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Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to our entire DT/KC Family! We hope you enjoy this episode of Don Tony And Kevin Castle Show, recorded Monday night, 12/23/24. Running Time: 2 Hours 6 Minutes. Synopsis is posted below. Some Topics Discussed: Stupid Rumor Killer: WWE considering adding a 'Tribal Chief' Championship Title to the Roman Reigns vs Solo Sikoa feud No Sh*t Sherlock: Wrestling media reports the WWE 'Zero' vignettes are for the imminent debut of Penta El Zero Miedo WWE Raw 12/23/24 Recap and Review (Boston, MA) How awesome was Kofi Kingston's mother on Monday Night RAW?! Did it end up being Natalya's 'F'N Time' in Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament? (Hint, LOL No) WWE announces SmackDown expanding to three hours weekly beginning with 1/3/25 event (on USA Network) Follow-up to our 11/18/24 DTKC report: Wrestling media is now reporting RAW debut on Netflix will be three hours. But they left out one important element out of their reports WWE SmackDown and AEW Rampage 12/20/24 TV ratings Rey Misterio SR, uncle of Rey Mysterio passes away at 66 (RIP) Bronson Reed (foot/ankle) injury is much more than many realize and his targeted return may not be until around SummerSlam Bo Dallas confirms that Bray Wyatt and him (as Uncle Howdy) had 'alot of conversations' with Karrion Kross to work a storyline together Karrion Kross' autobiography "Life Is Fighting" (Fall 2025 Release) presale launches Sports Illustrated reveals their Pro Wrestling Awards for 2024. Do you agree with their list? Wrestling Blunder Of The Year 2024: DT/KC choose AEW airing CM Punk/Jack Perry fight footage on AEW Dynamite. DT and Kev reveal startling viewership numbers to back up their choice for this embarrassing achievement AEW Dynamite 12/25/24 match preview (non-spoiler) and Dynamite Flashback to one year ago (results and 2023 TV rating) Ash By Elegance (Dana Brooke) launches an Only Fans account less than a week after getting married DT/KC Poll: Would you approve/allow your significant other to launch an Only Fans account? Bryan Alvarez does a 180 from the long time one-sided support for AEW. Is it an honest organic change in opinion? Or is it mainly a sly attempt at 'good guy/bad guy' (with Dave Meltzer) to stop the bleeding from losing subscribers? (This discussion was by special request from a longtime DT/KC supporter since 2004) DT/KC Patreon Programming Details for Christmas week Many thanks to everyone who tuned in live for Don Tony And Kevin Castle Show: Christmas 2024 Special YouTube livestream from Sunday night (replay links below) RIGHT CLICK AND SAVE to download the AUDIO episode of DTKC SHOW (12/23/24) CLICK HERE for the COMMERCIAL FREE AUDIO episode of DTKC SHOW (12/23/24) CLICK HERE for the ENHANCED YOUTUBE MEMBERS ONLY VERSION of DTKC SHOW (12/23/24) AVAILABLE ONLINE TUE 12/24/24 AFTER 4PM ET CLICK HERE to listen to DON TONY AND KEVIN CASTLE SHOW (12/23/24) online. CLICK HERE to access previous episodes for all the shows ==== DON TONY AND KEVIN CASTLE SHOW CHRISTMAS 2024 SPECIAL EPISODE (RUNNING TIME: 3 HOURS 47 MINUTES) Download the episode here: CLICK HERE YouTube Live stream with Full Chat: CLICK HERE Episode synopsis: CLICK HERE ==== CHECK OUT THESE RECENT PRO WRESTLING NEWS UPDATES: FRIDAY 12/20/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE WEDNESDAY 12/18/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE SUNDAY 12/15/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE FRIDAY 12/13/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE WEDNESDAY 12/11/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE SATURDAY 12/7/24 NEWS REPORT: CLICK HERE ==== DON TONY AND KEVIN CASTLE SHOW 12/16/2024 EPISODE Download the episode here: CLICK HERE Enhanced YouTube Members Only Version (Full episode w/added pics and video): CLICK HERE Episode synopsis of topics discussed: CLICK HERE ==== Remember: DON TONY AND KEVIN CASTLE SHOW streams LIVE every MONDAY NIGHT at 10:15PM after WWE RAW at DTKCDiscord.com. ==== CELEBRATE 20 YEARS OF DON TONY AND KEVIN CASTLE (2004-2024) WITH THE DTKC 20 YEAR ANNIVERSARY SHIRT! 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(6/21/23) HOUR ONE: Two days of Fed speak commence today: Will markets even notice? Liquidity is still rising, easing economic conditions the Fed is trying to tighten. Update on the Titanic Sub Search; The ESG Scam: Does nothing for the environment. Is ESG behind us? Are we targeting the wrong companies with boycotts? Don't buy Black Rock stocks; why enrich Larry Fink? Rolling recession and market resiliency: What could alter this dynamic? Student Loan Debt Repayments to resume, pulling $12-Billion in consumer spending from the economy. Is this a Bull Trap or a Bull Market? HOUR-TWO: (Live Q&A from Radio listeners & YouTube audience) The $300-Million public school in Cambridge, MA: How to buy ISD Bonds? Why there is high-demand for such "Money-good" bonds: They get paid. Caveat: The challenge of trying to avoid paying taxes vs making money with investments. Lance' pre-market commentary; How to invest in Prison Bonds; from Germany, a question about investing Euro savings into US Dollars; a discussion of the most-common investor mistake(s); Options Credit Spreads and selling Puts to buy stocks; advise against borrowing from 401k; Investing with Vangard S&P 500 Fund; Strategies for saving and building wealth; Zero Days to Expiration Options; investing in foreign distressed debt (Hint: It's "distressed" for a reason). HOUR-ONE: SEG-1: Two Days of Fed Speak: Will Markets Pay Attention? SEG-2: Is ESG Behind Us? SEG-3: The Potential Impact of Student Loan Repayments SEG-4: Is this a Bull Trap or Bull Market? HOUR TWO (Live Q&A): SEG-5: How to Buy ISD Bonds? SEG-6a: How to Buy Prison Construction Bonds? SEG-6b: How to invest Euro Savings in the Dollar? SEG-6c: What is the Most-common Investor Mistake? SEG-7a: Options Credit Spreads SEG-7b: Selling Puts to Buy Stock SEG-7c: Borrowing from IRA to Buy House SEG-7d: How o Use Insurance to Buy Real Estate (example) SEG-8a: Should you borrow from your 401k? SEG-8b: The Vangard S&P 500 Funds SEG-8c: Zero Days to Expirations Options SEG-8d: Should you invest in distressed foreign debt? Hosted by RIA Advisors RIA Advisors Chief Investment Strategist Lance Roberts, CIO Produced by Brent Clanton, Executive Producer -------- Watch today's show on our YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVT8LcWPeAugpcGzM8hHyEP11lE87RYPe -------- The latest installment of our new feature, Before the Bell | "Has the Buying Stampede Been Reigned-in?" is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFFge2nod2U&list=PLwNgo56zE4RA3snVQyugvOF5TwZ1Xu7bm&index=1 -------- Our previous show is here: "Why AI is Little More than BS " https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5_N965M6rc&list=PLVT8LcWPeAugpcGzM8hHyEP11lE87RYPe&index=1 -------- Article Mentioned in Today's Show: "Speculation In A.I. May Face Challenges" https://realinvestmentadvice.com/speculation-in-a-i-may-face-challenges/ ------- Get more info & commentary: https://realinvestmentadvice.com/newsletter/ -------- SUBSCRIBE to The Real Investment Show here: http://www.youtube.com/c/TheRealInvestmentShow -------- Visit our Site: https://www.realinvestmentadvice.com Contact Us: 1-855-RIA-PLAN -------- Subscribe to SimpleVisor: https://www.simplevisor.com/register-new -------- Connect with us on social: https://twitter.com/RealInvAdvice https://twitter.com/LanceRoberts https://www.facebook.com/RealInvestmentAdvice/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/realinvestmentadvice/ #InvestingAdvice #FederalReserve #JeromePowell #TitanicSub #ESG #ESGScam #BleckRock #LarryFink #RollingRecession #StudentLoanDebt #MunicipalBonds #ISDBonds #Markets #Money #Investing

(6/21/23) HOUR ONE: Two days of Fed speak commence today: Will markets even notice? Liquidity is still rising, easing economic conditions the Fed is trying to tighten. Update on the Titanic Sub Search; The ESG Scam: Does nothing for the environment. Is ESG behind us? Are we targeting the wrong companies with boycotts? Don't buy Black Rock stocks; why enrich Larry Fink? Rolling recession and market resiliency: What could alter this dynamic? Student Loan Debt Repayments to resume, pulling $12-Billion in consumer spending from the economy. Is this a Bull Trap or a Bull Market? HOUR-TWO: (Live Q&A from Radio listeners & YouTube audience) The $300-Million public school in Cambridge, MA: How to buy ISD Bonds? Why there is high-demand for such "Money-good" bonds: They get paid. Caveat: The challenge of trying to avoid paying taxes vs making money with investments. Lance' pre-market commentary; How to invest in Prison Bonds; from Germany, a question about investing Euro savings into US Dollars; a discussion of the most-common investor mistake(s); Options Credit Spreads and selling Puts to buy stocks; advise against borrowing from 401k; Investing with Vangard S&P 500 Fund; Strategies for saving and building wealth; Zero Days to Expiration Options; investing in foreign distressed debt (Hint: It's "distressed" for a reason). HOUR-ONE: SEG-1: Two Days of Fed Speak: Will Markets Pay Attention? SEG-2: Is ESG Behind Us? SEG-3: The Potential Impact of Student Loan Repayments SEG-4: Is this a Bull Trap or Bull Market? HOUR TWO (Live Q&A): SEG-5: How to Buy ISD Bonds? SEG-6a: How to Buy Prison Construction Bonds? SEG-6b: How to invest Euro Savings in the Dollar? SEG-6c: What is the Most-common Investor Mistake? SEG-7a: Options Credit Spreads SEG-7b: Selling Puts to Buy Stock SEG-7c: Borrowing from IRA to Buy House SEG-7d: How o Use Insurance to Buy Real Estate (example) SEG-8a: Should you borrow from your 401k? SEG-8b: The Vangard S&P 500 Funds SEG-8c: Zero Days to Expirations Options SEG-8d: Should you invest in distressed foreign debt? Hosted by RIA Advisors RIA Advisors Chief Investment Strategist Lance Roberts, CIO Produced by Brent Clanton, Executive Producer -------- Watch today's show on our YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVT8LcWPeAugpcGzM8hHyEP11lE87RYPe  -------- The latest installment of our new feature, Before the Bell | "Has the Buying Stampede Been Reigned-in?" is here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFFge2nod2U&list=PLwNgo56zE4RA3snVQyugvOF5TwZ1Xu7bm&index=1 --------  Our previous show is here: "Why AI is Little More than BS " https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5_N965M6rc&list=PLVT8LcWPeAugpcGzM8hHyEP11lE87RYPe&index=1 -------- Article Mentioned in Today's Show: "Speculation In A.I. May Face Challenges" https://realinvestmentadvice.com/speculation-in-a-i-may-face-challenges/ ------- Get more info & commentary:  https://realinvestmentadvice.com/newsletter/ -------- SUBSCRIBE to The Real Investment Show here: http://www.youtube.com/c/TheRealInvestmentShow -------- Visit our Site: https://www.realinvestmentadvice.com Contact Us: 1-855-RIA-PLAN -------- Subscribe to SimpleVisor: https://www.simplevisor.com/register-new -------- Connect with us on social: https://twitter.com/RealInvAdvice https://twitter.com/LanceRoberts https://www.facebook.com/RealInvestmentAdvice/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/realinvestmentadvice/ #InvestingAdvice #FederalReserve #JeromePowell #TitanicSub #ESG #ESGScam #BleckRock #LarryFink #RollingRecession #StudentLoanDebt #MunicipalBonds #ISDBonds #Markets #Money #Investing

