In this Beyond story, we revisit one of our earlier conversations with master healer Artie Wu to help us bring to life the liminal stage in our personal transformation pattern. I know this stage well, and I was able to recognize when I was in it, and how I created a vision board to let my soul guide my next big move in life. I'm sharing instructions on how to make yours and that exact vision board on the https://bellystory.com/s3e7 (website). Recognizing the threshold isn't a new idea. I've...

In this very personal Beyond story, I wanted to share why it's so important to me that this podcast is not for sale. Why it matters that you, dear listeners and neighbors of the world, have a safe, judgement free space to listen, and notice what comes up. To do that, I take you back through my own pattern of storytelling; how I learned to tell stories by listening deeply to others tell theirs. Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh shares that listening to others, with compassion and without offering...

In this special New Year's Beyond story, David All looks deeper into the meaning of that sweet, familiar song, Auld Lang Syne, a poem attributed to Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns. Before you turn the page and burn the book on 2020, turn around and remember the 'Good old days' and all those days in between. Wisdom for our Soul, Courage for your Journey. In Belly, we share our extraordinary life stories of personal transformation to illustrate the nature of personal transformation....

Corey Cepeda's transformation to become a better man didn't happen overnight, but that journey did begin one night in a jail cell long ago. That night, on his knees on the coldest concrete floor in an intimate jail cell, he committed to ending his rough lifestyle, a typical example in the pattern of fatherlessness led him there. In the darkness of that oubliette, his soul noticed the light - his decision to forge checks meant that he would miss his first daughter's baptism. A kenshō moment...

At first glance, you might wonder why Christian Long, a man with multiple fathers, would be featured in a series on fatherlessness. Good question. It’s true that Christian has a biological father, but he was out of the picture before Christian was three years old and only emerged again when Christian was 25. Christian also had three stepfathers (and three different last names.) Thanks to his wife, he has a father-in-law… So there is no shortage of fathers in his life. What’s missing, though,...

As with so many children in the world today, Leonardo Lightbourne (L.T. Bourne) grew up with an absent father. Watching from the window as his father drove away left L.T. feeling confused and heartbroken. As he grew, he became a people-pleaser, trying to win the favor of others so that they wouldn’t abandon him. This led to a lack of boundaries and some bad decisions. Thankfully, L.T.’s best friend’s father served as a mentor and a positive influence in his life. Without his encouragement...

In this Beyond story, David All brings to life the concept of fatherfullness by telling Joe Biden’s personal story of choosing the role and responsibility of fatherhood over all else, including his own ambitions in his career of public service. Wisdom for our Soul, Courage for your Journey. In Belly, we share our extraordinary life stories of personal transformation to illustrate the nature of personal transformation. Beyond helps us go beyond personal stories to comprehend the overall...

Welcome to our third season of Belly of the Beast Life Stories. Growing up with an absent biological father has a particular impact on men. In Fatherlessness, I’ll tell you stories of men that share this experience. A golden thread marking a childhood of grief, anger, and missteps; a difficult pattern to break out of. But for these men, a transformation from the adult boy to the man. Their climb up from being born in the hole — that’s the overall pattern of each of these stories. ENABLE OUR...

If Belly is a story for your soul, then Beyond is wisdom for your spirit.   Like rivers and streams filled with fragments of gold, there are nuggets of wisdom in the stories we hear. Beyond is that wisdom distilled to pure gold; simply listen and you'll put it into action in your life journey.   This inaugural episode unearths the origin story of Belly with our advisor, Artie Wu of Preside Life (http://bit.ly/presidelife).   EPISODE SUMMARY Artie Wu describes the origin of Belly...

This informational bonus episode covers a few key adjustments we're making: 1. Originally our theme for Season 3 focused on exploring the transformations in personal stories of folks that have faced the criminal justice system. With COVID, it's not safe to take this issue on the way we envision, so we're shifting. 2. The new theme for Season 3 will be a collection of personal stories by men. We'll explore the grieving and transformation in manhood by men that grew up fatherless. 3. We are...

Ashley Wayne shares her story of facing down her fear of being blind and becoming a mother. And now, she has two blind children and a newborn. EPISODE SUMMARY Part I The gift of sight was always seen as a luxury to Ashley up until this moment She’s days from going to get her daughter in Bulgaria, the international adoption nearly realized In these early moment, a blind woman confronts being a blind mama to her blind daughter Ashley was blind at birth, two detached retinas, not even a...

Mathew Passy’s 4-month old daughter was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, a rare but treatable disease, bringing immediacy to the role and responsibility of fatherhood. EPISODE SUMMARY Part I •The story opens with Mathew and his wife taking their 4-month old daughter, Hailey, into the hospital with a fever that was later diagnosed as bacterial meningitis •Meningitis is a rare disease caused by viral or bacterial infection that moves into the cerebral spinal fluid and swells the thin...

