Heatherlyn is an interdependent, international singer/song-writer, poet, founder and host of her Storydwelling in-depth talk show. Heatherlyn grew up in, as she describes it, white, patriarchal, purity culture in Maine where her "inner artist" had been crushed early on. In this episode, we take a deep dive into how we both dismantle and perpetuate sexual shame, white supremacy, and patriarchy. The themes are heavy, but the conversation is joyful and full of laughter. I honestly had a blast...

Jackson is a teacher, student, and author of the forthcoming 'Literature: How to Read and Understand the World. In our conversation, Jackson takes us through his transformative journey. He finds himself spiraling into a dark period in which he describes being a slave to himself. Then he has a close encounter with death that changes his life. In this profound and meaningful episode, Jackson and I discuss religion, aligning with your path and whether free will exists or not. This is one of...

Delia is an artist and co-founder of Stain'd Arts. One of Delia's super powers is being comfortable with quiet, both by herself and with others. In this conversation, you'll hear about how loving with intensity pushed her to take a huge leap in life and how she has learned to find comfort in uncertainty. Delia is someone I deeply love and towards the end, you’ll hear how our relationship has been so central to our growth. This is a special one. Enjoy! Consider supporting The Soul Stories...

Listen to what's coming up in Season 3! It's going to be a special one :)

For our final installment from un/pact, Danny Mazur revisits points from his past that both shaped and distorted his view on sex and consent, from his Catholic upbringing to conversations about his own male privilege. He originally told this story at our live event, un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent, on April 26 in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

For our next to last episode in our series of live stories on consent, intimacy coach Susan Coates gets personal and digs into the nitty gritty on working towards consent on both a cultural and an individual level. She originally told this story at Unpact: a creative dialogue on consent, our live event on April 26 in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

For the fifth episode in our series of live stories from Un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent, Hannah Skewes meditates on how one of her most important relationships started with questions asked lovingly. She originally told this story at our live event on April 26 in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

For the fourth episode in our series of live stories from un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent, Shelsea Ochoa helps us explore two different worlds⁠—one of consent and one of non-consent⁠—and a cultural transformation based on love. She originally told this story at our live event on April 26 in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

For the third installment in our series of live stories from un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent, Devin Pitts-Rogers offers a cautionary tale. Here, he talks about what happens when consent becomes too transactional, the horrors of high school locker-room talk and how adults contort to avoid the discomfort of substantive conversations about sex with younger generations. He originally told this story at our live event on April 26 in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

The second episode in our consent series comes from Denver-based writer Rebecca Hannigan. She originally told this story at our live event called “un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent” on April 26, in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Although Rebecca typically writes absurdist fiction, here she takes us back to a couch during her college years and a bitter last encounter with a former partner that that forced her to reckon with power dynamics that can govern sex and consent.

This season, The Soul Stories Podcast is featuring live stories from "un/pact: a creative dialogue on consent.” This event was Held in April for Sexual Assault Awareness Month and will be recurring annually. The whole idea is to create a space where people can share vulnerable stories, poems, songs and other forms of oral artistic expression in a space where the audience is uniquely prepared to listen. We hope both the event and this season of the podcast can spark dialogue on this very...

Patricia Alley is a certified coach, mentor and author, who has had to navigate childhood trauma, mental illness, and addiction. Early in her 20's she joined the Army and was deployed to Iraq. It was there she was faced with her own pain and destructive habits. In this episode she recounts how humility, vigilance and a myriad of supports saved her life. She now works to serve those on similar paths. She advocates for the fight against stigma and for our society to reclaim interdependence. Her...

I was lucky enough to be a guest on The Loving Creative where Kamga helps me share my story. We dig really deep in this interview and I reveal a lot about myself and my journey that many do not know. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Below is Kamga's description. "Daniel "Danny" Mazur considers himself a "born-again creative". This episode of the podcast takes us on an emotional journey from the time he became an accidental poet, what he calls 'the year of mania', and the first iteration...

Chris is a lifelong community activist, organizer, and family man. Growing up, Chris navigated multiple identities both within his family and in the community. This helped him develop an extraordinary understanding of how to build bridges between cultures. He is dedicated to his community, Montbello, an ethnically diverse neighborhood on the Northeast side of Denver that has gone through many changes in the last couple of decades. He has traveled the world, worked in education & community...

Shelsea is an artist, activist, and educator. She has a special ability to approach life with a sense of wonder and awe and hopes to inspire that feeling in others through creating meaningful experiences. Shelsea was home schooled, lived homeless for a short period of her teenage years, and has traveled the world. She is constantly seeking social change and believes that service with integrity comes from a place of human connection and mutual benefit. This conversation was a special one for...

Kamga Tchassa, The Soul Stories Podcast Producer and Engineer sits down to discuss his journey as a husband, storyteller and immigrant from Camaroon. Starting out in his home country's education system, he was placed on a track to become a professional in the sciences. Growing up, he was shy and considered himself "boring". It wasn't until he learned how to choose himself, develop a love for writing, and express himself openly, did he really come alive. He speaks to dealing with mental health...

Dave Glaser is a fitness entrepreneur who is developing authentic community and vulnerability in a world overrun with toxic masculinity and pride. He speaks about how exercise has been his number one tool to overcome anxiety and depression and he hopes that he can do the same for his clients. What started as 1:1 physical training with his mother has now blossomed into a successful business and community. In this conversation, I press him on what healthy masculinity looks like and how...

Individualized Learning, Sparking Curiosity in Education, and the Pursuit of Knowledge w/ Tanise Fox Tanise has a passion for secondary education, individualized learning styles and museum exhibit design. She learned to navigate the education system with Dyslexia and ADHD on her own. Far before she was diagnosed, Tanise took it upon herself to identify creative strategies to learn. This was met with resistance from several of her teachers. She has taken those challenges and focused her...

Sexual Consent, Journalism and the Pursuit of Nuance in Social Issues w/ Hannah Skewes Hannah is a writer and advocate for mental health awareness and sexual assault prevention. She comes from a journalistic background and seeks the nuance in difficult social conversations. Hannah grew up in Mississippi in a somewhat conservative household and has learned the importance of creating space for productive dialogue where minds can be changed.  Since this conversation took place, Hannah and I...

From Masks and Self-Destruction to Heart-centered creativity w/ Mike Brancatelli Mike Brancatelli, the Host of the Mikeadelic Podcast, is dedicated to liberty, psychadelics, and self-empowerment. Mike has been plagued with depression, escapism, and destructive habits in what he describes as his version of hell. He finds himself masking these through stand-up comedy, corporate success and travel. In 2016, his life changed when he found his healing through Ayahuasca while living with the...

Becoming a doctor as a black & female immigrant w/ Queenie Kisang  Talking with Queenie was truly inspiring and easily one of my favorite conversations I have ever had. She talks about the challenges of being 1 of 2 black students in med school, coming from Cameroon to find asylum in the U.S., overcoming traditional gender roles, dealing with ADHD and dyslexia, and adapting to the American education system on her road to becoming a doctor. She describes how a strong sense of...