In this episode, Mawusi Amoaku, a fashion designer turned educator shares how stumbling on sketchnoting helped her overcome learning challenges which she now shares with students that have special learning needs.Sponsored by ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by Concepts, a perfect tool for sketchnoting, available on iOS, Windows, and Android.Concepts' infinite canvas lets you sketchnote in a defined area while still enjoying infinite space around it — to write a quick note, scribble an idea, or keep pre-drawn visual elements handy for when you need them most.The infinite canvas lets you stretch out and work without worrying if you'll run out of space. When combined with powerful vector drawing that offers high-resolution output and complete brush and stroke control — you have a tool that's perfect for sketchnoting.Concepts is a powerful, flexible tool that's ideal for sketchnoting.SEARCH “Concepts” in your favorite app store to give it a try.Running OrderIntroWelcomeWho is Mawusi?Origin StoryMawusi's current workSponsor: ConceptsTipsToolsWhere to find MawusiOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Mawusi on InstagramMoonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer.Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All by Tom Kelley and David KelleyThe Sketchnote Handbook by Mike RohdeThe International Sketchnote Camp 2021Sketchnote Army PodcastToolsAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.A4 sheets of paperFriXion penMUJI penPaper Mate InkJoy highlighterSTABILO BOSS gray highlighterTombow markerClairefontaine dot grid paperClipboardTransparent clipboardLED lightbulbRhodia Staplebound NotepadiPad ProApple pencilConcepts AppProcreateTipsContinue feeding your mind.Even if you go digital, keep drawing by hand.Don't overthink it. Just do it.Be open to trying something new.Listen to other sketchnoters.Share your work.Experience with other layouts, find out what works for you.Collaborate with your colleagues.Ask for feedback.Be intentional and tell someone your goal.Don't give up. Be patient.CreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerShownotes and transcripts: Esther OdoroSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!Episode TranscriptMike Rohde: Hey everyone, it's Mike Rohde, and I am here with my friend, Mawusi Amoaku. How are you doing, Mawusi?Mawusi Amoaku: I'm doing good, Mike.MR: It's so good to have you.MA: How are you?MR: I'm doing great. It's always great for me to have someone interesting on the show to talk about their visual thinking journey and the work they do and the impact they're having. And I feel like you're someone who definitely is doing that. And I love to share those stories.I think that's the core reason why the podcast exists is to just reveal really interesting people all around the world doing great things in the visual thinking space. So, with that, why don't you tell us, give us an introduction, who you are and what you do.MA: Okay. My name is Mawusi Amoaku, and I'm originally from Ghana. Grew up in Northern Ireland, hence my accent. I work in education supporting learners with additional learning needs, and I love it.MR: As I understand, in our chats that led up to having you on the show, you've pretty recently discovered Sketchnoting. I would love to hear your origin story around that. Where did that come from? And maybe look back to when you were a little girl, like, have you been drawing since you were a little girl? And how did those two worlds and your teaching all overlap into where you are today?MA: I think I'll start by telling you a little bit about me growing up. I've always loved drawing. When I was younger, I wanted to be an artist. And I love hand lettering and I love making zines. In terms of drawing, well, I try to draw something every day.I stumbled across sketchnotes in 2020 and it really transformed my learning experience. Although I work in education, I had to do a course as part of my job role to help me support my learners with learning needs. And I was finding the course particularly difficult because when I would read my textbook and make notes, when I came to writing the assignments, I would just forget everything. And I was so frustrated. Like I started to fall behind with my assignments, which I thought, this is ironic because what I do, I support learners to get their assignments done. Here I am, I can't even do my own.I didn't wanna tell anyone that I was struggling, so I just kinda had an idea. I thought to myself, "If this was one of my students, what would I say?" Like, I would encourage them to keep going, but I would encourage them to find another way. So, one day I just thought, right, I'm just gonna Google it.I was so behind with my work, I really didn't have time to be doing this, but I thought, I'm gonna have to try and find some answers. So yeah, I went on the internet and I researched and I came up with mnemonics, memory palace, mine maps, and finally, sketch notes. And that changed everything.So, for me, the first sketch note I made was of a "TED Talk" because I bought your book and I wanted to find out like, straight away, does this thing work. Should I continue with it or not? 'Cause I need to know that I'm investing my time wisely.And I sketch noted, I think it was called The Greatest Ted Talk Ever Told, I think that's the name of it. I was like, 20 minutes long. And I was like, I don't even know if I still have the sketchnote, but I remember the video. And I sketchnoted that and I thought, "Oh, wow."And then when I read my textbook, there were certain topics that I was really struggling with. So, I decided, I'm going to sketch note this, but I set myself boundaries 'cause I used to write pages and pages of notes and never read it, even though I used different colored pens, et cetera. I thought, okay, I'm gonna limit myself to an A4 sheet of paper per topic.I went to the glossary in the—when you talk about creating an icon library, I thought, okay, so for each topic, I'll look at the glossary and write down what those keywords are to create my icon library. And then I'll read a chapter and then I will sketch note it and that's it.I did that for each of the chapters, particularly the ones I was struggling with. Then I used those notes to write my assignments. I have to say, before I started doing that, I just thought, why am I not remembering this information? Why I'm not understanding this?But then when I sketchnoted it, I was so encouraged because I realized I do know it, I do understand it, and I can do it. So, it really helped me with my confidence. And I did the work.I have to say I was really behind with my work, but I did it. I got it done, I got my assignments in on time. And I remember thinking, you know, I actually do love learning, but that experience was so negative for me that I thought, now I kind of understand how some of our students feel when they can't understand a piece of work because it does knock your confidence, it does make you feel stressed, it does make you feel isolated.For me, I was too embarrassed to tell anyone because that was actually my job was to help other people. And I couldn't help myself. When I got to the end of the course, what I couldn't understand was I—the course was not finished, but I wanted to keep learning 'cause it was just so addictive. Like to do the sketch notes it was such a fun activity to do.It was right at the summertime, so I kept learning it. I kept researching effective ways to learn and reading different books that inspired me. One of them was "Moonwalking with Einstein" by Josh Foer, I think is how you pronounce his name. He talks about using the memory palace as a way to remember information.I was just fascinated. I was hooked. And then I thought, "Oh my goodness, I wouldn't mind doing another course." From not wanting to do the course that I did, I wanted to keep learning. Well, I started looking for opportunities. Any opportunity to sketchnote.At that point, I hadn't shared my work with anyone. It was just for myself. Towards the end of 2021—no, end of 2020, 2021, my New Year's resolution, I kept it pretty open and creative, was to invest in myself. That would primarily be learning a new skill and also, trying things that I probably wouldn't normally try 'cause I would be afraid to do it.One of them was actually public speaking. You know, do a workshop for my colleagues because I am a shy person. I'm an introvert, and the idea of speaking in front of any group of people scares me. So, that January, like that whole year actually, I started thinking, what if, what if? And starting to do different things, and showing my work.In terms of the sketch notes, I didn't actually use it at work initially. I tried to fight the urge to sketchnote. I really wanted to do it, but I was kind of worried what people would think.My background is art, actually, it's fashion design. Everyone knows that I love to draw, but I thought that if I drew at work, maybe people would think that I wasn't taking my job seriously. Or like, "Why is she doodling? Why are you doing that?"One time in a class I was supporting a group of students and nearly all of the students in the class had a learning need. I used to find it really difficult to support the group 'cause the needs vary a lot. I remember observing one student in particular who really struggled to understand what he needed to do.In the class, the students would rely on me to take notes. And I remember thinking, well, my handwriting's not great, and if they don't understand the notes, probably my handwriting. But I kind of thought I'd like the students to read the notes, use them, understand them, and become more independent.I thought if I sketch note this—it was partly 'cause I was struggling to write down the traditional way, but I thought if I sketch note this, maybe they'll be so curious, they'll want to read it. I really wanted them to want to read it and use it.I started to do it. And I shared that with the teacher because I was supporting the students in the class, I wasn't the teacher. I shared what I wanted to do with the teacher. I told them that this is a new thing that I'm learning. I would like to get better at it. Perhaps could I do it in this class? Because I feel that the more I do it, the better I get. And if I do every single day, I'm definitely gonna improve.He was really supportive and I started to use it. At first, the students didn't really know what to make of it. They're like, "Mawusi, you are drawing? Oh, my goodness. Like, what is this? This is serious."I thought, oh dear, I have to tell them this is really important. You're supposed to use this. So, I give them a little speech. I said, you know, "Yes, it took a lot of effort, but I'm doing this because I want you to do well. I really want you to enjoy your learning, but I want you to use the notes, understand it, use it, but not to rely on me to learn that you can do these things for yourself as well."And so, I did it. Then the next day I was like, oh, I might have to reinforce that. I started to do my little speech, and they said, "Mawusi, we know you told us yesterday." I never mentioned it again. And so, I kept doing it.It was during the pandemic, so we were in our bubbles. That meant a unique opportunity. I got to stay with my students in the various classes that they were in. And I continued to sketch note in each of those classes. They got used to it.I didn't have to say anything.What happened was the teacher would deliver the lesson and I would have a clipboard sketch note the lesson, scan it, and share. We use Microsoft Teams. I would share it on Teams and all the students would have access to those notes.One of the unexpected dividends, I guess, of doing that was it meant that students who have learning needs could use it, but everybody could use it. Whether they have a learning need or not. And if someone misses a lesson, they have those notes to help them to catch up.It was tiring, and a part of me wondered why I even started because I didn't actually have an end plan for when I would stop doing this. So, I would ask the teacher, "Would you like me to stop?" I kind of secretly hoping he would say, "It's okay, Mawusi. You can stop." And he is like, "No, keep going. It's all right. Keep going. And I said, "But they're not using it". He's like, "They're using it. Walk around the class."The first student who we went to, I hadn't said anything and within minutes of me sharing it on Teams, he had printed the notes and he was looking at it. I should actually clarify that this was a media lesson and so they work on computers. He was referring to the notes and doing his work.I hadn't had to say anything to any of the students. They knew the pattern, this is what happens in class. Then he said, "Okay, keep walking around." I noticed that they were all using it, but in their own way, whether it could be on the screen or on their phone or if they printed it out, but they were just doing their work.And I was like, "Oh my goodness, it actually works." I was so happy I just wanted to do a happy dance, but obviously, I was working so I didn't. But yeah, so that's kind of how it started in the classroom.I made some revision notes because I wanted to encourage my students to revise 'cause not a lot of them would revise for their exams. The exciting thing about the sketch notes was that I later found that they were being shared by other tutors. It gave an opportunity for me to talk about my work.And actually, one of the key things was, although I made the sketch notes for the students, I didn't really know what I was doing. It was an experiment. And I asked them for feedback. And the feedback from the students was invaluable because that's how I improved it.For example, one of the parameters that I set for myself, which was limit the information to one page, didn't necessarily work for the students because it was actually too much information on one page.MR: Really?MA: Yeah. So, with each sketch note I made, I would make changes because they were giving me constant feedback. And then tutors gave me valuable feedback. For example, because my handwriting's terrible, I used to write in capitals because that's my way of writing neatly.One of the dyslexia specialist tutors said, "Well, actually that's really hard for someone to read if they have dyslexia, 'cause it's the shape of the letters that helps them to differentiate the words."Well, had to kind of retrain my brain to write in lowercase as well. It was just really useful to share the sketch notes as a way to improve, but also yeah, to share my skills.But Mike, I