The Numinous Podcast

TNP24: Grieving for Susan + Civilization with Michael Phillips

This week's episode is a tender portrait of loss, destruction and the pain of living in our times. 
 I have a very special friendship with Michael; a kinship and delight in our conversations, a warmth and joy in his presence that lifts my spirits. I love his lyrical way of communicating. I love how he surprises me - one moment a poetic rumination, the next a pragmatic shrug. I usually need lots of kleenex for our conversations. He just has a way of speaking to the human condition in a way that opens and soothes my soul. I hope you enjoy sharing in this small portion of one of our recent talks.
By the way, the following quote (which I sort of bastardize  in the show) is from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone:
"After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."

TNP23: Georgia Nicols on Making the Most of Mercury Retrograde

Think you're out of the woods because Mercury has finally gone direct? Nuh uh says Canada's favourite astrologer, Georgia Nicols.
On this week's episode of The Numinous Podcast we're talking about how to deal with Mercury Retrograde, that thrice annual occurrence when it seems all things technology, communication and travel-related go haywire. Georgia explains what it is, why it happens and how to deal with it. 
You can get Georgia's daily updates by subscribing on her website or you can follow her on Facebook to find out when the Moon alerts are in effect.

TNP22: The Vision Quest with Sparrow Hart

This week we're talking about the ritual of the vision quest with Sparrow Hart. For over 30 years, Sparrow has personally gone on vision quest every year and has led hundreds of people through their own wilderness rights of passage. I feel privileged to have been guided by Sparrow when I did my vision quest in the desert.
This is a truly rich conversation in which Sparrow gives so. many. resources. Not only has he written a beautiful ode to questing called Letters to the River: A Guide to a Dream Worth Living, he also mentions some of the books that were formative in the early years of his questing such as Black Elk Speaks by John Neihardt, People of the Deer by Farley Mowatt, the work of Carlos Castadenda and Laurens van der Post.
I really can't recommend more highly a vision quest experience with Sparrow. Of all of my spiritual undertakings, these teachings were some of the most formative. If you are an ardent pursuer of the spiritual path and maker of your own myth, then a week with Sparrow will be a gift to your heart and a balm for your soul. Do it!

TNP21: Culture, Colonialism + Spirituality with Josiah Neufeld

This week I'm talking with Josiah Neufeld, a Vancouver-based writer whose journalism, essays and short fiction have appeared in The Walrus, Hazlitt, The Globe and Mail, Prairie Fire, The Vancouver Sun, Geez Magazine, The Winnipeg Free Press, Rhubarb and elsewhere. Josiah grew up in West Africa, the son of Mennonite missionaries.
In this episode, Josiah shares his story and what he values most about the cultures that shaped his spiritual path.
In this episode, Josiah mentioned Malidoma Patrice Somé's work including his book Ritual: Power, Healing and Community. He also noted the Five Pillars of Islam when discussing spiritual practices.
This conversation leads us gently into usually rather barbed territory - colonialism, evangelism, and such - but I think you'll enjoy Josiah's thoughtful nature and the warm-hearted way he is integrating many cultures, practices and patterns into his own personal spirituality.

TNP20: Llynne Phillips + Sacred Poetry

This episode celebrates the poetry that touches our soul and moves us. Llynne Phillips is a poet and poetry fan and today she shares her favourites and helps us discern their meaning.

TNP19: Monique Gray Smith on Ceremony + Sacredness with Children

In this episode, I'm talking with author and speaker, Monique Gray Smith, about how parents can weave ceremony and ritual into every day experiences with their children.
Monique shares several traditional First Nations rituals and we explore how we can support our children's growth through exposure to elements of ceremony to inspire their own spiritual connection.
Monique is the author of Tilly: A Story of Hope and Resilience, and also the founder of Little Drum Consulting, an Aboriginal-owned and operated firm that provides consulting services to governments and Aboriginal communities and organizations.
In this show, I mentioned the wonderful coming-of-age event, G Day for Girls. Check out their website to find out how you can make this great event happen in your city! {Tell them Carmen sent you!}

TNP18: Arthurian Legend Leadership Lessons with Kent Osborne

This week on The Numinous Podcast is Kent Osborne, an Executive Coach and Leadership Development Trainer with a unique approach. Kent incorporates the mythology of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table into his work to evoke greatness in his clients.
Kent has 20 years' experience working with corporate clients internationally and since we're friends, I'm lucky enough to have experienced his unique approach to coaching for myself.
 
In this interesting conversation, we touch on the Arthurian Cycle, The Four Treasures of Tuatha Dé Danann and The Kalevala of Finnish folklore.

