

Becoming Wilkinson
WILKINSON
When I started this podcast, I thought it would be the story of my journey from married man with three sons, involved in ministry in the NW, to my current life as a gay man in Palm Springs, CA. I'd weave in interesting interviews with amazing people whom I've met along the way. But as the podcast has evolved, I realized that interacting and hearing other people's stories has changed me. The Universe always sends me just the right person at just the right time to guide me along my own journey of "Becoming". Join me as I have conversations with these fascinating people and share this journey with you.
Episodes
Mentioned books

May 12, 2022 • 40min
David Wichman: Author, Speaker, Sex Love & Intimacy Guide, Soundbath Massage & Sexworker, Scuba Diver & Lover of All Things Wildlife. Get ready to set aside some preconceived ideas as you listen to this gentle soul share the story of his journey.
Send us a textDavid Wichman is an author, speaker, sexual healer, and entrepreneur who is respected and well-known all over the world to those who seek to live free of stigma, shame, and fear around sex, love, and intimacy.Raised in Fremont, California, David survived a childhood marked by severe neglect and abuse, which led him into years of homelessness, alcoholism, and drug addiction. After decades of struggle and rehabilitation failures, he finally obtained freedom from his addiction in 2005. He remains an active member of New Thought and recovery movements to this day.In 2006, David found a calling in sex work. While working with seniors, the disabled, and those with severe intimacy issues, he discovered the profound transformational power that sex work creates for both client and provider. In 2009, he founded his travel-companion company, the Male Adventure, through which he has accompanied clients on life-changing adventures to all seven continents. He is an activist, vocal ally, and grateful member of the LGBTQI2 community.David lives with his partner Todd & their 3 rescue dogs: Panda Petey & Siain in their home in the Coachella Valley area of California. In 2016, David co-founded Heal-VR, a software development company that merges ancient spiritual principles and meditation techniques with modern virtual reality technology.His story is both profound and touching. Prepare to think and feel deeply as this gentle soul shares his heart with us.Find David at: http://DavidsWorld.mePhoto: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

May 8, 2022 • 42min
Mark Hollenstein: Spiritual Life Coach, Energy Healer, Intuitive Guide & Lover of Life! Listen to His Poignant Story of Leaving His Ministry & Marriage to Live His Truth as a Gay Man. He Also Shares How to Prepare for What Will be Playing Out in 2022-2023
Send us a textIn his "former life", Mark was married to woman, had three kids and was a minister in a church. The conflict he found himself in, leading this life when he was a gay man, eventually led to a nervous breakdown. His healing led him away from the church and he became a trainer. He shares what happened when he attended a trainers conversion in San Jose, where he met a very special man. His life became to rapidly change from the fallout of that meeting.As a facilitator and coach for over two decades, Mark Hollenstein has been honored to blend his skills and gifts as a business coach, spiritual life coach, energy healer and intuitive reader to what he describes as a call to “Love on” people in the name of the Divine.He see himself as a conduit for Spirit, The Divine, Source, The Universe, God, Goddess, Creator, or All That Is. However one divines that/it for his or her self. Simply, the Source, or energy greater than ourselves the guides, instructs, leads, loves and supports all of us, absolutely unconditionally through this human experience we call life.As his personal evolution has continued and he experienced higher energetic vibratory upgrades daily, his work is now calling out to men and women of all gender identification and sexual orientation who are resonating, recognizing, and remembering – in order to together find our way to each other.Find out more about Mark here: http://www.MarkHollenstein.comPhoto: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

May 5, 2022 • 22min
Endeavor with Jase... What's it like to live in a place where you are "different" in some way? Jase shares his thoughts on diversity in the desert. And why is he so positive about everything? We discuss his thoughts on this.
Send us a textJase Nagaia is the mastermind behind "Endeavor with Jase" which is an exercise class held at Demuth Park in Palm Springs. Jase is also one of the most positive people I know- always saying a good word about everyone and seeing the best in them. He talks with me about the struggles he's had with the lack of diversity in the desert, and how he sees things changing. It's definitely worth a listen!Find Jase here:https://endeavorpalmsprings.comhttps://m.facebook.com/endeavorpalmsprings/https://www.instagram.com/endeavorwithjase/Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

