Leslie Leyland Fields on Creating Radiant Moments: Discovering Light in the Advent Season and Love in the Christmas Holidays

1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,458
Welcome to the a World of Difference

2
00:00:04,458 --> 00:00:06,766
podcast. I'm Lori Adams Brown, and this is

3
00:00:06,766 --> 00:00:08,606
a podcast for those who are different and

4
00:00:08,606 --> 00:00:12,234
want to make a difference. I know that the

5
00:00:12,234 --> 00:00:14,174
holidays can be a happy time, and it can

6
00:00:14,174 --> 00:00:16,846
also be a difficult time. And if this time

7
00:00:16,846 --> 00:00:19,966
of year reminds you of any sort of loss of

8
00:00:19,966 --> 00:00:23,486
a loved one or friend or any sort of abuse

9
00:00:23,486 --> 00:00:25,286
or trauma that you have walked through and

10
00:00:25,286 --> 00:00:28,994
sort of difficulty, you are not alone.

11
00:00:28,994 --> 00:00:31,078
December 26 for my family is a very

12
00:00:31,078 --> 00:00:32,866
difficult day because that is the day we

13
00:00:32,866 --> 00:00:35,426
lost good friends in the tsunami and Banda

14
00:00:35,426 --> 00:00:37,826
ache, Indonesia. And so every year on

15
00:00:37,826 --> 00:00:40,246
December 26, we pause. And if you're one

16
00:00:40,246 --> 00:00:42,726
of those people listening that the

17
00:00:42,726 --> 00:00:44,874
holidays are complicated, just want you to

18
00:00:44,874 --> 00:00:47,754
know that you are in good company here.

19
00:00:47,754 --> 00:00:49,962
And I also want to let you know that it's

20
00:00:49,962 --> 00:00:52,406
okay to reach out to someone who can help

21
00:00:52,406 --> 00:00:55,642
you walk through that. I've had to have

22
00:00:55,642 --> 00:00:57,482
professionals help me walk through in

23
00:00:57,482 --> 00:00:59,422
therapy some difficult moments in my own

24
00:00:59,422 --> 00:01:02,958
life, and I want to extend an offer to you

25
00:01:02,958 --> 00:01:04,926
through betterhelp because I have a

26
00:01:04,926 --> 00:01:06,882
therapist through betterhelp that's been

27
00:01:06,882 --> 00:01:08,642
really impactful in my life. As we

28
00:01:08,642 --> 00:01:11,074
continue to work through some difficult

29
00:01:11,074 --> 00:01:14,658
things that I experienced on December 21,

30
00:01:14,658 --> 00:01:16,558
2020 and in the months leading up to that

31
00:01:16,558 --> 00:01:19,782
and some months after that, and that

32
00:01:19,782 --> 00:01:21,746
experience of walking through spiritual

33
00:01:21,746 --> 00:01:23,394
abuse and trauma in a religious

34
00:01:23,394 --> 00:01:25,782
environment is something I've needed a

35
00:01:25,782 --> 00:01:28,006
really strong professional to help me walk

36
00:01:28,006 --> 00:01:29,846
through. And it has made a huge impact on

37
00:01:29,846 --> 00:01:32,074
me. It's made a huge difference. So I'm

38
00:01:32,074 --> 00:01:34,022
happy to announce that the sponsor of this

39
00:01:34,022 --> 00:01:36,314
podcast is betterhelp and would extend

40
00:01:36,314 --> 00:01:39,846
this offer to you today. If you go to WW

41
00:01:39,846 --> 00:01:43,962
dot betterhelp.com difference, you can get

42
00:01:43,962 --> 00:01:46,106
10% off your first month of therapy.

43
00:01:46,106 --> 00:01:47,838
There's also classes, group therapy that

44
00:01:47,838 --> 00:01:50,766
you can sit in on and learn more and hear

45
00:01:50,766 --> 00:01:52,238
from other people and their perspective of

46
00:01:52,238 --> 00:01:53,454
what they're walking through, which is

47
00:01:53,454 --> 00:01:56,170
really valuable. So once again, if this is

48
00:01:56,170 --> 00:01:58,654
a very difficult time of year and you're

49
00:01:58,654 --> 00:02:00,766
feeling down, you're having some difficult

50
00:02:00,766 --> 00:02:02,446
thoughts, you're feeling stuck, and you're

51
00:02:02,446 --> 00:02:04,114
wanting somebody to help you walk through

52
00:02:04,114 --> 00:02:06,270
that, there is an opportunity for you to

53
00:02:06,270 --> 00:02:08,726
flourish. And I want you to be somebody

54
00:02:08,726 --> 00:02:11,414
who gives yourself the gift of flourishing

55
00:02:11,414 --> 00:02:14,806
because you matter and you are different

56
00:02:14,806 --> 00:02:17,174
in a very special way. And your life and

57
00:02:17,174 --> 00:02:19,226
your presence here makes a difference for

58
00:02:19,226 --> 00:02:21,414
all of us. So give yourself the gift of

59
00:02:21,414 --> 00:02:23,594
healing and walking through therapy today

60
00:02:23,594 --> 00:02:28,058
by going to www.betterhelp.com difference.

