Belonging to the Wild

In this episode, Kaitlyn Wildare returns to the podcast for a conversation about Winter Solstice and the Holidays. We explore the meaning of Winter Solstice, especially in the midst of all the holiday festivities. We ask the question: Does the Winter Solstice offer us another way to move through this time of the year? The Winter Solstice invites us into quiet, slowness, and inwardness. It reminds us of the necessity of the dark and the value of dormant seasons. We discuss ways that we can stay rooted in our nature, even while playing with the culture. In all of this, we are invited to befriend more aspects of our nature and experiences and deepen into our sense of belonging within these rhythms. As always, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to send me a message! www.drvanyaleilani.com

Dr. Vaughan Wilkins, an ecopsychologist dedicated to understanding how modern life impacts our mental health, delves into the concept of 'enculturated captivity.' He discusses how the pressures of contemporary living lead to isolation and trauma. The conversation emphasizes our innate longing for connection to nature, urging a return to traditional ecological practices for healing. Dr. Wilkins also critiques contemporary wellness culture and encourages embracing a regenerative way of life that fosters deeper well-being and ecological balance.

In this episode, I am joined by Cherie Katt, a licensed mental health counselor and a certified sex therapist. We discuss the connection and kinship between our spiritual selves and our sexual selves. Exploring the personal and collective stories that serve to sever our sense of connection between our sexuality and spirituality, we also explore topics like silence and shame, claiming our pain and our desire, and the importance of play and of learning to be at home in ourselves. During this episode, we return again and again to the heartbeat of this conversation: the call to belong to ourselves and to a life of enjoyment and pleasure. Contact info for Cherie: email: counseling@cheriekatt.com website: www.cheriekatt.com As always, I would love to hear from you! You can send me a message here.

In this episode of Belonging to the Wild, Dr. Ellman and I explore the question of finding a new spiritual home after loss of spiritual home and identity, or what some refer to as deconstruction. Is it possible to find a home by another way? Her research focuses on this question. By exploring the experience of folks who found a new sense of spiritual home and identity after this loss, Dr. Ellman identified 5 shifts that happened as they followed their own knowing into new spiritual homes, identities, and practices. Lacy Clark Ellman, DMin, has a doctorate in Transforming Spirituality, a certificate in spiritual direction, and was selected as a New Contemplative by Spiritual Directors International in 2015. Professionally, she is a spiritual companion and spiritual formation educator who speaks the language of pilgrimage. Personally, she is a lover of food, books, spirituality, growing and making things, far-off places, and lovely spaces. While she's currently focusing on family, you can find her recent work and connect with her at asacredjourney.net. You can find more about my work and send me a note about what you would like to hear on the podcast through my website ~ I would love to hear from you! www.drvanyaleilani.com

Heather Stringer, an artist, therapist, and ritual maker, shares her insights on the profound impact of rituals in our lives. She discusses the significance of the body and senses in creating meaningful experiences, emphasizing how intentional rituals can foster connection and healing. The conversation explores rituals as portals to personal transformation and communal bonding, particularly in times of transition and loss. Heather inspires listeners to embrace interruptions as opportunities for growth and to honor diverse experiences through inclusive ritual practices.

What does it mean to belong to the wild? What does our exile and our sacred unbelonging have to do with our self-belonging? How to we face the loss that comes with moving out of false and old belonging into wild belonging? These are some of the questions I explore in this episode. Wandering around the humble little story of the Ugly Duckling, this episode explores the complexities of true belonging, as well as the shadow side of belonging when it is used as weapon. We explore questions of exile, sacred unbelonging, self-belonging, and wild belonging as we move more and more out of domestication and obedience and into our wild belonging. I also let you know that this fall I am offering another Gathering Bones Course through the School of Wild Knowing. If you love stories and find meaning in diving into their wisdom in community, this offering may interest you! I am offering an in-person group for folks in the Seattle area and also an online opportunity for folks farther away. Click here for more info! If you are interested and want to talk more about it, schedule a call with me!

In this episode, Kaitlyn Turner and I sit down to continue our conversation on patriarchal consciousness. We explore questions like: Are there other ways besides the patriarchal way? When and how did the shift to patriarchal consciousness happens, and what are some of the reasons? What was cast away at the birth of patriarchal consciousness that we want to remember? What mythic images can help us remember those ways of knowing and being? The conversation leads us to a discussion about the myths living through us and shaping the way we imagine our lives and organize our societies, cultures, and families. In particular, we explore the Eden story—the predominant creation story of the Western tradition—and how this story has informed so much of how we live in this paradigm. We look at what is hidden in the Garden and how what has been buried there could help guide us home to more of ourselves and our nature.

In this conversation, Dr. Christy Bauman (she/her) and I continue the series on leaving the obedient life. Christy talks about different palettes of shoulds in her life, as well as the call she feels now to disobey the systems and narratives that constrict our freedom to exist fully. Christy describes the grief that she has experienced as a result of being excluded from the places where she is not fully welcome, and the joyous gift of invitation for her to be fully present in other places. Christy and I discuss what it means to be wild, and the particular safety that wildness offers. Christy beautifully describes the gift of learning to be her own best friend and the knowing, now at this point in her life, that she will no longer leave herself behind. We explore what it means to belong to ourselves first through the losses and joys of living and loving our lives. More about Christy and her work: Podcasts: Womaneering Therapy Shorts podcast      Offerings:  storywork consulting womaneering weekends  marriage intensives     Works: Her Rites: Seven Rites of Passage in Every Woman’s Life (coming April 2024)  The Sexually Healthy Woman Theology of the Womb  Womaneering Perpetual Calendar  A Brave Lament  Documentary: A Brave Lament    christybauman.com

In this episode, Jaye C. Watts joins me as we continue to explore experiences around leaving the obedient life.  Jaye shares their experiences with the shoulds and how they were enforced, particularly around gender expectations and constrictive educational systems.    In our conversation, Jaye beautifully describes the power of naming yourself, especially for the trans community, and of following the sense of aliveness and levity that comes as we learn to step beyond the shoulds.   We talk about questions of belonging, taking risks, and finding calm in living our truest lives.     Jaye’s website: www.jayecwatts.comChair in Transgender Studies: www.uvic.ca/research/transchair GLAAD Transgender Resources: www.glaad.org/transgender/resources Trans Lifeline: www.translifeline.org

In this episode we continue our series on leaving the obedient life with therapist and yoga instructor Jenny Wade. In this conversation, Jenny shares with us that the greatest should in her life has been the mandate to be a “good girl.” She describes how being a “good girl” for her meant being as disassociated from her body as possible in order to be favorable to her religious community. She speaks honestly about the deep grief that has come with the loss of favor from that community, as she has learned to inhabit her body and live from the knowing of her body. Jenny also tells us about the sense of aliveness that continues to draw her beyond the fear and grief into more freedom. She describes the “inner yes” that shapes her days now, and teaches us how to begin to recognize our own “inner yes.” Go to my website for a new Ebook: A Guide for Leaving an Obedient Life, available for download now! Find out more about Jenny: Instagram: @havenyogaseattle www.havenyogaseattle.com