Advertise on podcast: Finding Refuge

This episode is so special because you get to listen to a sneak peek of the introduction to You Are Protected: Invoking Spiritual Support to Sustain Your Energy. The book comes out on September 15th. Pre-order it today, and you'll receive special gifts.  And sign up for the Year of Rituals at a discounted rate. Between now and September 15th, you will receive a discount on this special series! All the details can be found here: Many blessings, and blessed be. Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Enjoy this conversation with Liza Rankow, author of Soul Medicine for a Fractured World. Liza J. Rankow, PhD, MHS, is an interfaith minister, educator, activist, and author. Her lifework centers the deep healing that is essential to personal and social transformation. She is the founder and former executive director of OneLife Institute, which for almost 20 years nurtured the well-being of frontline changemakers. Liza has been a spiritual counselor and teacher for over three decades. Her new book is Soul Medicine for a Fractured World: Healing, Justice & the Path of Wholeness. During our interview, we discuss all things medicinal. We talk about life and death. The sacred. Our deep connection with the earth. Justice tending and weaving, and the remaking of the world.

The Finding Refuge Podcast is back for a special summer episode. I sat with my comrades and colleagues, Amy, Rebby, Stephanie, and Tema (in spirit), to have a conversation about the turn of the wheel and the elemental energy of fire. We talk about all the powers fire has to burn, purify, transform, shed, clear, and ignite. Enjoy the podcast and stay tuned for the next elemental energy podcast, once the wheel turns again to fall!

The Finding Refuge Podcast is back for a moment. I sat with my comrades and colleagues, Rebby, Stephanie, and Tema to have a conversation about the turn of the wheel and the elemental energy of air. We talk about breath, life, the winds of change, and air as a transformative element and energy. Enjoy the podcast and stay tuned for the next one when the wheel turns again to summer.

Aimée Cartier is a professional psychic who has been doing readings for those who are at a crossroads or want direction on what choices serve their highest good since 2007. She is known for her clear accurate insight, her attention to practical details, and her compassionate guidance.  With her practical, down to earth, story-telling style, she’s been guiding others through speaking and teaching events to pay attention to their own intuition and recognize all the ethereal support that is always available to them since 2010.  She's the author of the book, “Getting Answers: Using Your Intuition to Discover Your Best Life." She founded her Intuitive University in 2015 and teaches intuition and empath programs for those who are ready to leave doubt behind and thrive with the help of their own innate inner knowing.  She is also the host of the Own Your Intuition podcast where she tells true stories and gives tools to inspire others to honor the wisdom they’ve got inside.  In this special episode, we discuss: Understanding psychic abilitiesIntuitive guidanceConnecting with your Highest SelfListeningMetamorphosisReturning to SelfNatureThe natural orderCollaboration and connection Connect with Aimée on her website or on Facebook or Instagram @aimeecartier. Download two free offerings from Aimée: A Simple Tool for Determining Your Best Choice How to Tell If It Is Your Intuition Speaking Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Yetta Myrick is the mother of a young adult son diagnosed with Autism, ADHD, and Intellectual Disability. She is the Founder and President of DC Autism Parents (DCAP), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the District of Columbia.  Ms. Myrick has served as the CDC’s Act Early Ambassador to the District of Columbia since 2016, led the DC COVID-19 Response Team from 2020-2022, and is currently leading the DC Act Early Team. In 2022, she co-authored and self-published, "Mr. Marshall’s Block Party".  Ms. Myrick leads the DC Autism Collaborative’s Developmental Monitoring, Screening, and Evaluation Subgroup, co-leads the Family Advisory Group, Outreach and Education Subgroup, and the Community Resources and Support Subgroup.  She serves as the Parent Educator/Advocate on the ECHO Autism HUB Team at Children’s National Hospital. Ms. Myrick co-leads the “Family Voices United to End Racism Against CYSHCN and Families” Project and served as the Co-Investigator for the “Building Capacity in the African American ASD Community for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research” Project funded through the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award.  In 2021, she was appointed to the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee by Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, J.D.  