have to say you did influence me a lot in that because I attended the sketchnote workshop, or no, the sketchnote camp that was held online in 2021. And your keynote speech was about care and service and community.And how we as sketchnoters 'cause we are a global community as Sketchnoters can do good to our organizations that we work for our communities. We are in a very specific situation in the pandemic and it's affecting all of us in different ways. How can we use those skills to benefit others?That was what encouraged me actually because up to that point, I was doing it for myself, but then I thought, well actually there is a community of people who are doing this and I'm going do it in my workplace and I'm gonna share it.I'm not online, but I'm gonna share it in the space where I work. And I hope that it'll benefit other people. But really the driving force for me to share sketchnotes is that I was really desperate when I find it. And I was thinking somebody else might be in a similar situation and I hope it helps them.MR: It's really funny because that's my origin story. I was desperate as well. The way I was taking notes was just so frustrating and I'd forced myself like you to l to limit myself to a small notebook and switched from pencil to pen.The experiment that I first did really set me on the path to say, "Hey, this is working for me. I really enjoy this. I can't wait for the next workshop or event that I can go try this and experiment with. "So very much similar in that way. And hoping, you know, if this is working for me, there has to be somebody else who this will help. And then also, you know, sharing it with other people and getting feedback was a similar experience.It sounds like yours was even more, I guess, accelerated because you didn't have a lot of time, you just had to keep working and then taking feedback live and then incorporating it as you worked, which is probably good for you.You almost got into a mode, it seemed to me like where you were just doing the work, you're getting feedback, you're making modifications, and next thing you know, you're writing upper and lower case, you're modifying the structure and you're serving.It seems to me like you're someone who, if you're serving someone else, you're willing to kind of jump through hoops and go over fire and do these things because you know it's gonna help your students.In some ways, doing it for yourself, you sort of run into a point where like, "Uh, I don't feel like doing it anymore. Who's there to hold you accountable?" But you found an accountability group, which were your students who actually gave you the feedback and held you accountable and pushed you further to really accelerate your learning. And also, it ultimately benefited them, right? Because your sketchnotes started to align for what their needs were. Is that a fair way to think of that?MA: I would think so. I think the desperation I felt at the beginning was something for a long time that I actually tried to forget. And I remember telling my boss this, and she said something to me, which was quite profound. She said you know, "It is giving you more empathy for your students." And that is exactly it.I've always loved learning, but I've never struggled to the extent that I struggle that time. But I'm really glad for that experience, well, because I share that with the students. I tell them I struggle.But when you struggle, you always have a choice. You know, you can find another way. You don't need to give up. It's kind of like if you see it as an opportunity to do it a different way, basically that is what I learned. And that is one of the reasons why I am so passionate about this because I'm so lucky I stumbled across it.It was actually when I read a book about the memory palace, it was a free book on Apple Books. And then I found another free book about sketch notes. It was basically a compilation created by educators and they were talking about the benefits of sketch notes and they shared examples of theirs.And that's where I heard about your mini-workshop, which was on YouTube. So, I watched the video and then I was like, that is actually why I bought the book. 'Cause I was like, "I need to do this. This is it."I have to say thank you to those people for putting the art there because I would never have found it. One of the other reasons why I was confident that it would work with my students was your episode where you interviewed Laura Kazan, I think you pronounce her name.MR: Yes, yes, yes.MA: That episode actually—I have listened to every episode of your podcast. I'll just tell you that, and the reason being, I wanted to learn as much as possible from your interviews with different people of and how they've used it. But her interview really stood out for me because I thought, "Those are my students. Those are my students, and I think they will benefit from this."One of the things she said at the end of her interview was, in her three tips, she said, "Is your school special education department willing to support sketchnoting."I thought as a department that I worked for in my college. So that is what give me the confidence to share it with my team because, you know, it made such a difference to her son, and I thought, well, it might just help our students as well.So, your podcast helped me a lot because there was something that I was doing by myself, but in listening to your interviews with other podcasters or other sketchnoters, I kind of felt like I wasn't by myself in doing this. I was so encouraged. So, thank you.MR: Oh, that's really great to hear. You know often doing podcasts can be a lonely business because you do these interviews and of course, they're enjoyable in the moment and you publish and there's often not a ton of feedback that I receive back from the episodes, but I keep doing them because I enjoy it.I think that's the driving force. And I know that there are people, and I know that because I hear like you and others who will say, yeah, I've listened to all the episodes. I can't wait for another one to come out. So, I know there are fans out there, which is, you know, really exciting and helpful, and especially when I hear it in the context of your—I would call your experience a journey, right.You sort of definitely went on this journey where you kept on discovering something else and that led you to something else and that led you to something else. And you continued to follow the thread all the way to kind of where you're at now, which is really cool because I think so many, you know, with the internet especially stumbling onto something can lead to something else if you allow it to if you're curious and you follow that path.I think that's a good reminder for us that sometimes it's just being open to something and taking it one step further might lead to something that you could never have expected. Your story, your origin story here sounds exactly like that. That string, you just kept pulling the string and now here you are.MA: Yeah. Actually, one of the reasons why I'm excited is for quite a few years, I have been looking for a passion. You know, my background is fashion design, I like to sew, and I love education, but I was looking for something that I would be really passionate about. And this is definitely it. So yeah, I love it.MR: Wow. Well, I love your origin story. Thank you for sharing all the detail and giving us insights and where those pivot points were. I would love to hear is there a project of any kind may be that you're beginning that you're excited about that you'd love to share with us.MA: I guess I would say is I've had more opportunities to share sketch notes with my colleagues and I've been in training staff on how to sketchnote. For me, someone who I said is kind of an introvert. I find it really hard to talk to people. This is like a watershed moment.I have to say the sharing of sketch notes has just helped me develop more confidence in myself. So yeah, that's something. And this year, in particular, the college that I work for the focus is on inclusion.So, as I started to share my sketch notes, last year we had a guest speaker and he's an inclusion expert. And I decided long before the event, I am definitely gonna sketch note this. Only I didn't wanna tell anyone because I didn't wanna put pressure in myself.So, I sat at the back and I made some sketchnotes, worked on it over the summer, and then my goal was I'm going to share it with my colleagues because I wanna tell more people, but I wanted to sketchnote something that we had all attended so that it would be more meaningful.And the exciting thing is this has led to more opportunities to sketchnote for different departments. I've done collaborations with colleagues who are specialists in different fields, and we've combined our skills to train other staff.So, yeah, it's such a fun thing to do, but it's a really useful way to communicate things that might be quite difficult to communicate in words basically. It's very engaging and I'm excited that I did it and that it's being shared.MR: That's really great. I love your approach of doing something that would be meaningful to the entire group so they could benefit from it. That's a really great way of layering two things you're passionate about sketchnoting and also about this opportunity to learn. And then making that as a service to your colleagues, right?Because I'm sure that they're seeing how this is having an impact on students and how it's helping them to learn and retain. So, they definitely see the benefit, and now that's now opened up even the opportunity to teach them these concepts so they could start to think like, "Well, how could I use it in my curriculum for my students in an interesting way." Which is you're just becoming this real true advocate inside your college. Which is pretty cool.MA: I think also part of it was in terms of—I would say when someone's sketchnoting, I know this is actually a tip, but I'll just say it in advance, is feeding to your mind because when I was doing this quietly, I was reading a lot of books about innovation and sketch notes and various things.There was a book called—oh, have I written it on somewhere? I have it here. The book is called "Creative Confidence: Unleash the Creative Potential Within All of Us" by Tom Kelly and David Kelly. That book was pivotal for me as well, because they have an organization called, IDEO. I don't know if you've heard of it before.MR: Yes.MA: IDEO is responsible for promoting innovation, I guess is how to put it, by taking a multidisciplinary approach. That is what has encouraged me to collaborate with my colleagues because when we think about organizations and how we can benefit our organizations when we work together and share our different skills, we bring different perspectives as well, that is powerful.So that is one of the reasons why I'm sharing it with my colleagues because although sketchnoting is my skill, I'm learning so much from them and I hope they're learning from me as well.MR: I'm guessing, just judging by the little bit that I feel here, they're probably learning a lot from you. Which is great. I think that's so admirable for you to not keep it to yourself, but spread it further and offer it to your colleagues, which is great to hear. Well, let's shift…MA: I was gonna attribute that to you too because you have created a community of sharing. That is, for me, one of the things that drew me to sketch notes because it's such a friendly environment and people are very encouraging of one another.MR: Definitely, something that I saw in other communities that I was involved with. In the web design community, there was a very welcoming and open environment there, and I just wanted to model that.It seems to me like, because we modeled that early, that it drew other like-minded people, and we seemed to have built a community that's sort of sharing and open and helping each other all the way down. So, when new people come, the culture is just, hey, this is a space where we share and we teach each other and we help each other.I always say, there's so much opportunity to share this idea. There's no reason why we should be thinking that we're fighting over table scraps when there's so much opportunity for everyone to have a place at the table and do work and have an impact. There's just so much work to do.I'm glad that you've sensed that. It's definitely something intentional and I hope that it just continues throughout the community. So that's really great to hear. Thank you.MA: Thank You.MR: Yeah. Well, we all do it together, so that's great to hear. At this point, I would love to shift to something more practical, I guess. Not that the other stuff isn't practical, but the people on the podcast love hearing about tools and how people use their tools.So, let's shift into the tool discussion and let's shift in specifically to analog tools and then follow up if you use digital tools with what digital tools you use.MA: Okay. I would say use what you have, start with what