TNP 17: Shakti Roumagoux: Catholic, Quaker, Engaged Buddhist

I'm thrilled to introduce you to a Friend, elder and spiritual mentor, Shakti Earleen Roumagoux. She grew up Catholic and attended Jesuit university. She spent 20 years following the Hindu tradition and for the past few years she's been a staff member at Thich Nhat Hanh's Buddhist community, Plum Village in France. In this conversation we touch on mindfulness, sensing energy and the challenges of spiritual seeking.

TNP 16: Jena DellaGrottaglia on Art + Intuition

Ever wonder who created the art in your favourite oracle deck? I did. So I did some sleuthing and tracked her down. And now we're friends! It's like a superfan fairy tale. Jena DellaGrottaglia-Maldonado is the artist who created the imagery for one of my all-time favourite decks, The Enchanted Map, by internationally acclaimed intuition expert, Colette Baron-Reid. She has also collaborated with Baron-Reid on Wisdom of the Hidden Realms as well as P.C. Cast's The House of Night. You can find her portfolio online and follow her  on Facebook at The Art of Autumns Goddess. Her FB page is also where you can enjoy the results of the duelling Muses with Tracye Shearin as mentioned in the interview and she also posts her playlist at times. In this episode, Jena takes us into her process for the making of an oracle card deck.

TNP 15: Lauren Bacon with Tools to Diffuse Imposter Syndrome and Comparison

I'm so excited for this week's episode because my guest is someone who inspires me weekly with her insight and thought leadership on topics as varied as entrepreneurship, gender, creativity and social change. Lauren Bacon is a seasoned tech entrepreneur and author who asks a lot of questions. I highly recommend you sign up for her newsletter and get her e-book, "Curious for a Living: How Asking Better Questions Makes You Indispensable" - it worked for me!
Today we're talking about a subject I've been working with and thinking a lot about lately, Imposter Syndrome.
In this show, Lauren references some excellent resources including another thought leader in this arena, Tara Sophia Mohr. I've enjoyed her blog posts for over a year now. I especially loved her post about personal branding being "bullshit". Yes! I mention another post that really resonated with me about common ways that women undermine their own authority. Always provocative and substantial.
When Lauren talks about the "power pose" and research about how embodiment can affect performance, she's referring to this wonder woman here, Amy Cuddy.
 
If I were you, I'd start following Lauren and her work. She's up to some very cool stuff and I feel like her weekly Curiosity Experiments always seem to give me a new way to think about something I'm dealing with or working on. Find her on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

TNP 14: Carl-Greger on Spontaneous Spiritual Awakening + Direct Experience

This week I'm talking with my friend, Carl-Greger L., and we're talking about the kundalini awakening he experienced during a reiki session that transformed his life, and how he integrates spirituality into his life as a consultant in the financial industry in northern Europe. His story is extraordinary and inspiring.
In this show, Carl-Greger shares one of his strategies for processing and integrating spiritual experiences: he writes everything down. He likes to use an app called Scrivener and I mention that I like Evernote.
If you enjoy the show, please remember to go back and give it a review in iTunes - that's how more seekers like you can find it! Just click the tab that says "View in iTunes" and it will automatically open your iTunes app to the show. Click on "Ratings and Reviews" and just underneath you'll see a tab that says "Write a Review". Thanks ever so much for taking the time to support the show!

TNP 13: Judee Gee on Spiritual Self-Esteem + Professional Integrity as an Intuitive Practitioner

This week's episode features my dear teacher, intuition coach and mentor, Judee Gee. We're talking about dealing with social scorn and the fallout of spiritual awakening, trusting ourselves, and integrity as a professional intuitive. Juicy stuff!
Trained as an intuitive psychic, breath therapist and teacher of alternative healing methods in Australia and the USA in the early 1980’s, Judee settled in France in 1988 where she created The Intuition School (L’Ecole de l’Intuition). From 1988 to 2000 she taught her intuition development program in several regions throughout France and also published Intuition: Awakening Your Inner Guide, during that period.She is the past President (1998–2001) of the International Breathwork Foundation and a founding member (2000) of the Global Professional Breathwork Alliance, where she currently serves on the Board of Directors.
Since 2001, from her base in the South of France (Ecole ETRE), Judee has been co-directing an intensive three-year personal development program as well as a two-year professional level transpersonal therapist training. She also trains apprentice group facilitators in the art of group orchestration and ethical leadership.
Judee regularly leads seminars on the themes of intuition development, tantra, integrative breathwork and team cohesion, and facilitates individual sessions as a transpersonal therapist. She brings over 30 years of experience to the creation and implementation of the programs she teaches. Judee is fluently bi-lingual, speaking English and beautiful French.