Additionally, Ms. Myrick is a member of the DC Developmental Disabilities Council and was awarded the 2024 Advocate in Equity Award by the DC Developmental Disability Awareness Month Planning Committee.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication Studies from The Catholic University of America. In this special episode, we discuss: PracticeTaking care of yourself to know yourselfBenefits of restResting practicesYoga off the matSelf-studyBoth/AndPurposeSystems of marginalizationNormalizing disability Connect with Yetta on her nonprofit’s website and download the Rest to Create Change Toolkit.Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Donna is an Author, International Yoga Teacher and Educator, Speaker, Facilitator, and Wellbeing Coach. She is also the Founder of Curvesomeyoga. Donna is passionate about making the yoga and wellbeing spaces more inclusive and diverse so that everybody can experience the transformational benefits of yoga.  She has written for and featured in countless digital and print publications such as Red Magazine, HuffPost, Yoga Journal, OmYoga & Lifestyle Magazine, Elephant Journal, Thrive Global and Stylist Magazine. She has also been on BBC Radio London and Channel Four TV.  Her debut book ‘Teaching Body Positive Yoga’ was published by Singing Dragon in August 2022.  In this special episode, we discuss: Listening to intuitionDeeping connection to intuitionDiversity in yogaAccessibility in yogaYoga as changeCommunityWritingThe “why” of yogaYoga in everything   Connect with Donna on her website or on Instagram @donnanobleyoga. You can purchase Donna’s book, Teaching Body Positive Yoga, at a discount using the code DNPOD10. This code is valid from May 3rd, 2024 to May 6th, 2024. Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

The enigmatic Mache Chache, is an Houngan Asogwe (Haitian Vodou High Priest), Shaman, and Conjurer, whose spiritual prowess and ancestral lineage have captivated the hearts and minds of seekers worldwide. With an innate connection to the ethereal realms, Mache has emerged as a guiding light in the realm of spirituality.  From a tender age, Mache’s extraordinary gifts were evident, drawing attention from those who recognized the depth of his spiritual insight. Embracing his destiny, he embarked on a journey of self-discovery, honing his skills under the tutelage of esteemed mentors and teachers. Through years of dedicated study and practice, Mache Chache is rising to become a revered spiritual figure in this generation.  As the owner of Kindred Spirits, one of North Carolina's oldest & most esteemed spiritual and metaphysical establishments, Mache Chache offers a sanctuary for those seeking solace, guidance, and transformation. Through spiritual tools & services, including divinations/readings, consultations, and ritual work—they empower individuals to tap into their inner wisdom and navigate the intricate tapestry of life.  Mache Chache's path as a priest and spiritual guide has been one of profound significance, marked by moments of enlightenment, challenges, and incredible enrichment. Rooted in the rich traditions of occult mysticism, Southern Conjure, Indigenous Shamanism & Haitian Vodou, he has cultivated a deep reverence for the spirits and an unwavering belief in the interconnectedness of all beings.  His impact extends far beyond the confines of his personal spiritual practice. Through his teachings, mentorship, writings, and public speaking engagements, Mache Chache has become a beacon of inspiration, illuminating the path for countless individuals seeking purpose, healing, and spiritual awakening.  With an unwavering commitment to authenticity and integrity, he invites us to embark on a transformative journey, where the boundaries between the physical and spiritual realms blur, and the true essence of our being is revealed. Mache’s wisdom and guidance serve as a reminder of the boundless potential that resides within each of us. He stands as a testament to the power of connection, the resilience of the human spirit, and the transformative magic that lies within our grasp. In this special episode, we discuss: LiminalityBalancingAscensionBringing medicine backCompassionEmbodying our humanness Spiritual HygienePatterns of energyRitual cleaningThe power of awareness Connect with Mache on his website on Instagram @mache.chache77 Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Karine Bell, MSC, SEP, is the founder and co-dreamer for the Rooted Global Village. She's a bi-cultural Black woman, a speaker, somatics educator, practitioner, somatic abolitionist, and scholar-activist in training focused on deepening an understanding of the impacts of trauma and oppression on our lives, and liberatory and decolonial frameworks and traditional/indigenous approaches to trauma healing and community building. The