you have. For example, well, I used to use A-4 sheets of paper because I sometimes destroy my work if it's not very good. Yeah, I have a habit of that. But I started with A4 sheets of paper and a pen although it was a refillable pen—you know the FriXion refillable black pen?MR: Mm-hmm.MA: Which it's kind of the best of both worlds. I always think of a pen as the tool that makes me fearless and the pencil that makes me cautious. But the FriXion pen is a pen, but I can rub it out. I'm kind of contradicting myself anyway.I started it with that one because if I'm in the class and I'm sketchnoting, sometimes I make spelling errors and that helps me to fix it really quickly. But lately, actually, I haven't used that as much, so maybe my confidence has grown. I like to use Muji. Have you heard of Muji pens?MR: Yes. Of course. It's a famous Japanese store, which I've been to the one in New York City, but I know it's worldwide as well.MA: I love Muji. The Knot 0.38 and the Knot 0.5, my absolute favorites. One of my colleagues introduced me to the Paper Mate InkJoy Gel Pen.MR: Oh, yes.MA: You've heard that one.MR: Those are good as well. Yeah.MA: That one's amazing. And actually, just recently stumbled across—I didn't realize that you could get gray highlighter pens, so I used the Stabilo Boss highlighter in Gray. Well, I was using the Tombow markers, but they're quite expensive. So, I like to buy a box of the Stabilo Boss. They're really good.But paper-wise, I highly recommend dot grid paper because it makes my work look neat. Some people say, "Oh, Mawusi, how do you do such straight lines? Or, you know, that's so neat." I'm like, "If you zoom in, you will see the dots." It really helps a lot.In the classroom, I use a clipboard, which is quite handy. But also, if I'm doing a finished sketch note by hand, I use a transparent clipboard. That's a little tip. If you use a transparent clipboard and then you use one of the, you know the flat LED light boxes, you can trace your work. So, it's just really handy.MR: Interesting. So, you have a light source behind this clear clipboard, and then you can lay the rough sketch underneath and then do your finished on top of it. Am I understanding that right?MA: Yeah. And those things are very cheap to buy, but perfect for what I need. The dot grid paper that I absolutely love is Clairefontine paper. It just feels really, really nice.MR: It works well with those pens that you've mentioned. A question, for those who are dot grid connoisseurs, I know that there's different levels of dot grid. Like I know some have very light gray dots and some are darker.Where is the Clairefontaine fall on that spectrum? Is it relatively light dots so that it's, you know, kind of goes invisible at some point? Or are they a little bit darker?MA: I think it's kind of light because people don't really notice it. I kind of feel like I'm cheating 'cause I'm thinking, they think I'm really neat, but I'm not.MR: Well, I suppose if you're using the Stabilo Boss gray marker, I guess you could adjust your exposure, say in Photoshop or whatever your photo tool is, and increase the contrast. Those dots would probably drop away and you wouldn't even see them, right? So, that's probably another option as well.MA: Oh, actually another tip. I find when I was sketchnoting in the classroom, I was taking too long with preparing the page in advance. What I did was I had a template, the original was dot grid paper. And because I'm in the classroom, I just photocopied that page. And so, the dot grid was even less noticeable so when I scanned it, nobody knew. So, yeah.MR: Interesting.MA: That's another little tip.MR: Cool. That's pretty cool. We're getting free tips here. This is pretty great. Now, does the Clairefontine paper come in like a block, and then you tear off sheets as needed? Or is it bound in some way? How is that paper? How do you work with the paper?MA: It's in a block and then you tear it off. They say it comes in A4 and A5. I think that's the European size. But when you tear it off, it's slightly smaller.MR: Oh, I see. Because there's perforations on the edge probably.MA: Yeah. But I think they provide the paper for Rodeo Notebooks. Is it Rodeo?MR: Yes. Yes, exactly.MA: Yeah, I think they have that same paper, but basically, I like loose sheets because I can then arrange it in whichever way I want. And it's much easier to scan your work if it's not in a notebook.MR: Good point. If I'm not mistaken, I think Clairefontine and Rhoda are both French companies, so it would make sense that they would collaborate in some way. Maybe they're owned by the same parent company for all I know. I don't know. But I think Rhoda Notebooks work in a similar way where there's a—and maybe they calculate this, right.So actually, the part you tear off is maybe A4 and they add a little bit. So, when the perforation tears away and what's left in the notebook is a little bit taller than A4. You know what I mean? Like, when you tear out the sheet, it's exactly A4. I don't know if that's true, but I've used Rodeo paper—MA: No, it's smaller.MR: Is it? Okay. So, it is—MA: It's annoying that it's smaller, but I still like the paper. It's still like the paper, but it's smaller.MR: Got it. Okay. Good to know. Good to know for those who find that important, little tip again there. What about digital? Do you have digital tools that you use? Are you using an iPad or some other tool like that?MA: I've started using the iPad Pro with the Apple Pencil. The first sketch note I did with that was one of the guest speaker because I just wanted to take the sketch notes to a more, in my view, professional level.Because when I was having to trace it for a finished sketch note, I wanted to kind of take away some of those steps and do more of a rough sketch and then do the illustration. I use Concepts. Oh, my goodness, Concepts is so good.MR: It's a great tool. Yeah.MA: And Procreate, obviously. Yeah. Everyone uses it. I have to admit, I don't know how to use both of them really, really well, but I use them enough to get the finish that I would like. That's something to explore later. I have to admit, I prefer working on paper. I just love the feel of paper. That's my go-to.MR: Yeah. I think many sketchnoters will use a paper-like, or some of other similar matte screen protector, which sort of approximates the feel of paper. I mean, it's not exactly. I think paper-like, probably achieves it the best with the best clarity, but there are other screen protectors that also do the same. Which helps, but still, it's not quite ink on paper, it's closer.MA: It's good. But I have to say by going on the iPad, it makes me more of a perfectionist and I don't like that because at least when I sketchnote in the classroom, it feels hot off the press and I haven't had a chance to make it beautiful because my objective is to make meaningful notes that are useful. So, I think when I do my digital sketchnotes, I'm thinking too much about aesthetics. I'm trying to break away from doing that 'cause it's very tempting.MR: Yeah. It's almost as though paper and pen puts emphasis on the process. Because you have less control. Whereas when you go to an iPad or something, you end up inadvertently being maybe even more focused, a little bit more focused on the output. Because you have the ability to undo or to redo things or to change things, or to move things.Heedlessly, if you allowed yourself to, and there's something about the paper that, you know, maybe the friction of the paper in the sense of if you do it hot off the press, right. And even if you redid it, let's say you wanted to do it a little nicer, like if there's some friction there, right?You've gotta redraw all this stuff on another sheet on your clear clipboard with the light coming from behind and it's a little bit of friction. You wouldn't wanna do it a third time, right? So, you would probably stop at that point. Where with the iPad, it's very easy to just keep noodling and noodling and noodling and never finish. So, I could see the definite different feel for them.And, you know, I always think of the two, sort of provide different purposes. So, I often use the iPad for illustrations where, you know, it's gonna be printed or there is some final output that's important. But I found this recently on a project, just to point out this.I was doing the iPad with—I use paper and I was doing sketches and I had sort of built a little template for myself for this illustration project. And I found myself getting really rigid and I was resisting drawing and I was taking longer on each piece.And I got to the point where I said, wait a minute, I need to just change this up. So, I got the manuscript for the book project that I'm working on, and I just got my little pen and all I could fit were in the margins, little thumbnails along the edge of where the text was. So, it was very limited space.I just started doing these little thumbnails and started drawing concept. And it was amazing how much it freed me up to just think, "Oh, a little thumbnail, big deal. You know, that one didn't work. Draw another one. Oh, that didn't work. Draw another one. Boy like that. What if I do another one?"Next thing you know, every one of these ideas I was having to illustrate for you know, I was doing three or four different concepts or little variations, right? Suddenly the floodgates opened, and I was just like moving through the manuscript like crazy. And all it was, was this shift from, you know, sort of the rigidity or the perfectionism or something on the iPad back to paper and a pen with limited space.Again, coming back to limitations and embracing them just keeps proving itself as a really effective tool for, at least for me, freeing my mind to kind of focus on the content and really get into the process and stop worrying so much about the output. So, I definitely can resonate with what you're saying here.MA: I agree. I also would say that I find that as I've—I hope I go back to how I was before. When I started Sketchnoting and I didn't have anything to go by, any previous sketch notes, basically all I thought was, I'm just gonna do it. I'm just gonna do it.Now that I've been doing it, I'm starting to be more cautious. 'Cause I'm like, what's happening? Because I'm almost scared to do it because I feel that people expect it to be good. What if it's not good? So, I just need to just do it.MR: I think it would be interesting for you to actually ask someone to do some, you know, user-testing and ask them what do you expect out of it. And you probably would find that they would think like, whatever you're doing is amazing.They wouldn't care either way. They just love that you are thinking this way if you get to the core of it. I mean, the beauty of it is we often sort of find ourselves, like the story I told you about the illustration, I sort of boxed myself into this situation.It finally dawned on me like, “Wait a minute, I'm in charge of this project. Why am I feeling as though I have to follow some rigid template that I made? Like, I can change anytime I want to. I'm just going to grab the manuscript and a pen and forget the iPad. I'm not touching the iPad.” We have the opportunity to have you know, the ability to make those changes and to try and experiment and sort of work our way back.So that's really good news that if you ever find yourself bound and/or you've painted yourself in a corner, well, you know, your shoes might get some paint on them, but you can walk out of the corner and just start over again.That's always good news is you have the opportunity to shake it up and try some new things or go back to the thing that worked for you and start again and see, what did I learn from the other one and how can I apply this now knowing it, which is sounds like a little bit of where you're at as well.MA: Yeah. I wanna say one of my daily practices for sketch notes is that I sketch note sermons online. There's a church that does a daily devotional which is like 15 minutes long. I don't do it first thing in the morning, 'cause I'm not a morning person. I do it later on in the evening.I find that those sketch notes are more real because nobody sees them except me. Actually, I've moved from single sheets of paper to a notebook for that. So, I have a whole notebook full of them. What I like about them is they're just themselves. I have not tried to make anything beautiful. I just quickly got that information done. So yeah, even if you go digital, keep drawing by hand.MR: Maybe that's your first tip since we're now sort of heading into the tips department.MA: Oh yeah.MR: And I guess I should frame it. I always frame this. Probably regular listeners like you will have heard this a million times, but, you know, give us three tips that you would say to someone who feels stuck. Someone who feels they're on a plateau. Just these little inspirations to kind of break out of maybe a rut. And I think if you wanna go further in this, what you've talked about, you know, go back to drawing by