TNP 12: Georgia Nicols on Astrology + Patterning of Knowledge

This week's episode features everyone's favourite astrologer, Georgia Nicols! Georgia explains that intuition isn't part of her approach to astrology and illuminates the mathematical approach to astrology. We talk about how she got started in her work, Linda Goodman's sun signs, the Ephemeris and the ridicule that even she experiences as a "soft science" practitioner.
Georgia Nicols's wisdom and wit have made her a popular international astrologer whose horoscope columns appear in the National Post, Vancouver Province, Calgary Herald, Winnipeg Free Press, Victoria Daily News, Chicago Sun-Times, Press Democratic (Santa Rosa, California), China Daily (Beijing), and San Miguel (Mexico) as well as smaller weekly and monthly publications. She is a regular columnist in Elle Canada, The San Francisco Examiner, Washington Examiner (D.C.), and The Examiner (Baltimore), among others.
Georgia's book, You and Your Future, is a best seller in Canada, and has international printings in three languages. (In Australia, it is published under the title "Your 40 Year Horoscope").
The Numinous Podcast is a complement to The Numinous School, an online intuition development program for people who want their self-awareness to serve a greater good.

TNP 11: Public, Private + Political with Louise

Today's podcast is a conversation with a woman who first came to me as a client, and who became a dear friend. Louise is the mother of three boys, a politician, and has been quietly building a professional practice as an energy healer. I asked Louise how she balances her spiritual life with the demands of high profile public service and also how she deals with the social scorn that comes from working with intuition.
 
Louise and I spoke over Skype (the few periods of poor reception pass quickly). Louise was at home in Stockholm, Sweden.

TNP 10: Sandra Yancey on Intuition in Business

Episode 10
The Numinous Podcast with Carmen Spagnola is a show about Intuition & Spirituality, featuring interesting conversations with everyday folks about the mystery of life. The Numinous School is a self-paced online intuition development program for people who want their self-awareness to make a difference in the world.
On this week's show, I'm delighted to welcome the founder of the eWomen Network, Sandra Yancey. I asked Sandra about reconnecting to her centre when she's running a massively successful business. Sandra shared the intimate story of the series of tragedies that finally culminated in a life-changing moment at her mother's bedside as she lay there, at the threshold of death. It's a touching conversation.
In 2000 from a room above the garage of her Dallas, Texas suburban home -- with limited entrepreneurial experience -- Sandra boot-strapped her way to create one of the largest and most decorated business networking organizations in North America. Today eWomenNetwork is a multi-million dollar enterprise in six countries with 118 chapters that helps thousands of women grow their businesses. The organization produces over 1,000 women’s business events each year, including one of the largest 4-day International Women’s Business Conference in North America. Recognized by the International Alliance for Women as one of the world’s 100 Top Difference Makers and by CNN as an American Hero, the eWomenNetwork Foundation she created has awarded cash grants to 94 non-profit organizations and scholarships to 132 emerging female leaders of tomorrow.
If you live in North America, very likely, there's an eWomen network chapter near you. If you're a woman in business, you should really look into membership especially if you hate networking. I have found their very structured Accelerated Networking process gives me something to focus on and do at the events so I'm not just standing there holding up the wall all night. It's how I built my in-person business and forged the deepest friendships of my life. You may not be as lucky as me (the Victoria chapter is particularly wonderful) but isn't it at least worth a look?
Follow Sandra on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get up close and personal - she really does engage with her tribe which has now swelled to about half a million members.

TNP episode 9: Meditation, Channeling and Connection with Dr.Jonni Gray

Episode 9
The Numinous Podcast with Carmen Spagnola is a show about Intuition & Spirituality, featuring interesting conversations with everyday folks about the mystery of life. The Numinous School is a self-paced online intuition development program for people who want their self-awareness to make a difference in the world.
This week, my guest is my very own teacher, Dr.Jonni Gray.  After seeing Jonni as a client, I ended up training with her in past life regression. In this conversation, I ask Jonni about the role of meditation in her work, and we talk about the tendency of some spiritual paths to create a hierarchy of realms. Jonni gives her take on the nature of the spiritual realms based her her nearly three decades of experience as a spiritual counsellor and channeler.
Jonni has helped tens of thousands of individuals source the answers to their questions of purpose,  passion, deeper connection with self, others, work, Soul, and the Universe.  When describing her work to people, she says, "I'm not a shrink, but an expander."
You can expand along with Jonni with her wonderful meditation downloads. I'm telling you: she gives the best voice in the business!
She also tweets every morning and it's a great way to focus your alignment for the day. And of course Facebook is a great way to show your love or engage with Jonni if you enjoyed the show or have follow up questions.

