Light: The Eternal Cycle of Night and Day (Editor) (Harper Collins 1991) and Notes on the Need for Beauty: An Intimate Look at an Essential Quality (Marlowe & Company 2007)Interview Date: 9/17/2014  Tags: MP3, Ruth Gendler, creativity, writing, self-publishing, art, anthropologist of the imagination, beauty, imagination, inspiration, color poems, efficiency, writing letters, Arts & Creativity

Every person has their own timing when it comes to grieving. Claire Willis suggests that grief is a sign of deep love rather than a problem to be solved. She recommends that we allow ourselves to remain in the great brokenness of loss with our eyes and hearts open—thus grief is an invitation to grow and eventually can lead to finding meaning in the experience of loss. Claire B. Willis is a clinical social worker who works in the field of oncology and bereavement. She is a cofounder of the Boston nonprofit Facing Cancer Together and regularly leads bereavement, end of life, support, and therapeutic writing groups. As a lay Buddhist chaplain, she focuses on contemplative practices for end-of-life care. She maintains a private practice in Brookline, Massachusetts. She is coauthor with Marnie Crawford Samuelson of Opening to Grief: Finding Your Way from Loss to Peace (Dharma Spring 2020) Interview Date: 1/21/2021   Tags: Claire B. Willis, grief, mourning, bereavement, depression, disenfranchised sorrows, hidden griefs, untended sorrows, miscarriages, infertility, Hersch Wilson, Metta practice, loving kindness, gratitude journal, Rick Hanson, James Pennebaker, expressive writing, Death & Dying, Personal Transformation

Plotkin encourages us to seek out a soul encounter in order to find our ecological niche and our place in the larger world. He encourages us to do the necessary work to become true “adults,” which has nothing to do with our chronological age. We must do this work in order to give our gifts back to the web of life and become embedded in life-enhancing activities.  Bill Plotkin, Ph.D, has been a psychotherapist, research psychologist, rock musician, river runner, professor of psychology, and mountain-bike racer. As a research psychologist, he studied dreams and nonordinary states of consciousness achieved through meditation, biofeedback, and hypnosis.Currently an ecotherapist, depth psychologist, and wilderness guide, he leads a variety of experiential, nature-based individuation programs. He is the author of Soulcraft: Crossing into the Mysteries of Nature and Psyche (New World Library 2003, Nature and the Human Soul: Creating Wholeness and Community in a Fragmented World (New World Library 2008) and The Journey of Soul Initiation: A Field Guide for Visionaries, Evolutionaries, and Revolutionaries (New World Library 2021)Interview Date: 1/21/2021     Tags: Bill Plotkin, Steven Foster, Meredith Little, C.G.Jung, Journey of Soul, metaphor of caterpillar and butterfly, William McDonough, soul, Dreams, Personal Transformation, Spirituality

Cognitive decline is rampant in today’s world. It’s a toxic jungle regarding pollutants in the air, water, and foods we eat, as well as the negative media we take in. Here our guest touches on how to protect ourselves and our brains as we navigate the neuro-toxic forces that are currently pitched against everyone on the planet. Brant Cortright, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and Professor of Psychology at California Institute of Integral Studies. His consulting practice specializes in brain health and neuroscience-informed depth therapy. He is the author of: Psychotherapy and Spirit: Theory and Practice in Transpersonal Psychotherapy (Suny Series, Philosophy of Psychology) (State University of New York Press 1997), Integral Psychology: Yoga, Growth, and Opening the Heart (Suny Series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology) (State University of New York Press 2007), The Neurogenesis Diet & Lifestyle: Upgrade Your Brain, Upgrade Your Life (Psyche Media 2015), Holistic Healing for Anxiety, Depression, & Cognitive Decline (Psyche Media 2020)Interview Date: 1/14/2021    Tags: Brant Cortright, depression, mental illness, Neurotoxins, hormone disruptors, glyphosates, microbiome, inflammation, Alzheimer’s disease, smog, antidepressants, neuroplasticity, neurogenesis, gut microbiome, microbial diversity, bacteria in our intestines, conspiracy theories, Science, Self Help, Heath & Healing, psychology, meditation

The “laziness lie” ignores the many barriers we must deal with in meeting our goals. Being lazy can be a self-protection. Lacking motivation is rational if you haven’t been convinced that there’s any value in it. They say, “I might disagree with somebody else's priorities but if they don't care about doing something that doesn't matter to them, that's pretty rational.” Devon Price, Ph.D. is a social psychologist, writer, activist, and professor at Loyola University of Chicago’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Their work has appeared in numerous publications such as the Journal of Experimental Psychology, Slate, and has been featured on the front page of Medium numerous times. Devon Price is the author of: Laziness Does Not Exist (Atria Books 2020)Interview Date: 1/7/2021    Tags: Devon Price, Ph.D., laziness, unhoused, homeless, welfare, government assistance, Thor, the Avengers, procrastinate, cyber loaf, workaholic, activism fatigue, grief, grieving, mourning, curiosity, burnout, awe, wonder, Personal Transformation, Social Change/Politics, Relationships, Work/Livelihood

Prayer is our most universal and yet individual way of communicating with the divine, of connecting with the infinite dimensions of our being. Here we explore some of the many ways we pray. Celeste Yacoboni is an ordained Minister of Walking Prayer, ordained by the Center for Sacred Studies in Sonora, California. Her work focuses on guiding and supporting people through transitions by creating a space of awareness, presence and inspiration which integrates body, mind, spirit and emotions. She leads “How Do You Pray?” workshops in which people share and experience different ways of prayer and connecting to Source. She lives in New Mexico and is the editor of How Do You Pray? Inspiring Responses from Religious Leaders, Spiritual Guides, Healers, Activists & Other Lovers of Humanity (Monkfish Publishing 2014)Interview Date: 8/27 /2014     Tags: MP3, Celeste Yacoboni, Ho’oponopono, prayer, praying, pray, Matthew Fox, Ph.D., Michael Gelb, Ph.D., Michael Meade, ancestors, God, Robin Lim, Committee of Angels, dedicating our day, ancestors, children and prayer, Peter Russell, innocent curiosity, what would love do now, What would love say, whale caught and freed from fishing lines, Terry Tempest Williams, prairie dogs in prayer, prayer field, Prayer Intention Experiment, e.e. cummings, Antonio Machado, Honey in my heart, oldest prayer, forgiveness, Hail Mary full of grace prayer, credo, Spirituality, Meditation

Play is deeply embedded in our natures. It contributes to optimism and hope for the future. It enables us with the ability to persevere. Brown concludes, “Play is a fundamental survival drive of humanity without which long term survival of our species may be at stake.” He describes research showing that most sociopaths suffer from play deprivation in their childhood. Stuart Brown. M.D. is a pioneer researcher on the effects of play. He’s the founder of the National Institute for Play in Carmel, California. In 1987, he was the producer of the classic documentary film The Hero's Journey, the Life and Work of Joseph Campbell and executive producer and originator of the three part PBS series, The Promise of Play. He is the author of: Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul (co-author Christopher Vaughan) (Avery 2010) Interview Date: 2/3/2014    Tags: Stuart Brown, M.D., play, Charles Whitman, rigidity in thinking, compulsiveness, depression, addictions, Brian Sutton Smith, Norbert Rosing, National Geographic special, sled dogs, play languages, play signals, rough and tumble games, bullies, beauty, awe and wonder, play and the brain, Peter Gray, neoteny, video games, John Wooden, Bob Fagan, grizzly bear play, Mark Beckoff, optimism, joy, awe, wonder, joyfulness, Roger Guillemin, Psychology, Personal Transformation, Self Help