May 1, 2022 • 29min
Exploring Good Sex with Patrick Prohaska. Everbody likes to listen in on a discuss about sex, right? Patrick sheds some light on a few things we might not have thought about before.
Send us a textPatrick Prohaska is an author and life coach specializing in personal empowerment, consciousness expansion, and sexual healing. Patrick has a Bachelor’s degree in history of science and a Master’s degree in the religions of ancient India, and has studied several healing systems, including Ayurveda, Reiki, Theta Healing, aromatherapy, and more. He’s the author of Brain Cells: Escape Your Mental Prisons and Dream Yourself Awake: The Power of Lucid Living. His newest book Good Sex: Spiritual Principles for an Electrifying Sex Life is currently in the rewrite stage and will be published soon. He recently moved to Kansas, and he's available for lectures, seminars, and workshops around the globe. When he’s away from the office, you’ll probably find him hiking in the wilderness. We chat about his journey and his new book... Everybody loves to listen in to a conversation about sex, right? Join us now as we explore this topic.Find Patrick at: https://www.sexpowersoul.comPhoto: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

Apr 27, 2022 • 23min
Jerry Lynch is a Former Priest who left the Ministry to Live an Authentic Life as a Gay Man. He loved his ministry as a priest. But the day arrived where he had to walk away. He just couldn't live that life any longer.
Send us a textJerry Lynch was priest in the Catholic Church for nearly three decades. He loved what he was doing, serving people - but there came a time when he realized that he could no longer live an inauthentic life. He had to live a congruent life as a gay man. He talks about this process and the joys and struggles of his journey. Listen to his heart as his story unfolds.Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

Apr 24, 2022 • 25min
What in the World is an Ex "Ex-Gay"? I'm gay. Now I'm "saved". They can "fix" me. I can help fix others. Oops, nope- I'm gay after all. The very hilly ride of the ups and downs that religious folks offer as an unworkable solution.
Send us a textJeff Coe spent his early years in Texas and Oklahoma. At one point he finally came out as gay and lived as a young gay man for many years. Then he moved to the NW, had a religious experience, rejected his authentic self as a gay man, and went back into the closet where he slammed the door shut. Over the next couple of decades, he continued life in the church as an "Ex-gay, straight man" and even moved to Southern California where he worked at a national ex-gay ministry where they attempted to "fix" people so they no longer identified as gay (conversion therapy with a religious/church twist).A couple years after he moved, I came out in late 1999 after getting divorced six months earlier. While we had considered ourselves good friends prior to that, nevertheless, he cut off all communication with me when I came out. That lasted approximately eight years. Then one day out of the blue, he emailed me and told me that he wanted to "chat" when he came up to Seattle. Turns out he came out again! Things progressed, we went back and forth from the NW and SoCal and consequently, we got together and we were partners for about six years. We split in early 2013. Separately, we each moved to the Palm Springs area (Jeff moved in 2013 and I moved here in 2017). We're once again friends. We discuss his journey in this podcast.Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2010Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

Apr 23, 2022 • 17min
Andrew and Peter- Falling in Gay Love Today. Many in my generation had no concept of what it would be like today... The idea that two men could fall in love and get married, never crossed our minds. Things have changed!
Send us a textWhen I was living my life as a married "straight" man, I remember going out to a restaurant on Capital Hill in Seattle with my then wife. "The Hill" was the gay area. I remember sitting there - we typically would be arguing about something- and I'd look over to the gay men at the nearby tables- chatting comfortably with each other. I had no concept of what it would be like to accept one's self as gay. The idea that two men could fall in love and become partners, or get married, never crossed my mind. After my divorce in 1999, I finally said the dreaded H word to myself. Yes, I was gay. The conversation today is with two men in their mid twenties who have fallen in love and it's the most natural thing in the world to them. We talk about some of the differences a few decades have made in how we look at things.Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2022Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com

Apr 22, 2022 • 26min
"In the Beginning"... Musings on "Why Another Podcast", "My Move to Palm Springs" and "Potlucks and Parties and People. Oh My"
Send us a textChapter One: Why Another Podcast? I escaped hopelessness. And because I DID escape, I feel compelled to share my story (and the story of many others) with those who today may be trapped in such an environment and system. There is hope!Chapter Two: Beginning the Next Chapter: My Move to Palm Springs and What Happened When I Arrived: 127 degrees outside and then discovering I had no A/C on arrival was one thing. But then my Seattle doc called the next day and I went into a total tailspin.Chapter Three: Potlucks and Parties and People! Oh. My! The journey of my love of people.As I remember my "former" life as a married man with kids, struggling to be someone I was not- I remember that even thinking that I could have the life I have now was a pure impossibility. There was no way out for me. I was a gay man, trapped in a religious system that forbade divorce. And the thought of actually beginning a journey of discovery to find my authentic self? Never! But I escaped. And because I DID escape, I feel compelled to share my story with others who today may be trapped in such an environment and system. There is hope. My desire is to share my story in the belief that it will encourage you to take the next steps to begin (or continue) your journey to your authentic self, whomever that may be!Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2020Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com