most important thing you could know about her today is that she feels most authentic, most joyful, when living from the heart. She embraces curiosity and wonder as compass points and embraces research as an act of reverence for, and curiosity about, life. Her love and dedication to her children fuel a fire for this orientation. She believes in the healing made possible at the personal and collective level by the work we do through transforming experience in our bodies today. She combines continued practice and study in somatics with studies in decolonial depth psychology with a focus on community, liberation, indigenous and eco-psychologies at Pacifica Graduate Institute. In this special episode, we discuss: ParentingCreation and destructionBirthingSurrenderDeep earth activismCommunities of careTrustListening to the bodyDiscernmentPausingMeditationPerimenopause Connect with Karine on her website or on Instagram @tending.the.roots Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Naomi Ortiz (they/she) explores the cultivation of care and connection within states of stress. Reimagining our relationship with land and challenging who is an environmentalist in the Arizona U.S./Mexico borderlands, is investigated in their new poetry/essay collection, Rituals for Climate Change: A Crip Struggle for Ecojustice. Their non-fiction book, Sustaining Spirit: Self-Care for Social Justice, provides informative tools and insightful strategies for diverse communities on addressing burnout. Nominated and selected as a 2022 Disability Futures Fellow and a 2021-2023 Reclaiming the US/Mexico Border Narrative Grant Awardee, they emphasize interdependence and spiritual growth through their poetry, writing, facilitation, and visual art.  In this special episode, we discuss: Slowing downWhat makes a good lifeCare workStorytellingDissonanceRelationship with the landAcknowledging and honoring capacityRefuge and synchronicity Connect with Naomi on their website or on Instagram @naomiortizwriterartist Learn more about Naomi’s books, Sustaining Spirit: Self Care for Social Justice and Rituals for Climate Change: A Crip Struggle for Ecojustice Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

LaUra Schmidt is the founder of the Good Grief Network and the brain behind the “10-Steps to Resilience & Empowerment in a Chaotic Climate” program and the FLOW Facilitation Training modality. She is a lifelong student, curator, and practitioner of personal and collective resilience strategies. LaUra holds a BS in Environmental Studies, Biology, and Religious Studies and an MS is in Environmental Humanities. LaUra has earned certificates in “Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy” and “Climate Psychology.” LaUra’s new book on eco-distress, How to Live in a Chaotic Climate: 10 Steps to Reconnect with Ourselves, Our Communities, and Our Planet, is available through Shambhala Publications.  Aimee Lewis Reau is the cofounder of the Good Grief Network and the heart behind the “10-Steps to Resilience & Empowerment in a Chaotic Climate” program and the FLOW Facilitation Training. She was born and raised in Adrian, Michigan. Aimee is an edgy & reverent contemplative, healer and yoga/intuitive movement instructor. She also DJs under the name eXis10shAL.  Aimee received her Bachelor’s degree in English, Poetry, and Religion from Central Michigan University before obtaining her MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Georgia College & State University. Aimee's new book on eco-distress, How to Live in a Chaotic Climate: 10 Steps to Reconnect with Ourselves, Our Communities, and Our Planet, is available through Shambhala Publications. In this special episode, we discuss: Seeking beauty and gratitudeThe birth of Good Grief NetworkThe universality of griefEmbodimentPracticeUncertaintyLiminalityDeconstructionGrief as a portalDreams Connect with LaUra and Aimee on their website or on Instagram @goodgriefnetwork Order LaUra and Aimee’s book, How to Live in a Chaotic Climate: 10 Steps to Reconnect with Ourselves, Our Communities, and Our Planet Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Mara Branscombe is a mother, writer, yogi, artist, teacher, mindfulness leader, ceremonialist, and spiritual coach. She is passionate about weaving the art of mindfulness, self-care, creativity, mind–body practices, and earth-based rituals into her life and work, and she has been leading community ceremony since 2000. Mara runs international retreats, corporate leadership programs, and online coaching and personal development courses. Mara has taught yoga, meditation, and mindfulness for over 20 years. She is the published author of “Ritual As Remedy: Embodied Practices for Soul Care”, and “Sage, Huntress, Lover, Queen: Access Your Power and Creativity through Sacred Female Archetypes.”  