hand. This could be your first tip, I think.MA: Okay. I have many tips, and it's hard to choose one to three, so might give a few more. Is that all right?MR: That's fine. Yeah, please.MA: Okay. First, one is don't overthink it. Just do it. Just do it. I tried to talk myself out of it when I was doing it at work, but I have to say when I did it, what a sigh of relief. I really enjoyed myself. Even though I was getting paid for it. I was like, "Wow, this is fun." So just do it. That's the first tip.If you can't do something, don't worry. Find another way. Be open to trying something different. And if you're struggling with your sketch note, listen to the podcast. Listen to the different interviews with different sketchnoters, find out how they're using it, and especially make note of their tips. What are they doing that? And just try it.Next one is share your work. I am not online at present, but I will be. So, share it at work. Share it with friends or even just sketch note in a diary or something. But yeah, share it with other people. Experiment especially with the layout of the sketch note. Find what works for you. Actually, this is way more than three. I'm gonna give you a few more.MR: Okay. Go for it.MA: Collaborate with your colleagues. That is golden. Collaborate with your colleagues 'cause then you get to make really meaningful connections with colleagues. I know working with people that I wouldn't have an opportunity to work with or our path and way not have crossed, but sketch notes has kind of opened the door for that. So, collaborate.Ask for feedback. Another golden one. Because that is how you're going to improve. If I had sketchnoted and sketchnoted and sketchnoted and nobody saw it, how could I improve? I might have improved, but maybe a lot slower. So definitely ask for feedback.Tell someone your goal. If this is something that you wanna start doing, share that with someone. Because what really helped me, what was so pivotal, was that teacher. He encouraged me because, you know, my very first sketch note, I have it in the classroom that I did it, it's not wonderful.I thought he was gonna laugh, but he just encouraged me. And that kind of helped me to be accountable because I've told people, this is something that I wanna do. So be intentional and tell people about it. If it's a New Year's resolution say, you're more likely to keep it if you've told people you're gonna do it.I'll give you a bonus tip. Don't give up. Be patient. Be patient because when you sketch note, say for example at work, people may not understand what you're doing at first, they might think it's a bit strange, they might wonder why you're doing it, they might actually tell you to stop doing it. Nobody told me to stop doing it. But just say somebody might, don't let that determine whether you do it or not. Keep going. Do not get discouraged. Just do it.MR: Well, those are fantastic tips. I'm glad that you added some additional ones because it seems to me like this is a great series of tips that you've shared with us and directly from your own experience.I can tie them all back to the story you told of how you began sketchnoting at work and, you know, with your students in mind. And next thing you know, you're collaborating with colleagues and sharing information with them and having an influence, right?This one little experiment led to influencing your whole college, it seems like, and probably leading in that direction, which is pretty cool. So, thank you so much for the tips and offering them to us.MA: Thank you.MR: This is the part where we typically ask where we can find you. And as we chatted just before we began recording, you're in the middle of developing probably a website and working out social media stuff. So, if you don't have anything yet, that's okay. We will put that in the show notes if it's available when we come to this.Maybe in lieu of doing that since we'll just do that in the show notes. If you're listening, just peek in the show notes, and if Mawusi's got some information, we'll put it in there for you so you can find her.I just wanted to let you know that I'm so impressed with your story and how you've just moved yourself forward with a servant attitude serving your students and how this led you to where you're going and you continue to serve. I think you just a really great example of our community.You really represent our community, and I'm really proud to have you as a representative where you are and so encouraged by your story. Thank you so much for taking time and spending time to share it with us. And I'm so excited to hear how this will influence the next person who hears it and all the influences you're gonna have in the place where you are. So, thank you so much, Mawusi.MA: Can I say a big thank you to you?MR: Sure.MA: You have encouraged me so much. You didn't know that I was listening to all of your episodes. You didn't know that I attended your workshop online. When I went to the sketchnote camp that was online, you could only see my illustration. I wasn't visible. I did all those things quietly and, you and your community has encouraged me so much, even when I was doing this by myself. So, thank you so much.MR: Well, thank you.MA: I'm forever grateful.MR: Well, it's an honor. It's an honor to serve, so thank you. Sounds like we're in a good place and we continue to have our influence. Sometimes it doesn't seem like you are, but you are having an influence. So, keep going. Just as Mawusi said in her tips, keep going.Well, this has been so much fun. It's been so enjoyable to talk with you and hear your stories, and I'm just excited to see where this all goes for you and how you're gonna fit into our community. For everyone who's listening to the podcast, this wraps another episode of "Sketchnote Army Podcast”. Until the next episode, this is Mike and Mawusi signing off for today. Talk to you soon.

Staying grounded and present when everything is changingIn our first podcast episode, we cover the big question: How do I stay present and grounded while everything is changing? Geneva Robins and Melissa Adams answer this giant question and chat about their favourite topic, Reiki. What do you do when everything turns upside down? Reiki really helps us to feel supported through big changes. When we are full of worry or concern, Reiki helps to hold space for our highest good. The Reiki therapist holds a high-vibration space for you to join that energy that you want to stay in. Grounded and powerfulReiki is a practice Melissa can always return to; it has been life-changing and magical. For Geneva, Reiki is so transformational. It's a doorway to the Divine. As Reiki practitioners, we learn to tap into that energy and information. It creates a space where you can open up to your insight and wisdom.Daily practice for Melissa is all about grounding. Planting her feet on the earth and allowing that sturdy earth energy to move through is a tool she learned in Level I Reiki. Guided meditation is also a big part of Melissa's practice that helps her even on the hardest day. Her favourites include Sam Harris meditations, LunaHolistic meditations, and Insight Timer.Even for an experienced meditator, guided meditation can help settle things when you're in big emotions.Geneva's practice when things are really shaken up is to get help from others. Asking for help can be the world's hardest thing. She will book in for wellness sessions as soon as she spots that she's in a big moment. The power of having someone listen to your story without agenda is a huge gift.Getting outside in nature is the magic reset for Geneva and her family. Just breathing in the forest for even a moment is an anchor to the slow vibration of nature and helps to bring in that grounded feeling. It helps slow us down to a true state of rest.Mindful breathing and awareness of the body's sensations are also a big part of Geneva's self-care practice. Each feeling has a sensation in the body. Mindful breathing into the sensation and creating space around the feeling helps the feeling move and shift.Stay in your BubbleClearing the aura is also an important part of the practice as well. The aura is an electromagnetic field around your body and helps us feel cozy yet able to expand. You feel protected and clear and in your bubble. You are less affected by other people's energy and more centred in the calm space inside. Reiki really helps us stay in that clear and vibrant energy bubble.What is Reiki?A listener asked 'What is Reiki?' In a session, you can release blocks of energy or emotion. You and your practitioner set a positive intention about how you'll feel when that emotion is cleared. Usually, an intention is something like feeling balanced, centred, peaceful and joyful. And then you just lay down, relax and receive the energy. The session is a combination of gentle touch or hands just above the body.The Reiki practitioner is the conduit for the energy of your intention to flow through. Basically, Reiki is setting an intention of how you want to feel and then relaxing into the energy. It helps you to reset to the calm energy inside. Reiki creates the bridge between where you are and the frequency of your intention.Reiki is the energy and also the system of how the energy flows. As practitioners, we've learned a method to tap into the frequency of Reiki and transmit it to our clients. You can learn Reiki! We teach in-person and online in hybrid classes. We have classes starting every season.If you want to learn more about the power of spiritual wellbeing, a great book is 'How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence' by Michael Pollan. The book is about psychedelics, but Reiki is another way to tap into this transformational power too! "Microdosing on the Universe" is how Geneva thinks about Reiki. :)We'll have a new episode every month! Please subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Add your question to the comments below or record your question here: https://www.lunaholistic.com/podcast/ LunaHolistic Podcast TranscriptStaying Grounded And Present While Everything Is ChangingHosted by:             Geneva Robins – LunaHolistic Facilitated by:        Melissa AdamsPodcast Air Date:  October 15, 2022Episode: LHP010:05  Welcome – Introduction to this episodeGENEVA ROBINS: Welcome to the LunaHolistic podcast! I'm your host, Geneva Robins, and every month on this podcast, we'll talk about Reiki, as well as answering your questions on all things spiritual. We are gratefully located in Calgary in Treaty 7 territory. Thank you all, and welcome to the show!Welcome to the LunaHolistic podcast! My name is Geneva Robins, and I'm here with Melissa Adams today. On this podcast, we talk about Reiki and all things spiritual, our favourite topic. And we're so glad you're here! Welcome. Thank you for being here, Melissa. [laughs]MELISSA ADAMS: Thank you for having me!GR: Before we get rolling, especially because this is our first episode, I'd like to start with a moment of deep and true gratitude for the Indigenous peoples of the world, and in particular, the people where we live in Calgary, the Treaty 7 Nations: the Siksika, the Piikani, the Kainai, the Tsuut'ina, the Nakoda, and Métis Nations. Thank you and welcome. And maybe we'll start with just a collective breath of gratitude. So, everybody, wherever you are, maybe keep your eyes open, if you're driving! Just take a nice, deep breath, and notice the land that you are on right now. Notice the deep, deep roots of all of the plants around you, all of the animals and birds and insects that might be living on those plants, the air, the sky, the sun, the moon – just noticing all of nature. The water flowing, maybe in rivers or creeks or groundwater around you, maybe even the ocean, wherever that happens to be in relation to where you're sitting. Just notice it, all of that, and just sending a deep thanks for all of the gifts that we've been so graciously given, just by getting to be wherever you happen to be on the planet right now. Thank you. Ah, gotta love gratitude!MA: Yeah, it's nice!GR: Beautiful way to start, it's a beautiful way to start.MA: Absolutely.GR: Thank you so much for being here with me, Melissa.MA: Thank you for having me. GR: Melissa is a fellow practitioner at LunaHolistic where we do Reiki. Maybe we can start by talking about what Reiki is and maybe how you got into this crazy stuff. [laughs]MA: [laughs] Yeah, I'd love to.GR: Yeah, what does Reiki mean to you? 3:16  Reiki as a practice that has awakened my soulMA: Well, I think Reiki has just been, for me, like, a practice that I can always come back to. And it's something that has awakened me, awakened my soul, and it's been so life-changing. So, I first kind of experienced or learned and heard of Reiki when I still lived in Ontario and my massage therapist was attuned to Reiki, but I never went to see her for that, actually, although she was magical. Every time I went to see her, I would kind of open up to her and I would ask her questions. I would ask