As we enter a portal into more darkness, we need to remember that change equals growth. And while nobody really talks about this, growth is painful. How can we stay steady and endure the discomfort, knowing that change is inevitable? How can we reframe challenges in order to learn from the pain? To learn that we are not being tested nor are we being punished. We are just being pushed to grow.

Tune into this week's episode to learn how to stay steady in the chaos. How to be like a seed in the earth.

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: Doors are opening for you: you decide rewards and wildcard

• “I saw two birds” by Hafiz

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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

• Writing as Resistance: https://www.suryagian.com/writing-as-resistance

• Kundalini Yoga Classes: https://www.suryagian.com/anchor-amplify-kundalini

As we enter what seems to be the new phase of another darkness, it is crucial for us to come together in community. If we are to remain steadfast in our fight for liberation and our collective survival, we must stay anchored in the spiritual practices that we have learned.

In this week's episode, I talk about different aspects of what community means, how we build it, and how we remain true to our shared vision for liberation. It begins with deep listening. Tune in to learn more!

Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: The Emperor (Reversed)

• “Counting Moles” by Hafiz

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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

• Writing as Resistance: https://www.suryagian.com/writing-as-resistance
  

How do we prepare for this new year that promises to be full of upheavals? How do we keep going, keep fighting for libëration in the face of the Empïre’s indifference? Resilience, community, and creation. As I often like to quote “La Vie Boheme” from the musical, RENT: “The opposite of war isn’t peace - it’s creation!”

In this week’s episode, I start off by talking about abundance, generosity, and compassion and how these are crucial for community. If we are to affect change, we must be in relationship with each other in these ways. And in the face of so much destruction, we must create. Listen in to learn how writing can be that mode of creation AND resistance. And then sign up for the 5-day writing workshop intensive, Writing As Resistance, because taking tangible action towards liberation feels good. It’s happening next week! Online, Jan 13-17, 2025. Register here: suryagian.com/writing-as-resistance

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: Six of Pentacles (Reversed)

• “The Hatcheck Girl” by Hafiz

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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
  • Writing as Resistance: https://www.suryagian.com/writing-as-resistance

Lots of people are urging us to build community in order to work towards a better world in the face of a new US administration. But what does that mean exactly? How does one build a community? What even IS a community? In this week's episode, I'm sharing ideas on community and ways to build it. But more importantly, we need to understand that it is built on mutual love, trust, and support. Tune in to learn more!

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: Six of Pentacles

• “Our Hearts Should Do This More” by Hafiz

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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

• Dig into Divine Darkness: https://www.suryagian.com/dig-into-divine-darkness

  
  

How many of us give our power away? How many of us look to other people for the solution? How many of us let other people decide our fate? In this week’s episode, I invite you to reclaim your power and remember that words matter. What we say, how we say it, the language we use – it all matters, even when we feel it doesn’t. (See: “ceasefire”) When we speak, when we possess the power to tell our stories and write our narrative. The challenge here is: are you writing it in integrity? Are you writing it with the truth of the heart? Too many lies are being manufactured by mainstream media and if we allow for that to pass as truth, then we’re in bigger trouble than I thought. Listen in to understand the power of words and the frequency they carry and how that affects us all.

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Oracle card: Eight of Swords

• “Scratching my Back” by Hafiz

Articles mentioned:

• “Klamath River Dam Removal Allows Salmon to Run Free for First Time in More Than a Century”

• ⁠https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/klamath-river-dam-removal-allows-salmon-to-run-free-for-first-time-in-more-than-a-century/⁠

• 
  

• “The Shapes of Grief: Witnessing the Unbearable” by Cristina Sharpe

• ⁠https://yalereview.org/article/christina-sharpe-shapes-of-grief⁠

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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

• • Dig into Divine Darkness: https://www.suryagian.com/dig-into-divine-darkness

The holiday season is *not* a free pass to wipe away toxic behavior and pretend all is well. So many messages tell us that “Because it's Christmas” we should make things right, even if it's not our wrong to correct. Sure, sometimes there are petty family squabbles that can be put aside in the name of love, but when it comes to whyte súprémacy, there is no free pass.

In this week's episode, I talk about how it's important to honor ourselves and our healing journey, to not give our power away, to break family expectations, and to set boundaries with everyone, especially that terrible uncle. Tune in!

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: The Sea Serpent - The Spirit Card

• “Scratching My back” by Hafiz

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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

• Dig into Divine Darkness: www.suryagian.com/dig-into-divine-darkness

  
  

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Keywords:

#ritual #podcast #leslieannhobayan #womenofcolor #suryagian #mindset #positivemindset #sharing #personalexperiences #guidance #youarenotalone #podcastinglife #podcastlife #podcasters #release #newrelease #activistwork #truth #holidays #boundaries #importantboundaries #whytesupremacy #honorthyself #honor #setexpectations

How do you know what you don't know? How can you bring unconscious patterns to the surface if you don't even know they're there? How can you hear yourself amidst all the noise?

Winter is hibernation season. A time when we are meant to get quiet and cozy. But our capitalist society does not allow for that. Between holiday sales and the pressure socialize at Christmas parties, how can we even hear ourselves think?

In this week's episode, I am talking about the kind of darkness that's made for incubation. Winter hibernation. And in that darkness, we can find our true selves and work towards strengthening that light. So that come springtime, we are renewed and strengthened to take on the systems of oppression.

Listen in as I talk about ways in which we can journey into the darkness to connect with our inner selves, to allow space to nourish oneself, and to rest. If we are to sustain our fight for a better world, we need nourishment and rest. Tune in!

More info and to register for Dig Into Divine Darkness, a 21-day journey into mystery for women, femmes, and nonbinary folks of color, go here: suryagian.com/dig-into-divine-darkness

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: The Seas of Mintaka

• “The Clay Bowl’s Destiny” by Hafiz

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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
  Creative Writing Camp: https://www.suryagian.com/creative-writing-camp

So many people want to speak out for social justice and for the liberation of all. So many want to speak their deepest truths. But many don't. Because it can be scary. What's at risk when we speak our truths? What's at stake? Are we willing to contend with the results of our truth telling? Even if that includes losing friends and family? What do those consequences look like?

In this week's episode, I talk about the nuances and complexities of how we can stand in our truth and still honor the very messy existence of being human. Tune in to consider how to navigate these complexities while staying in integrity with your truth.

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Today’s poems/ Books mentioned:

• Tarot/Oracle Card: The Whale

• “Becoming Human” by Hafiz

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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

• Creative Writing Camp: https://www.suryagian.com/creative-writing-camp