An adventurous spirit, Mara has sailed across the Atlantic Ocean, trekked across the Himalayas, studied yoga in India, planted trees in Canada’s north, lived off the grid in a remote cabin in the woods, worked as a Waldorf (Steiner School) teacher, and then found her passion for dance and choreography where she co-founded the professional performance company “The Tomorrow Collective”. All the while yoga, meditation, mysticism, and ritual have been at the heart of Mara’s journey. Her trainings in the Incan Shaman lineage, Yogic studies, Pagan tradition, and Buddhist wisdom teachings have greatly inspired her life’s work of earth-based, ceremonial, intentional, and heart-centered living and loving. In this special episode, we discuss: NatureHonoring the darknessGriefWritingEmbodimentTurning towards shadowWitnessingSupport teamsDreamworkThe Sage Connect with Mara on her website or on Instagram @marabranscombe. Learn more and purchase Mara’s books, Ritual as Remedy and Sage, Huntress, Lover, Queen. Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Rashid Hughes seeks to bridge the worlds of contemplative practice and collective care. He is a proud graduate of the Howard University Department of Music and the Howard University School of Divinity. Rashid is a certified Mindfulness Teacher, a certified Yoga Instructor, a Restorative Justice Facilitator, and currently in training to become a Fire Pujari. All of Rashid’s perspectives flow from the two wisdom traditions of contemplative and restorative practices.  In 2019, Rashid co-founded the Heart Refuge Mindfulness Community, a community in Washington, DC that inspires Black, Indigneous, and People of Color (BIPOC) to live with love and courage in the face of systemic inequities and ongoing racial-violence. Out of his unwavering love for community care and healing,  Rashid facilitates weekly mindfulness sessions to support BIPOC in living with joy, while also understanding and resolving the impact of trauma on their bodies and lives.  Due to his interest in challenging the ideas and systems that uphold a culture of patriarchy today, he also facilitates mindfulness sessions for BIPOC masculine & male identifying people who are particularly committed to addressing issues of masculinity and the culture of patriarchy.  As a Restorative Justice Facilitator, Rashid holds the title of Restorative Justice Program Specialist at the non-profit SchoolTalk Inc. in Washington, DC. In that role, he collaborates with DC schools to create restorative spaces for youth to envision healing-centered approaches to school discipline, accountability and community building.  When school classrooms went virtual in 2020, Rashid launched SchoolTalk’s Our School Our Voice initiative, a citywide collaboration between SchoolTalk and four schools in the District of Columbia. Our School Our Voice is student-designed, student-led, and rooted in Rashid’s vision of creating peer groups for students to engage with other students from different communities and elevate their voices.  In 2020, during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rashid created a contemplative practice,  R.E.S.T.-A Practice for the Tired & Weary, to provide practical means for people to find clarity and confidence in the midst of such devastating and uncertain times.  In 2021, Rashid expanded the R.E.S.T. practice into a 5-Week Online Course & Practice Group.  In collaboration with the Garrison Institute’s Fellowship Forum, Rashid joined Dr. Angel Acosta in conversation around the intersections of the R.E.S.T. practice, liberation and contemplative practice with a particular focus on how this practice is an antidote to the systems of capitalism and white supremacy.  Rashid’s writings have been published by Mindful Magazine, Lion’s Roar Magazine, and his first peer reviewed essay on R.E.S.T. was featured in the Journal for Contemplative Inquiry's volume, Transcendent Wisdom and Transformative Action: Reflections from Black Contemplatives,  a “special edition focusing on the insights and wisdom of Black contemplative practitioners, researchers, scholars, educators and artists. Today, Rashid is devoting his time to a new interest, exploring the role of ceremony and contemplative practice in creating the conditions for a more just and caring world. In this special episode, we discuss: Freedom and liberationFear as a path to clarityPurposeSpiritual practiceAuthenticityReclamationShared realityConsuming chaosR.E.S.TA modern wisdom goddess  Connect with Rashid on his website or on Instagram @justbeandbreathe.Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Shawn J. Moore is a Mindfulness Educator and Coach, Stillness Architect, and Buddhist Dharma practitioner. Residing at the intersection of leadership and mindfulness, Shawn creates sacred spaces for stillness and self-inquiry to help change-makers align their strengths, intention, and impact. Through his integrative approach, he holds transformative containers for self-renewal, personal discovery, and capacity-building that ease clients on their journey towards peace, clarity, and freedom.  