her questions about spirituality. Like, I was in my, getting into my later '20s when I started, kind of, asking these questions. So, I always just felt better – whenever I would see her, I always felt better afterwards, like the world was a little brighter after spending my hour with her. And then I went through some big changes and shifts in my life. And I actually saw another lady for a Reiki session, still living in Ontario, and it was like, I think my intention was to feel seen and to feel beautiful and sexy. And during that session, I ended up seeing some colours at the start, and like, just with my eyes closed, I experienced some colours, and then I fell asleep or whatever happens. You want to call it sleep, but maybe it's not quite sleep. It's like I went pretty deep. And then afterwards, I felt a little bit more relaxed. And like, I think it was a week or two later, I ended up driving to Calgary by myself and just kind of picking up and going on an adventure. Yeah, by the time I got out here, it had taken me some time because I was exploring, you know, taking my time. And then once I got to Calgary and started to settle in, I was still looking for my purpose. I didn't want to work somewhere that I hated. I wanted to do something that I loved. And I was really lost at this point. And I felt like there was something that had pulled me toward uprooting my life and moving to Calgary. So, I kind of, it wasn't an easy journey, for sure. And I was kind of feeling lost and sad, but I know I was searching. And I remember being in, like, a gem shop and seeing the LunaHolistic flyer, and it caught my eye, the colours, just something about it. And I ended up bringing it home and putting it on my dresser. And then, I don't know, like a month later or something like this, I was back in that same gem shop, looking at crystals and things, cards. And the flyer caught my eye again, and I had popped it in my purse. And when I brought it home, I had noticed that I had already brought that flyer home. And it just felt like I was seeing these signs all the time. And whenever something synchronistic happened like that, I would just follow it. And so, I called you …GR: [laughs]MA: ... because I was like maybe I just need to learn Reiki! And you answered and you were like, “Yeah, class starts, like, tomorrow, or in two days,” or something like that. And I was like, "Okay, well, here we go." So, that was kind of my journey of learning Reiki. And it was interesting, because I didn't even really know about the chakra system. Like, I was just noticing that life kind of seemed magical to me, like it was, I was finding that the things that used to make me happy, like going out partying, like just frivolous things, didn't work for me anymore. And I was looking for a deeper connection. GR: Mm-hmm.MA: And it kinda like, it was where I started my journey and taught me so much, so much about grounding, presence, releasing trauma from childhood and my past, that kind of felt stuck in my body.GR: Yeah.MA: And it's still a journey. GR: It is, and you never stop learning about Reiki. I love that.MA: No, you don't.7:44  Take heart! The Universe has your back!GR: I love all parts of that story, particularly if there any entrepreneurs out there, it's like, take heart, because when Melissa called me, I was like, desperately trying to find my Car2Go, sweating with my bag over my shoulder, going up and down the hill, trying to find this mystery car that would take me to my appointment. And really hoping beyond hope that, you know, this sort of, you know, I had just opened the LunaHolistic Centre, and just, like, "please make this work." Like, "I've put everything into this venture and I really want this to work!" And classes starting and I had a couple of students and I was like, "eeh?", and then Melissa called and it was just like, "See? The Universe has got your back." And I always think, like, what you're seeking is seeking you. It's just such a neat little side lesson in that. It's like, while you were searching for something that could help you, I was also searching for, like, "Am I on the right track here?" Like, "Am I doing the right thing?" And then you called, like, in a moment of, like, I was completely flustered and kind of put it together, and I'm like, "Yes, yes, of course you can start. [laughs] I have no means of taking your information. I don't even know where a pen is. Like, can you please text me and I will send you the information." [laughs]MA: [laughs]GR: You know? "I'll get you registered as soon as I can." So, yeah, so I just wanted to put a little call out there so if there are people who are listening who maybe are starting a Reiki practice or starting a holistic business or have got one going and you're just, it's your dream to do that, I just think there is this, like, Divine synchronicity that happens, that draws, sort of, the helpers to the ones who need the help. And then the cycle of helping, to me, is always that, once you've received the help, then you go on to help others with it, which is kind of the beautiful thing about Reiki is that it's a gift that's meant to be given away, so we teach other people to become, you know, Reiki Masters. We share our gifts, and to me, the ultimate is to help a person so well that they no longer need your help, but maybe they just come by because they like it, so … [laughs]  Thank you for sharing your story to get here.MA: Thank you.GR: I agree, Reiki is so transformational, and it just, it has so many lessons and gifts in it. It's like, to me, it's like a doorway to the Divine. It helps you open up to, sort of, the mystery and magic that's beyond the moment, you know, that runs deeper into the, you know, fabric of space and time. And we sort of tap into this timeless, Universal, life force energy, and as Reiki practitioners, we learn to channel that. And in that process, there's so many, there's so many lessons, there's so much information that's given, there's clarity, that sort of, to me, it sort of helps you connect to those, sort of, epiphany and eureka moments on a regular basis. So, instead of waiting around in the shower for your Divine stroke of insight, [laughs] you know, you can actually create the conditions where you can open up to, sort of, those magical ideas popping into your head, where you can connect things that, you know, where you struggle. For me, Reiki has been, yeah, life-changing. So yeah, amazing. MA: Yes. GR: Thank you.MA: You're welcome.11:41  Staying Grounded and present while everything is changingGR: I love talking about all of these things, and one of our, sort of, main topics for today is how, this big question which is probably on a lot of people's minds, with the amount of change that we've had to deal with in the planet over the past couple of years, and it just seems like a constant, neverending thing, sometimes. [laughs] You know, just when you think life has gotten steady and stable and predictable, something else happens, which just seems to be the times we're living in. You know, so sometimes it's just about leaning into it. But this idea of, like, how to stay grounded and present while everything is changing. And, Melissa, I'm curious how, like, what is part of your practice to help you? Like, what do you do when you feel flustered and confuzzled by life and everything seems like it's slipping sideways? [laughs] How do you avoid falling flat on your face and get rooted and grounded again? Like, what helps you hit the reset button?12:54  What is part of Melissa's practice to help her stay grounded while everything is changing?MA: Well, Reiki. I booked a session with you yesterday and that was amazing. It was like, well, just to kind of let everybody hear what my experience was, just yesterday, and then I'll give you, like, maybe a daily practice that I also do as well. But like, I am getting married, as you know, in literally a week and a day and there's a lot of moving parts around me. The mind can really get going about things, like just, you know, worry. And when I came and sat down with you yesterday for my Reiki session, I just kind of was like, I could see and feel myself just like going on – and this and this and this! And you as my Reiki Master Practitioner, were, you know, listening intently and holding space for me, and then, like, seeing my highest good and seeing me so happy on my wedding day, and you held that while I was like, "dit-dit-dit-dit" – like, going on about, you know, whatever. And you kind of, like, stayed in high vibration up here, and you allowed me to join you up there. And then during my session, it just, I just felt so loved and calm and empowered because you had helped me set my intention, and then it's like I became that intention. I became this grounded, happy, joyful, present master of myself. So, that was just so beautiful. That was a way to come back to, like, what's important and who I am and like, that I'm grounded and powerful. So, sometimes if the momentum's high, maybe it's like going and having a Reiki session with someone or, you know, finding someone in your team to help. But daily practice, I would say is always, like, grounding. I think that's one thing that I learned when I was learning Reiki, just Level I basics, of learning how to ground myself and really, like, planting my feet on the Earth, and just allowing that presence and that sturdy Earth energy to move through me. And just slowing down, you know, remembering to take a breath, and meditation, even guided, even 10 minutes. You know, even if it's so hard, I can't even get out of bed. Even if I can't, I'll lay there and listen to something. I love Sam Harris. I love the meditations on the LunaHolistic website, like Insight Timer, there are so many different guided meditations that can just bring us back to mindfulness. And I don't think that it matters how long, how many years someone's been a meditator for, or if you're just beginning. I think, like, a guided meditation when the mind is going bonkers, can just bring me back to my breath and presence and just hearing someone's steady voice is sometimes what I need early in the morning, especially right now with everything going on and all this change. GR: Mm-hmm.MA: How about you? Do you have a practice? GR: Yeah, I do. [laughs] I have many and multiple because I need all of the help I can get. Yeah, it's funny how quickly your mind can, like, just spin you right off centre. That's what I find, is like, left untended, my mind is a rascal and says mean things about me all of the time. [laughs] So, I have to really be gentle with all of that. So, yeah, I totally agree with you. 16:48  Ask for help when you need itLike, when things are really, really shaken up, I go and get help from others. Like, that is a big, a big piece of my practice is – asking for help can be, like, the world's hardest thing, especially when we've been trained to, you know, "pick yourself up and keep on going," and, you know, don't stumble or fall or let anybody see you stumble or fall and certainly don't ask for help when you're, like, flat on your face in the muck. So, a big part from my healing journey has been to ask for help. So, I book myself in for sessions, I make sure I go to my chiropractor, because sometimes it's just as simple as that, of just like, are you in alignment? [laughs] You know, like, and then just the power of having somebody just listen to your story is really amazing. Somebody who can listen without an agenda is a big gift. And then Reiki of course, on top of that, it's just like, so sweet. So, that's a big part of it. And then also, to getting out in nature has been a huge, huge thing for me. It works when nothing else works. So, you know, we're living in COVID times and I got COVID at the end of COVID. I got it and it sucks and I'm recovering and I felt pretty pathetic and miserable, and felt extremely sorry for myself for quite a long time. And for me and our family, it's getting to the mountains. So, you know, we live not far from the mountains here. And that is always the reset, like, getting out of the city, getting to the mountains. And so I was like, I just told my husband, I'm like, "Let's just get in the car and go." Like, [laughs] you know, like, "Fill up the water bottles." And so we drove out and, you know, I wasn't up for much of a hike or anything, but just to breathe in the forest and be in the forest for just even a moment is always sort of this nourishing space. And that's definitely what I've heard from many people as well, like, just having a special tree in your neighbourhood park, or, you know, a little patch of grass in your backyard or something that anchors you into, I find, the vibration of nature is very slow. Our world is very fast. It's very flickering, we've got these little boxes that flicker lights in our eyes. And so, we kind of are in this like, we've got these, like, caveman brains that are, like, constantly flickering, like, "Danger, danger, danger, danger!" You know, and it just sort of bombards us. And then when we can, for me, in particular, when I can take myself out of that environment and put myself in a restful habitat, you know, one that is, got a deeper, longer, and wiser rhythm, then just sort of let nature balance me. So, just being out there shifts something in my brain. It shifts something, like it gets me back into my body. For me, when I'm ungrounded, I notice it when I am knocking things over, when I'm clumsier than usual, when I'm feeling really tired, and I don't know why, my mind is scattered, or I just sort of feel like I'm in a bit of a swirl, like in an eddy, you know, in a river where you're just sort of like circling the drain. [laughs]MA: Yeah, I know that feeling. GR: Yeah, so when, what I feel energetically is that, and I feel this for myself, but I also feel it when I do Reiki for other people, is that our energy sort of gets bunched up by our mind, and it's almost like our bodies are just like, carrying our minds around. We're not living in or inhabiting our body. And I think that's a really common thing – it's like, when we get into that fight or flight state, is that we get into this sort of heightened state, and everything kind of goes up. And for me, I kind of feel the energy with my hands. And it's sort of like, all the energy gets bunched up by my head. My shoulders shoot up by my ears, everything gets really tense, and I get stuck in my thoughts. And so, sometimes just taking, sort of, a deep, mindful breath back into the body and letting the energy balance. 