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S3 New Year’s Bonus: Every Day Gets Lighter When...

What do you plan to do with your “next lap around our star”?

Nearly everyone, Michael Singer observes, will do the same thing they do every other year of their lives: try to get what they want and avoid what they don’t want. And they’ll be just as unhappy.

Why do we do this? Can’t we liberate ourselves from this no-win situation? Here, Michael shines an optimistic light on the New Year.

For more information, go to michaelsingerpodcast.com.
© Sounds True Inc. Episodes: © 2024 Michael A. Singer. All Rights Reserved.

Andrea Gibson: Facing Mortality and Being Adored and C...

Andrea Gibson, a beloved poet and artist, recently passed away. We are honored to share this special encore episode of their conversation with Tami Simon that originally aired in 2023.

Great poets expand our view—of ourselves, of each other, and of the entire universe. Andrea Gibson was named Colorado’s 2023–25 Poet Laureate for their celebrated verses on love, LGBTQ issues, spirituality, mental health, social justice, and more. Tami Simon speaks with Andrea about their approach to work and how their journey through cancer radically changed that approach.

This poignant conversation featuring Andrea’s reading of their poem, “Acceptance Speech After Setting the World Record in Goosebumps” and exploring spiritual surrender, finding joy in every instant, facing challenges, moving through grief, the life force of the universe within us, self-love and loving the whole world, trying softer (not harder), the power of relaxation, identifying the keys that open your heart, staying with our fear, activism and loosening our attachment to desired outcomes, being yourself fully, the gift of mortality, giving the present moment the cold shoulder, why authenticity is the most important thing when it comes to writing, the pull of creativity, and more.

Megan Devine: The Howl at the Center of Grief

Megan Devine is a mental health counselor who has become known as one of the most promising emerging voices in the field of grief therapy. With Sounds True, she has released the new book It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami speaks with Megan about It’s OK That You’re Not OK and the tragedy that inspired the book—the accidental drowning of her partner. With this in mind, Tami and Megan discuss “the wild howl at the center of grief,” the challenge of shouldering things that only we can carry, and why “letting go” is a myth. They also talk about what you can do for someone enduring the grieving process and why it can be best simply to lend an understanding ear. Finally, Megan unravels the concept of “fixing” grief and why there is an intrinsic connection between grieving fully and loving well. (69 minutes)

Building Belonging: Being an Ambassador to the Earth

john a. powell is the director of the Othering & Belonging Institute and a professor of law, African American studies, and ethnic studies at the University of California, Berkeley. He previously directed the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at the Ohio State University, and the Institute on Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota. He is also the author of Racing to Justice: Transforming Our Conceptions of Self and Other to Build an Inclusive Society. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with john about how to create a culture of deep belonging. They discuss what it takes to become “belonging activists,” a process that begins with empathetic and compassionate listening. john also explores the large and small ways othering occurs in our society. Finally, Tami and john talk about the spiritual lessons we can learn from suffering.

Sex That Changes the World

Kimberly Ann Johnson is a sexological bodyworker, Somatic Experiencing® practitioner, yoga teacher, postpartum advocate, and single mom. She helps women heal from birth injuries, gynecological surgeries, and sexual boundary violations. She is the author of the book Call of the Wild: How We Heal Trauma, Awaken Our Own Power, and Use It for Good, as well as the early-mothering classic The Fourth Trimester

Kimberly Ann Johnson joins Sounds True founder Tami Simon to speak about her new audio learning program, Reclaiming the Feminine: Embodied Sexuality as Spiritual Practice—and the journey many of us need to make to work through shame, heal from patriarchal oppression, and begin to prioritize ourselves and our need for pleasure. Kimberly and Tami discuss the code of ethics of the sexological bodyworker; the shroud of shame that surrounds sexuality in many cultures, and the vital task of “unshaming” work; dealing with the pressure to “want to want to have more sex”; determining and expressing your genuine wants and needs; the concept of feminist sex; the social nervous system—the first branch of determining safety and how we relate with others; building your arousal capacity; “jaguar work” and healthy aggression; a self-care lovingkindness practice; and much more.

Stretch Your Heart and Say What You Mean

Join Sounds True’s Tami Simon in conversation with author and teacher Oren Jay Sofer, as he shares his innovative method for productive discourse and authentic connection. In “Stretch Your Heart and Say What You Mean,” Tami and Oren explore how contemplative practice is an essential ingredient for healthy conversations and relationships, and vice versa; three foundations for mindful communication; the practice of pausing a conversation; the art of the “do-over”; the power of intention in conversation; curiosity, humility, and kindness; how focusing on what matters transforms reactivity and allows us to speak our truth; the shift from projecting blame to identifying and expressing our needs; the heart of compassion and nonviolence—seeing one another in a deeper way; three layers of needs—physical, relational, and spiritual; freeing our hearts from animosity and hostility, and becoming a force for loving unification; and more.