TNP episode 8: Better Living Through Metaphor with Sarah Selecky

Today I'm talking to my friend, Sarah Selecky, about the parallels between the writing and working with intuition. We also give metaphor the love it deserves.
Sarah is a dual citizen of Canada and the United States and grew up in Southern Indiana and Northern Ontario. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia, and her writing has appeared in the top Canadian magazines and quarterlies such as The Walrus, The New Quarterly, and The Journey Prize Anthology, among many others. This Cake Is for the Party is her first book, which was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, shortlisted for the Commonwealth Prize for Best First Book, and longlisted for the Frank O’Connor Short Story Award.
She is also the creator of the groundbreaking online writing program, Story Is a State of Mind, and online writing school, The Story Intensive, which includes collaborations with Margaret Atwood, George Saunders, and others. She divides her time between Toronto and the rest of the world. You can find Sarah at www.sarahselecky.com and on Twitter @sarahselecky.
I am not a fiction writer but I want to be because of Sarah's course. It has made my speech writing better, my course writing better and my articulation better. It's a gift you should give yourself if you have to write for your work but you're "not a writer".  You're welcome.

TNP episode 7: Spirituality + Recovery with Trinity Donnelly MacRae

Our guest for this episode is Trinity Donnelly MacRae, founder of Divinely Inspired. 
On today's show, we're celebrating Trinity's 17 years sober and we talk about the role of spirituality in addiction recovery. We touch on what it's like being "out" in recovery, and the importance of finding our tribe.
Recovering addict turned Gratitudaholic, Trinity dreams of living each day in an uplifting way. Her mission is to spread the love - one positive message at a time. The cure for stinkin’ thinkin’? Notes to self, she says. Posted everywhere! And a whole lotta help from your friends. When not designing products for her line of inspirational giftware, Trinity can be found hanging out with her 8  year old guru. Join Trinity on the Divinely Inspired journey and watch your attitude of gratitude grow!
To direct some of that divine love your way, Like her Facebook page and sign up for her email list!

TNP episode 6: Divine Self-care with Elena Lipson

My guest for today's show is Elena Lipson, a Divine Self-Care Mentor who helps conscious mamas take care of their most important asset: Themselves! Women work so hard in their businesses and in their lives as mothers, friends, wives, etc. But what is it all worth if they are too tired, sick and stressed-out to enjoy it? That’s the focus of Elena’s programs & retreats. Elena’s passion is to help tune the mind, body & spirit into income, balance & inspiration.
In this episode, Elena tells us about coming out of the intuitive closet, the transition from corporate life to coaching, and how she incorporates intuition with her work with clients.
Keep up with Elena on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. Her feed is always inspiring!
In this show, Elena references a great book that I also highly recommend, Daily Rituals: How Artists Work, by Mason Curry. (If you don't feel like adding another book to your pile here's the gist of it: go for long walks.)
 
I also mention The Transformation Game, a game of intention and intuition that originated at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland. I've been playing it since I was 15 years old and host a monthly game night in my community. Warning: once you start, it's hard to stop. It's a wonderful way to spend a long evening but stock up on snacks and wine!

TNP episode 5: Nature, Mind and the Mystical with J.B.MacKinnon

My guest for today's show is J.B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World: Nature As It Was, As It Is, As It Could Be, and co-author of The 100 Mile Diet: A Year of Local Eating. On today's show, we talk about what people are really seeking in nature, James drops the term "participatory consciousness" as though I ought to have heard of it, and he explains how to will the Universe to present a puffin when you need one. A very cool conversation, indeed.
MacKinnon also works in the field of interactive documentaries. He was the writer for Bear 71, a very cool interactive documentary which explores the intersection of the wired and wild worlds through the true story of a mother grizzly bear. Bear 71 premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was named 2012 Site of the Year at the international Favourite Website Awards. His work can also be read in the app for CBC's epic wilderness documentary, Wild Canada.
As a journalist, MacKinnon has won more than a dozen national and international awards in categories as varied as essays, science writing, and travelogue. He is a past editor of Adbusters, the ‘culture jamming’ magazine that launched the Occupy movement, and a past senior contributing editor of Explore, Canada’s national outdoors magazine. His stories have ranged from the civil war in Southern Sudan to anarchists in urban North America to the overlooked world of old age among wild animals.
You can listen to him read the article to you, Wisdom in the Wild: Why Age Matters Throughout the Animal Kingdom, courtesy of Orion Magazine. It's really beautiful.
James is a rock climber, mountain biker, snowboarder, and—yes—a birdwatcher. He lives with his partner Alisa Smith in Vancouver, Canada.
Keep up with J.B. on Twitter.
Also in this episode, I mention that I'm reading a book by my teacher, Sparrow Hart, called Letters to the River: A Guide to a Dream Worth Living. Sparrow led my vision quest in the Death Valley and I can't thank him enough for his teachings. If you feel called to go on a vision quest, seek him out on his website. Changed my life, in a good way.