21:16 The third technique is to create space around what you're feelingSo, one of the things that I like to do is this sort of technique about not trying to change anything, but just create space around what is. It's sort of a mindfulness technique, and so whatever feeling I'm feeling, instead of trying to change it – so maybe I'm feeling confused, or angry, or sad, or whatever distress I'm feeling – instead of trying to, like, take that and, like, throw it outside of me, you know, like getting rid of it, I just accept that it's there and sort of offer it kindness and gentleness.And then, sort of expand, breathe space around that feeling or thought and sensation. I get this image of, like, a horse in a little tiny, you know, fenced-in corral, you know, like, just barely big enough for its body, you know, where the edges of the fence are really close in and how unsettled that horse is. If that horse is our feeling, then it's almost like, what if you can breathe space around that feeling and expand the fence? Like creating space so that you can move that fence back so that horse or that feeling has room to move. And that animal has this space to settle, right? It's like, and it goes from under tension and pressure to just this spacious feeling. And this feeling of like, “expand that fence so far that in a thousand years that horse will never touch the edge of it.”And so, just keep expanding it and expanding it and expanding it and expanding it, and creating, almost like using your breath to create space around that feeling. So, it's like, “it's okay that it's there, it's okay, if you're angry, it's okay, if you're distraught. Of course you are, it's just a signal that something isn't right. It's a signal to try to make things right, but first you need to create space so that things can move, things can shift. And then what I find is that, without trying to change it, I get to a place where I can observe what's happening, and it can be there. So, if I'm feeling sad about something, I can let myself be sad. Sad won't hurt me. And sadness is temporary, and it's okay that it's there, you know, means I'm a kind, compassionate person that cares a lot about a lot of things, you know. So, the first step is like, kind of creating space and sort of this idea of, like, taking the pressure off. And then it's about bringing the energy down through my body. So, just even noticing, so like, even just touching your body, so like, bringing your hands, like, down your legs, like, smoothing the energy down your legs, you know, and then noticing the energy in the Earth below your feet. So, the Earth is a resource of vital energy. Everything we get, everything, every molecule comes from the Earth. Every molecule of our body is present because of the Earth below our feet. And that energy, I believe, is a conscious, nourishing, ancient source of wisdom and power and strength. It is the literal support under our feet, and we always have that. So, if you are under the powers of gravity, so even if you're on the space station, you're still under the force of gravity. And you're always held in that vibration of love and compassion and support. And so, just noticing that might be true, and that might exist underneath you. And then very, very gently – and in Reiki, we do everything very, very gently – there is this sort of saying of like, “no push, no pull” – you don't need to push the energy to go anywhere, we don't need to pull it to go any faster – but just letting the energy in your body and the energy in the Earth find its own natural balance.Almost like you, there's, like, two bubbles, and you're just letting, kind of through the process of diffusion, letting the energies find their own harmony. Some people like visualizing roots growing down into the Earth, sometimes you can feel, like, the energy is coming up to support you, or that you're sitting inside a mountain with the peak of the mountain, top of your head, and this sort of wide base of support all around you. And in that, sort of, space, then it creates this place where you can come back to yourself, and your energy becomes even through your body. So, when the energy is even through our body, that's usually when we feel good. And I think of it as like, we've got this sort of chakra system in our body, which are basically energy centres that are connected, basically where all of our major organs are, and when the energy is flowing evenly through all of our chakras, we feel good, we feel balanced, and we feel nourished. And so, it kind of gives you the space to take the pressure off and regroup and reconnect to something far deeper, far wiser, far more nourishing, far more ancient than whatever kind of state we've got ourselves in. So, it helps you put yourself in the long view, too. So, that, to me, is sort of how I regroup and ground, or sort of the process of like, coming back. And I might have to do it like 15,000 times in an hour to get myself there. [laughs] Sometimes you just gotta call it quits and have a good night's sleep and try again the next day, too! And then I love meditation as well. Grounding meditations and Reiki are a huge part of my practice, but yeah. Yeah, how does that all …MA: Thank you!GR: ... sit with you, sound for you? Did any ideas pop up when I share that?MA: Yeah, that was so well said and so nice to listen to, like, it was kind of like a reminder of all of the different tools that, you know, we can use to be mindful and, you know, to come back to the present moment. 27:58  GroundingI loved when you had said, like, you can picture yourself sitting in a mountain. Just like, how grounding.GR: Yeah.MA: You know, to imagine ... I did a cave tour once and it was amazing. Like, we literally sat in, like, the belly of the mountain and it was like, cold and dark and quiet and so peaceful. GR: Mm-hmm. Yeah.MA: Yeah.GR: Yeah, and to embody the presence of the mountain, you know. MA: Yeah.GR: Yeah, and that feeling of like, oh, it doesn't have to move anywhere, it doesn't have to do anything, it doesn't have to, it just gets to be. And so, I think when we get sort of really flustered, it's like we're trying to "do" instead of really, like, "being." And when we tap back into our being, that's, to me, where all of our knowledge, all of our wisdom resides, is in the deep, sort of, spirit inner being. And when we're in that place, stillness is there. But also, it helps us connect with the place where the answers are, too, and that sort of simplicity and coming, yeah, coming back to yourself, and sort of dropping out of the mind space, and sort of getting into your heart, into your spirit, into your soul, so that you can be in that sort of clear space.MA: You know, you had said something, too, about when you were speaking about the chakras, and you know, when our energy centres are balanced, then we tend to feel better, and that really is so true for me as well. Like, you know, if I'm stuck in my head, thinking, I'm not in my body. And I think, like, there's something to be said about, like, getting down into the body and grounding. Like, there are some days, especially, you know, when I was younger, where maybe I didn't even think once about grounding.I think it's a really powerful tool, especially if there are people out there that are working in the public, or working with other people, it's like staying grounded within ourselves and holding that energy and being in our own bubble. GR: Yeah.MA: You know? We talked about that, yeah.30:25  What is the aura and how does it work?GR: Yeah, I'm so glad you mentioned the bubble. Because yeah, the other part of our energetic protection is sort of this energy suit we carry around with us, which is the aura, which is sort of our electromagnetic field. And this is a real thing. [laughs] And it's also a real thing. I've got a science background, so I always answer the science sceptic first. [laughs] But we do, we've got these, like, nerves firing electrical signals through our bodies. And we've got, you know, our bloodstream circulating sort of, these, salt ions all around. And so, there is a genuine electrical field that just comes from the physical body, electromagnetic field. And we know this, it's neat that you're talking about caves, because cave creatures with no light and many, many animals like deep sea fishes and things, they find their prey because of, they have special sensors that can pick up on the electrical signals of the things that they're going to eat. So, they can basically feel the presence of life around them, and they can navigate to the ones that are tastiest. But we have this field around us and it's called the aura, and it's the sum of all of the energy in our body, and it is basically our protective, energetic field, and it keeps all of the energy in our body safe. So, it's sort of like the plastic coating on a wire. It keeps all of the energy inside your body inside, and it keeps everything else outside. And so, it helps you feel, like, when we're in our bubble, which is basically like, our personal space, you know, one layer of the aura sort of extends around us, kind of what we claim to be our personal space bubble. And in that field, when that energy is full and bright and clear, and we sort of tend to this energetic space beyond our physical body, it makes us feel cozy, yet able to expand. And so, it also helps us feel, sort of, more centred and protected and in our bubble, right? And what's beautiful is that when you're in your own bubble, not only do you feel cozier, but it's much easier to get into that space of "live and let live."You are less affected by other people's ups and downs, and more able to just compassionately witness wherever they are, without taking that energy on. And it's very, very important, especially for sensitive, energetic people, to tend to that energy space around your body. And I think it's even important to acknowledge that, you know, maybe we're more than just a physical hunk of meat shuffling about, carrying a computer on the top of our heads. We are so much more than the 3D-self. We are expanded and connected to all the energy in everything and everywhere. And the aura is like a little packet or a container that helps you feel safe and clear, and where your feelings in your energy can stay inside your borders, and other people's energy and feelings can stay over there. And it's not about being uncaring or unfeeling, but it's actually about helps you be in the most compassionate, centred, and clear space possible. And in future episodes, we'll get more into how, you know, highly sensitive people and empaths can kind of stay in their bubble, and we'll talk about, sort of, like, aura management and how you can keep your energy clear, even if you're being, sort of, bombarded by life and people with big energy! [laughs] 34:38  Kelsey's QuestionGR: We do have a question from Kelsey, and Kelsey's question is:34:45  What is Reiki? How does it work? Who can benefit? What are the ins and outs?KELSEY: Hello Geneva! I am wondering if you can tell me and us what Reiki really is? How does it work, who can benefit and all the ins and outs?GR: So, Melissa? What, what is Reiki, really? [laughs] How does it work?MA: [laughs] Good question!GR: Who can it benefit, and what are the ins and outs?35:12  Melissa's and my answerMA: For me, it's like, it was so life-changing because it's almost like, it is very intention-based. So, during a Reiki session, say I'm receiving Reiki, so I would book an appointment and go in for