Lorna Rose was three-months pregnant when a routine blood test revealed a genetic disorder in her unborn child which carried a high risk of miscarriage at any point in the pregnancy. The daily grieving led to finding her voice as a poet and writer. EPISODE SUMMARY Part I As an older mother, Lorna had a blood test three-months into her pregnancy to screen for any potential problems The test came back positive for a genetic disorder, Turner’s Syndrome Lorna lives in a smaller town in the...

Kip Morse's first daughter, Allison, was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth and later, autism. Tremendous behavioral issues forced him into being the family's peacekeeper. Now he's finally finding peace as his daughter realizes her purpose. To me, Kip has been a mentor and the leading example of a father’s impenetrable love for his daughter. The father of three daughters and husband to Leslie for more than 30 years, he was forced into being the servant leader of the family. Many times...

Rachel Poysky shares her Belly story of raising two children with rare diseases. Her greatest fears about the health of her son, Joel, were affirmed when she pulled into the driveway and her husband was waiting for her with news. Her husband, Dr. James Poysky, delivered the grave news that their son did in fact have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). DMD is the most common fatal genetic disorder of childhood and it likely meant that their son wouldn’t live past high school. Rachel tells us...

Now a mama to 10 kiddos, Laura Hernandez faced and met the overwhelming challenges when her family added three adopted children that would all eventually be diagnosed with intellectual delay (mental retardation) and fetal alcohol syndrome. After consulting friends and books and still not having the answers she needed, Laura created her own systems to manage the chaos and bring peace to her household. Laura realized a need for other mother’s facing similar challenges and started...

Sharon Eisenhauer had to heal the wound of her relationship with her own mother before she could break out of the mold of motherhood to find joy in her relationship with her adopted daughter. Sharon and her wife adopted their daughter and divorced a few years later. The relationship between Sharon and her daughter was joyous but also challenging and confrontational and she couldn't understand why. Sharon went to figure it out beginning a process of self-discovery and healing of her own...

Our New Podcast: Beyond the Belly takes you beyond the personal narratives in Belly of the Beast Life Stories to bring to life the wisdom found in the overall patterns of transformation. * * BONUS EPISODE * * Please hop over to the Beyond the Belly website to subscribe, rate and review our new podcast: http://inourbelly.com/beyond  * * BONUS EPISODE * * Subscribe right now for free on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/beyondthebelly Subscribe for free at Google Podcasts: ...

The day after Mother’s Day in 1988, Charlotte's only daughter, Ja’Mee, was murdered at the age of 13 in a case of mistaken identity by five gang members. Then again in 1996, Charlotte’s 25 year-old son Corey was also killed by gang members who thought his blue work uniform represented a rival gang’s colors. Indeed Charlotte was dealt poison but made medicine going on a mission to first ensure that Ja’Mee’s killers met justice, then working through all levels of government to change criminal...

** This is a bonus episode -- subscribe to our new podcast, Beyond the Belly, for future episodes of this podcast ** Episode 1: Origin and Meaning with Artie Wu Beyond the Belly takes you beyond the personal narratives in Belly of the Beast Life Stories to bring to life the wisdom found in the overall patterns of transformation. For our first episode, I've asked master healer Artie Wu of PresideLife.com to join me to discuss the origin story and meaning of Belly of the Beast Life Stories. ...

Each Belly of the Beast Life Story illustrates the nature of transformation through the story of a real person. Season 2 is curated by the theme - For Love of My Child. All stories are by parents who have faced and overcome the unimaginable for the unconditional love of their child. We are still gathering stories to include in Season 2 which will start releasing in the near future. If you have a story to share, reach out to us via inourbelly.com. ~ Beyond the Belly ~ We have launched our...

Artie Wu dives into his personal transformation to become a a master healer to more than 120,000 folks around the world. In one of the clearest examples I've heard, Artie describes what 'healing' is, why it helps folks live a fuller life, and his vision for a healed world. Wisdom for our Soul, Courage for your Journey. In Belly, we share our extraordinary life stories of personal transformation to illustrate the nature of personal transformation. Beyond helps us go beyond personal stories to...

This story reveals the overall pattern of transformation — the secret recipe of each personal Belly of the Beast Life Story. Once you hear the pattern - you’ll see it coming up in our podcast and with those around you. Wisdom for our Soul, Courage for your Journey. In Belly, we share our extraordinary life stories of personal transformation to illustrate the nature of personal transformation. Beyond helps us go beyond personal stories to comprehend the overall pattern of transformation. ...

Let me introduce you to Chip Conley. In business, the term disruptor is reserved for those individuals that completely change the rules in an industry so that every other person in that industry has to follow suit. Chip has done that twice. The first was at Joie de Vivre Hospitality (JdV), which he grew to become the second largest independent boutique hospitality group in the country. And then at AirBNB as the chief hospitality officer where he helped guide the rocket ship and provide all of...