Spiritual Grit

As the world continues to burn and we continue to fight for social justice, the question that comes to mind is this: what does liberation look like? Yes, we know what we don't want. But have we envisioned what we do want? What world do we want to create on the other side of this burning? We need to imagine it in order to understand how to get there. And we need to ground ourselves. Tune into this week's episode to feel into possibilities. And to start a conversation about what is possible. Also note: a single eléction does not change anything. Changes happen at the ground level. We will still need to continue to fight and dismántle the systems that 0ppress no matter the outcome. Keep going. We keep us safe. We will liberate us.  =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Starkeeper “A Root in Each Act and Creature” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

As the world continues to burn (in my eyes, it's the burning down if oppressive systems), it's easy to lose sight of the big picture and fall into hopelessness when you witness so much destruction over and over. How can we continue to sustain our fight for liberation? How can we keep going when the allure of despair calls us? The answer: we create! What does that mean? What does that look like? And why does it work? Tune in to learn more and hear suggestions on how to get creative! And if you're looking for a safe space to express your feelings and create in the face of destruction, join me for Creative Writing Camp: Find Your Voice.  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

It takes courage to ask for help, at least for the kind of help that feels vulnerable. But this is power. And this is the kind of power we must remember that we possess. We have to power to choose how we want to experience what the world brings into our lives. In this week's episode, I accidentally get meta with my own teaching. Haha! I'm sharing wisdom about remembering our innate power through the challenges we face in our lives by telling you about an experience that I had. Tune in to learn more!  =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: The Earthworm “I Imagine Now For Ages” by Hafiz Song: “Two Little Doves” by Fia ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

After the appalling decisions made by Scotus this past week (being homeless is a crime & presidents can get away with anything), many of us are falling into despair or rage or both. What is this world we live in and how did we get here? Are we going to survive? In this week's episode, I'm bringing our focus back to the bigger picture: we exist beyond this three-dimensional plane. So how does this world on fire help us to grow and evolve as spirit-souls? If you think about the universe, there are plenty of things dying and exploding all while the universe continues to expand. Is this moment our supernova (where Empire is the dying star)? (“A supernova is the cataclysmic explosion of a massive star at the end of its life.”) Tune in to learn more!  =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Three of Pentacles “Cucumbers and Prayers” by Hafiz Book: The Sum of Us: What racism costs everyone and how we can prosper together - Heather McGhee ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

How do we know what our gifts are to the world? And how do we know with whom to share them? Do we even want to share them? The body can help.  Tune in to learn more!   =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Oyster “We Might Have To Medicate You” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

Many of us compartmentalize our lives, putting things in boxes as if our lives are a bunch of multicolored beads that need to be separated and sorted.. Parenting goes in one box. Job goes in another box. Writer work in yet another. Activist work in another. This isn’t how we’re supposed to live. WIth the continuing gen0-side, compartmentalizing is a survival tactic. “If I can just focus on my job, I can look away from what’s happening in Pal-es-tine.” The thing is, the magnitude of these atr0cities is affecting our daily lives, whether we’re aware of it or not. In this week’s episode, I talk about how everything is inextricably linked. We cannot compartmentalize. We must stay connected to our humanity. We must continue to bear witness AND to live, to continue the daily activities of our small lives AND do what we can to demand a ce@sefire and fight for a freé Pal-es-tine. How do we do that? How can we act in our daily lives in ways that begin to shift change? Tune in to learn more!  =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Queen of Pentacles Poem: “You are Brave in that Holy War” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: ⁠leslieann.substack.com⁠

Since the quarantine years, many of us have been hungry for community. We've been longing for real connection. But how badly do we want it? At what cost? Not all communities are created equal. Not all communities are built with your best interest in mind. Are we willing to compromise who we are in order to feel like we belong somewhere? During this time of jen-0cide of Pali-stin-ians, it's becoming harder to find communities of care and support. It's on us to create them and communicate that it's a safe place. Tune in to hear my experience of a community that suddenly became unsafe for me and how we might build the safe community that we need.    =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Ten of Cups “Too Beautiful” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

The world is on fire. How can we continue to live our lives while so many lives are being lost every day? How does our passion, our calling in life matter during times like these? How do the things that light us up help fight for a free Palestine?  What about our relationships? The ones where the people we love have been silent. Not those actively advocating for the elimination of an entire people, but rather those who have not spoken out. Why have they not said anything? Do we cut them off entirely? Or can nuance be applied? The answer: it depends. In this week's episode, I explore some possibilities for these questions. Tune in to find out more!    =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: Double Mission “Between Our Poles” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com

Who are your people now?  As the jenny-side continues to drive us down into witnessing deeper barbarity and the grief and rage mount higher and higher, we might be looking around and asking ourselves: who are our people now? Who are our truest people? And: what difference can I make, if any at all? In this week's episode, I explore ways that we can make a difference– no matter how small– in the face of despair. And how we can keep going even though our friends and family start to fall away because you can no longer stand their silence on gen-0-side. We do have support and a community. It's just a matter of remembering where to find them. Tune in today!

After the quarantine years, a lot of us have forgotten how good it feels to be in community with others. A lot of us have even forgotten how to do it. It's kind of like when you are sick for an extended period of time that it becomes your new normal and you don't know what it feels like to be healthy until the sickness goes away and then you remember. Do you remember what it's like to feel seen? To be in a group where people get you? Or what it's like for someone to train with you when you are trying to prepare for a triathlon? Doesn't it feel good to share in a commonality with others? In this week's episode, I am reminding all of us how crucial it is for us to be in community with each other so that we can grow and evolve in uplifting and unexpected ways. So that we might thrive. Because, after all, isn't that why we are here?   =============== Today’s poems/ Books mentioned: Oracle card: The Seas of Mintaka “I Imagine Now For Ages” by Hafiz ===============  Courses / Exclusive Content / Book Mentioned: Subscribe to mailing list + community: suryagian.com/subscribe and get the 7-day meditation challenge, “Spark Joy in Chaos” Subscribe to “Adventures in Midlife” newsletter: leslieann.substack.com Instagram: @leslieannhobayan  Email: leslieann@suryagian.com