a 90-minute Reiki session. And usually, someone wants to release something – set an intention, like, whether it's mental, emotional, or physical. Sometimes we feel these things in our body. And usually, we're coming to get Reiki to feel better. So, for instance, I hold anxiety in my chest, so, in my solar plexus area. So, I might go in for a Reiki session to see if I can release that block that's in my chest. And maybe during a session, I'll speak to my practitioner about what's going on in my life, maybe spend 20, 25 minutes just talking about what's going on in my life, maybe why I have that feeling of anxiety, and then I'll set an intention of how it would feel if I could release that block. And so, usually, the intention is actually how I want to feel, and how it would feel if this pain was released from my body or from my being. So, a big one for me is, like, I want to feel peaceful and balanced and joyful. Like, that's how I want to live my life, that's how I want to show up for myself and the people around me, so that's usually my intention. A lot of the times, is to feel balanced, centred, at peace, and so that will be my intention. And then, as I'm receiving, who the practitioner is, whether I'm the practitioner or someone's facilitating a session for me, the practitioner is the conduit for the energy of my intention to flow through. So, that peaceful, joyful, beautiful energy is being, surrounding me, by the practitioner. So, the practitioner might place their hands on my heart, on my head. There are different positions. Sometimes they can stay completely in my aura, but then I just lay down and receive. So, it's kind of like, when someone's coming to receive Reiki, it's setting an intention of how you want to feel, and then just laying there and receiving it – surrendering, and just allowing someone to help. And I've noticed for myself, it just makes me feel like myself again. I almost, like, come back to who I am when all the other shit in my mind, you know, is kind of released. When I'm letting go of all that stuff, they tell me I'm not good enough, or whatever, it's like I come back to this, like, grounded, peaceful, awesome, bright, shiny self that I am naturally just because.GR: Mm-hmm, yeah, yeah, I agree. I agree. It helps reset to “the spirit inside.” To me, it's like letting the energy inside have more room to “be,” you know. From a practitioner point-of-view, I always think, like, that intention energy, it's in the "everything." It's in that universal life force energy, it's everywhere around us, but it's also inside each and every one of us. So, when, if we want more peace or hope or joy, that energy or that frequency is already inside, and as a practitioner, it's like Reiki creates the bridge so that you can kind of fill up, but also sort of nurture and nourish that energy inside you, so.MA: Yeah, it's like connecting to the higher self, in a sense.GR: Yeah, yeah.MA: In the physical. GR: Yeah.39:27  Thank you KelseyGR: I thank you for your answer to that question, and thank you, Kelsey, for that question. 39:32  Learn ReikiGR: We'll be talking a lot about how Reiki works, and if you're curious, please check out Lunaholistic.com because we have loads of information there, and you can learn Reiki which is really, really cool. So, as practitioners, we learn how to basically connect to the flow of energy that's in all things. And it's a meditation technique, so when we talk about Reiki, we're talking about the energy; we're also talking about the system, and the system is something that anybody can learn. I learned it, Melissa learned it, everyone who has a desire to connect to something deeper can learn Reiki. We teach both in Calgary and online, so we do hybrid classes, so you can learn anywhere around the world and we can support you with that. And who can benefit from Reiki? So, if you want to receive your intention, which Melissa had sort of talked about, if you want to get that energy to connect to something greater, something more, all you have to do is be willing to receive the energy of that intention, and be a little bit open-minded about ‘maybe this could work for you!' If you're a real sceptic, I suggest starting with a really cool emerging-science book called How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan, which is actually about psychedelics. It seems a little weird to be talking about psychedelics on a podcast about Reiki, but when I read that book, I was like, "Ooh, this is like Reiki but without the mushrooms." [laughs] So, what Reiki does is it can help you connect to a spiritual sense of wellbeing. And even if you don't have any sort of spiritual faith or background, it doesn't matter because Reiki is, comes from the place that's connects and is universal to all. So, we'll be talking a lot about that, but that is a really, so, mushrooms are the gateway drug to Reiki. [laughs]But what I love about Reiki is that it's not chemically-mediated. So, you know, once the chemical's gone from your system, the trip is over, whereas Reiki can keep on going – sort of microdosing on the Universe! So, if you're interested in any of that, that's a really fascinating book. And if you are not interested in taking any psychedelics, great! You can try Reiki and see if it gives you the same trauma-relief lifting benefits. There's pretty much no side effects. It's a lot like a facilitated meditation. So, we help you, as practitioners, we hold that intention for you, and we hold that space for you to slip into that same frequency that you want to be in. So, you kind of get guided help to get into that peaceful, calm, Zen, wonderful state where you can kind of open up to greater energy within you and all around you. We'll be talking lots more about that. Thank you, Kelsey, for your question. And if you have a question, we'd love to hear from you. Go to Lunaholistic.com/podcast. And you can record a little blurb, a question, a comment, a mystery of the Universe, and we will do our best to answer your questions. So, thank you very much for that. 43:14  Outro Thank yousGR: Thank you for everybody who's listening. Thank you so much, Melissa. MA: Mm, thank you for having me.GR: For being here. It's been delightful talking to you, as always.43:24  Outro EndGR: We've got lots and lots of resources on the Lunaholistic.com website, as well as links to all of our services. If you're curious about Reiki and live in the Calgary area, you can come in for a session, but we also do distance Reiki, which we will be talking more about in future podcasts as well. How does that distance Reiki work? Oh man, does it ever work! It's so cool. So, thank you all again so very, very much for being here and we'll catch you next time. 43:56  Outro:GR: Thank you for joining us on the LunaHolistic podcast. We're so grateful that you are here. If you've got a question, we'd love to hear from you. Go to LunaHolistic.com/podcast, and we'll answer you in an upcoming episode. Be sure to subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and also, please rate, 'cause you never know where your little five stars will go to shine light into somebody's heart today. So, thank you very much, and we'll see you next time.

What is the secret of 'adding value' and earning more? - Geocaching as a free activity - How often should you be spending money and saving money (Sir Joke, Twitter) - What should I do with an old 401(k) (General Kenobi) - Is it better to invest everything in a target date fund (Kim, Boston, MA) - How can I make multiple streams of income for a media production company (Emmanuel) - Should I take a lump sum payout for my pension (C3PO) - One NFL player and how he budgets - Millennial women, take better control of your financial futures - What is an authorized user on a credit card Mentioned on the show:

Welcome to Inspired Proficiency and thank you for joining us for episode 9 of season 3. As always, please tweet any takeaways and inspirations to #inspiredproficiency. Today Ashley chats with Bertha Delgadillo and then for the variety segment she will share more from her classroom and interviews for student portfolios. See detailed shownotes at www.deskfree.wordpress.com  Interview: Bertha Delgadillo is a teacher from Mexico currently teaching in Savannah, GA. She has been teaching for five years and has taught Spanish at all levels of the high school and has some middle school experience. Bertha is here today to share her story of shifting her classroom to using more Comprehensible Input (CI). See detailed shownotes at www.deskfree.wordpress.com  What does CI mean to Bertha? Delivering messages the students can understand Her job is to go slow, show pictures, and make sure students are acquiring input Repeated exposure and compelling material is necessary Inspirations: Martina Bex and the Comprehensible Classroom Mis Clases Locas and Allison Weinhold Many other blogs and Facebook communities Resources and links mentioned on the show: Guests: Bertha Delgadillo on Twitter @profedelgadillo and her blog here Other Resources: Martina Bex and the Comprehensible Classroom Mis Clases Locas and Allison Weinhold NTPRS Facebook page Tina Hargaden blog and youtube La Maestra Loca blog and youtube Ashley’s workshops in MA How to use Google sites for portfolios How to use Google Drive for portfolios How to use Youtube for portfolios Seesaw Flipgrid Presenting Sponsor: Wayside Publishing  #followtheowl Episode Sponsors: ACTFL Membership Stand up for all language educators –join today! And if you join online at actfl.org using the code “INSPIRED” by May 31, 2019, we’ll take 20% off your first year’s membership! What are you waiting for? Boomalang El Mundo de Pepita Puentes books from A.C. Quintero & Jennifer Degenhardt As always, with season 3, see detailed shownotes at www.deskfree.wordpress.com 

It's all about perspective. Often Grand Masters are looked at as if on a pedestal. Surprisingly enough - they're actually real people, and today we get to know a special one. What's So Special About Massachusetts?  Though other Grand Lodges may try to contest it, the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts is generally accepted to be the oldest chartered Grand Lodge in the United States. Not only that, it's the 3rd oldest Grand Lodge in the world, behind only Scotland and the United Grand Lodge of England. To be the Grand Master of a place like this must be quite the job (and interesting to boot), right? Well... Today we find out. And in so doing, we get to know the man at the helm of the ship, so to speak, for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In this episode, your co-hosts are (once again) joined by very special guests Most Worshipful Paul Fulton Gleason, Grand Master of Masons in Massachusetts, and Bro. Christopher Rooney. In this installment we learn more about Most Worshipful Gleason himself - both his personal life and his Masonic career. First we learn where he hails from and how he found Masonry. Next we delve a little deeper into his career as an officer of both his Blue Lodge and Grand Lodge. MW Gleason shares how Grand Lodge officer candidates are selected and elected - a method that is likely different from many other jurisdictions. He also shares what it's like to govern such a large jurisdiction, comparing and contrasting with nearby neighbors (including Rhode Island). And we also learn some of his biggest challenges and greatest highlights so far from his time as Grand Master.   What's in this episode: We are once again joined by MW Gleason and Bro. Rooney We learn all about MW Gleason, including Where he comes from, and how he ended up in MA How he came to join Masonry How he ended up as an officer, both in Blue Lodge and Grand Lodge How candidates for Grand Lodge office are selected and elected. What it's like to govern this jurisdiction And ultimately, what it's like to be Grand Master of Massachusetts Episode Resources: www.MassFreemasonry.org Connect with Darrell, Bryan, and Worthy & Well Qualified Facebook Page Facebook Group Instagram Twitter E-mail - worthymasonic@gmail.com Support us by becoming a Patron! Support the show by supporting our sponsors! Ready to work with Coach Darrell to improve your health & fitness? Click here! And check out the "So THIS Is Fitness" podcast at the following links: iPhone / iTunes - Subscribe Android devices - Subscribe Subscribe via RSS

Host: Eric Tangalos, MD Guest: Tena Alonzo, MA How can creating a more positive emotional experience for patients with dementia or Alzheimer's diminish behavior issues and improve quality of life? Tena Alonzo, director of research and co-director of the Palliative Care for Advanced Dementia program at Beatitudes Campus in Phoenix, discusses a common-sense approach to creating a comforting environment for those with dementia and Alzheimer's, which focuses on meeting each patient's unique needs. What simple steps can long-term care facilities and caregivers take to enhance the lives of patients with cognitive disorders? Dr. Eric Tangalos hosts.