The path to collective growth is rooted firmly in our personal growth. As we work towards collective freedom, Shawn asks:  How can you begin to support yourself to be able to support others? Are you pouring into others from the excess of your full cup? Shawn has an intuitive way of weaving all that he has learned on his path to help those on the inner journey of discovery to reflect on those questions – including meditation, sound healing, yoga nidra, and coaching.  Shawn has worked in higher education and student affairs for over 10 years, specializing in leadership development, training/program design, and workshop facilitation – with a particular focus on diverse populations.  Reckoning with his own contemplation of burnout, purpose, and alignment, Shawn transitioned out of his role as Associate Dean of Student Life & Leadership at Morehouse College in the fall of 2021 to focus more on mindfulness and stillness-based training programs and workshops.   While leadership resonates with him deeply, it is his personal and spiritual practices that allows him to continue to show up for himself and others. He is a yoga teacher (E-RYT® 200, RYT® 500, YACEP®), sound and reiki practitioner, meditation teacher, Yoga Nidra facilitator, and Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, all focused through a Buddhist lens and 17 years of personal practice. In addition to holding community space through classes, he provides training in leadership and strengths-based development, and workshops in mindfulness, meditation and sound healing.   He has contributed workshops, practices, and educational opportunities for celebrities, like Questlove and Dyllón Burnside, as well as various yoga studios and colleges, Yoga International, Omstars, Melanin Moves Project, the Human Rights Campaign, Spotify and Lululemon. In this special episode, we discuss: Self-InquiryFrictionLiminal spaceSlowing downResistance to stillnessBreaking cyclesStillness as a path to transformational changeResourcing ourselvesCommunityCompassionGentleness with ourselves Connect with Shawn on his website and on Instagram @shawnj_moore You can purchase Shawn’s Sadhana Decks here. Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript

Jamilah Pitts is an author, educator, social entrepreneur, and wellness educator whose work centers the liberation, healing and holistic development of communities of the Global majority. Jamilah has worked and served in various roles and spaces to promote racial justice and healing. Jamilah has served as a teacher, coach, dean, and as an Assistant principal. She has worked in domestic and international educational spaces, including Massachusetts, New York, the Dominican Republic, China and in India.  As the Founder and CEO of Jamilah Pitts Consulting, Jamilah partners with schools, communities, universities and organizations to advance the work of racial, social and intersectional justice through training, coaching, strategic planning and curriculum design. Jamilah is also the Founder of She, Imprints, an organization serving at the intersection of wellness and justice for women and girls of the Global Majority.  Jamilah’s written work has appeared in the Huffington Post, Learning for Justice, and Edweek. She has presented to audiences of thousands of educators both within the United States and internationally. Jamilah threads her passion for human rights and social justice into her teaching, writing, scholarship and other artistic pursuits. She sees education and healing as her life’s work and calling, and truly believes that education should be an avenue through which empathy, healing and justice are promoted.  Jamilah is certified as a Yoga Teacher, Reiki Practitioner, Omnoire Retreat Facilitator, and is certified as a Trauma - Conscious Yoga guide.  Jamilah is a proud alumna of Spelman College where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in English. Jamilah also pursued graduate studies at Boston College and Teachers College, Columbia University.  Jamilah’s first book Toward Liberation: Educational Practices Rooted in activism, healing and love will be published November 2023. Jamilah is an avid traveler, serious foodie and dancer.  In this special episode, we discuss: The support of stillness and “just being”Non-linear healingChanging through the seasonsDreamsSpeaking life into our pathsChoosing work aligned with our soulAnti-racism and anti-bias work within schoolsTruth-tellingLiberationLoving BlacknessLove as a verbOur interconnectedness You can connect with Jamilah on her website or on Instagram @msjamilahpitts. Purchase Jamilah’s book, Toward Liberation: Educational Practices Rooted in Activism, Healing, and Love. Podcast music by Charles Kurtz + Read transcript