Episodes

Shelly Edwards Jorgensen is the author of a memoir titled "Beautiful Ashes: A True Story of Murder, Betrayal, and One Woman’s Search for Peace.” In the memoir and in our interview, Shelly talks about multiple traumas she experienced growing up, including living with an alcoholic, abusive father both before and after he murdered her mother; testifying against him at his trial; and suffering sexual assault. She also discusses the uplifting power of her faith during the darkest times, her healing journey, and all the ways in which she has ultimately embraced a new mindset on life, faith, and the purpose of suffering.

Donell Barlow is a prolific author, having published a memoir called "Medicine Tracks,” two children’s books called “Bigfoot and Lightening Bug” and “Creature Teacher Yoga,” and a poetry book titled “Words Have No Meaning.” She is Yurok and an enrolled member of the Ottawa Tribe, Otter Clan. She works with Native communities as a Research and Training Coordinator and Certified Holistic Health Coach. In our interview, Donell talks about all the dynamics present in diet and nutrition; the benefits of embracing different forms of medicine in life, including food, Native practices, dreams, and animal encounters; how suffering and grief are their own important lessons; and the ways in which Native communities are embracing and rebuilding their cultural identities and practices.

Amy Turner is a schoolteacher, former lawyer, and author of a memoir called “On the Ledge.” The memoir tells the story of her father’s attempted suicide when she was four years old, the hypervigilance and fear that then plagued her into adulthood, and how her own brush with death decades later unexpectedly led her on a path of healing and creativity. In our interview, Amy discusses the events detailed in her book and more.

Gilbert Mfitundinda is the author of a book titled, “Life’s Lens: Looking Through the Eyes of a Compassion International Child” a memoir about his life growing up in extreme poverty in Uganda and later moving to the United States. He is also the founder and CEO of a non-profit called Love Restoration, an organization that provides education, nutrition, and health care to children in Uganda. In our interview, Gilbert discusses his life in Uganda, how sponsors from the U.S. provided him with the rare opportunity to stay in school, what it was like to move to the U.S., and all the ways both big and small that people can empower and help others.

Michelle Schuman is a retired ecologist who specialized in wetland science and environmental policy in Alaska for more than four decades. Part of her work in Alaska included acting as a first responder at the Exxon oil spill, a major environmental disaster that occurred in 1989. She is also the author of a novel called “Jaquar Moon,” and a memoir titled, “The Understory: A Female Environmentalist in the Land of The Midnight Sun.” In addition to her first two books, she has finished another novel...

Randi Fine is a pioneer in the narcissistic abuse movement and a narcissistic abuse expert and coach. She is also a podcast host and the author of a book called “Close Encounters of the Worst Kind: The Narcissistic Abuse Survivor's Guide to Healing and Recovery” and a memoir titled “Cliffedge Road.” In our interview, Randi talks about narcissistic personality disorder, narcissistic abuse, her own experience of having a parent with the disorder, and what victims can do to enlighten themselves abo...

Rick Evans is a motivational speaker, entrepreneur, activist, veteran, and author of a book titled, “My Life for Yours,” a memoir about the challenges he's overcome in his life. In our interview, Rick discusses how he navigated the extreme hardships of his childhood, including his mother’s incarceration for murder when he was only six years old, and how he ultimately embraced leadership, hard work, compassion, and positivity to create a life of abundance and service to others.

My guest today is Lamees Al Ethari. Lamees holds a Ph.D. from the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Waterloo in Canada, where she teaches creative and academic writing and literature. Her publications include a poetry collection titled “From the Wounded Banks of the Tigris” and a memoir titled “Waiting for the Rain: An Iraqi Memoir." Both publications focus on her experiences living through the 2003 invasion of Iraq, its aftermath, and her subsequent migration fr...

Susan Hutchinson is the author of a book called “Forever with Me,” a memoir about the lives and tragic deaths of not one but two of her daughters within a five-year time period. In our interview, Susan talks about her book, her grieving processes, and how she ultimately survived with the determination to keep living life to the fullest and the desire to show others in her position that they too can make it to the other side. Link to Susan's book: https://www.amazon.com/Forever-Me-Memoir-Susan-H...

Brad is the author of a book called “Lemon Belly: A Memoir of Resilience and Crohn’s Disease.” The book describes the inspired way in which he has tackled decades of serious health challenges due to Crohn’s Disease, including a year-long health crisis that nearly killed him. In our interview, Brad discusses his book, his life with a chronic illness, and how he has remained positive and determined despite his hardships.

Heather Bond is the author of a book called “Athena Rising,” a memoir about the extraordinary experiences she’s had in her life and how they ultimately led her on a path of self-discovery and transformation. She is also the founder of a group called Trekking Ambassadors, a team of international adventurers who provide solar lights and eyeglasses to remote villages with little or no electricity and a lack of essential supplies. In her earlier years, she was a forest-service firefighter, Los Angel...

Shani Raviv is the author of a book called “Being Ana: A Memoir of Anorexia Nervosa.” She is also the creator of “Journey Writing Circles,” a group healing experience in which women and teen girls journal, share, and connect. In our interview, Shani discusses what it was like for her to live with anorexia for ten years of her life and how she was able to recover and create a full, nourishing life. Link to her book: https://www.amazon.com/Being-Ana-Memoir-Anorexia-Nervosa/dp/163152139X