61
00:02:28,058 --> 00:02:36,462
To get 10% off your first month, you

62
00:02:36,462 --> 00:02:39,962
welcome to our special Christmas Advent

63
00:02:39,962 --> 00:02:41,982
episode where we have someone who lives

64
00:02:41,982 --> 00:02:44,386
very close to the North Pole. On the show

65
00:02:44,386 --> 00:02:48,174
Today we have Leslie Leyland Fields.

66
00:02:48,174 --> 00:02:50,654
Leslie is an international teacher,

67
00:02:50,654 --> 00:02:53,182
speaker, and award winning author of 14

68
00:02:53,182 --> 00:02:55,682
books, including your story matters, the

69
00:02:55,682 --> 00:02:57,974
Wonder Years, and crossing the Waters,

70
00:02:57,974 --> 00:03:00,486
which won a Christianity Today Book award

71
00:03:00,486 --> 00:03:03,606
in christian living. Since 2013, she's

72
00:03:03,606 --> 00:03:06,594
been leading the Harvester Island Writers

73
00:03:06,594 --> 00:03:09,094
workshop on her family's island in Alaska

74
00:03:09,094 --> 00:03:10,810
with guest writers that you may have heard

75
00:03:10,810 --> 00:03:13,274
of like Anne Voskamp, Philip Yancey, and

76
00:03:13,274 --> 00:03:15,306
many others that you would know. Leslie's

77
00:03:15,306 --> 00:03:17,194
other books include surviving the island

78
00:03:17,194 --> 00:03:19,558
of Grace, forgiving our fathers and

79
00:03:19,558 --> 00:03:22,214
mothers, and the Spirit of Food, which won

80
00:03:22,214 --> 00:03:24,798
three best book of 2010 awards. Her books

81
00:03:24,798 --> 00:03:26,638
have been translated into nine languages

82
00:03:26,638 --> 00:03:28,362
and her essays have appeared in

83
00:03:28,362 --> 00:03:30,346
publications including Christianity Today,

84
00:03:30,346 --> 00:03:33,334
books and culture, belief net,

85
00:03:33,334 --> 00:03:35,634
theatlantic, Orion, best essays, and many

86
00:03:35,634 --> 00:03:38,414
more, including earning her a number of

87
00:03:38,414 --> 00:03:41,086
evangelical press awards. Leslie has three

88
00:03:41,086 --> 00:03:43,314
graduate degrees in english journalism and

89
00:03:43,314 --> 00:03:46,014
an MFA in creative nonfiction, and has

90
00:03:46,014 --> 00:03:48,066
taught extensively, including being a

91
00:03:48,066 --> 00:03:50,674
founding faculty member of Seattle Pacific

92
00:03:50,674 --> 00:03:53,126
University's MFA program. She leads faith

93
00:03:53,126 --> 00:03:55,266
and writing retreats around the world and

94
00:03:55,266 --> 00:03:56,966
directs an online community in the craft

95
00:03:56,966 --> 00:04:00,054
and art of spiritual memoir. She's also

96
00:04:00,054 --> 00:04:02,246
professional audio narrator, contributing

97
00:04:02,246 --> 00:04:04,614
regularly to the popular our American

98
00:04:04,614 --> 00:04:07,526
Stories radio network and audio recording

99
00:04:07,526 --> 00:04:11,050
books of the Bible for herbible.org. And I

100
00:04:11,050 --> 00:04:13,070
also just really enjoyed interviewing her

101
00:04:13,070 --> 00:04:15,406
today about her advent book that if you

102
00:04:15,406 --> 00:04:17,406
have not seen it, has a beautiful cover.

103
00:04:17,406 --> 00:04:19,534
And I've really enjoyed reading the

104
00:04:19,534 --> 00:04:21,950
different selections in the book,

105
00:04:21,950 --> 00:04:25,330
different types of reading from poetry to

106
00:04:25,330 --> 00:04:28,658
other just writings that relate to advent

107
00:04:28,658 --> 00:04:32,030
and finding a new way of exploring the

108
00:04:32,030 --> 00:04:35,602
season through her latest book. And really

109
00:04:35,602 --> 00:04:37,590
happy to have her on the show today

110
00:04:37,590 --> 00:04:40,322
talking not only about life in Alaska and

111
00:04:40,322 --> 00:04:43,318
writing and world travels, but also just

112
00:04:43,318 --> 00:04:46,274
to hear her experience about what

113
00:04:46,274 --> 00:04:47,974
Christmas means to her. I know many of you

114
00:04:47,974 --> 00:04:50,950
around the world have different ways of

115
00:04:50,950 --> 00:04:52,726
celebrating Christmas, different

116
00:04:52,726 --> 00:04:54,794
traditions that mean different things to

117
00:04:54,794 --> 00:04:57,466
you and how you celebrate. But we have her

118
00:04:57,466 --> 00:04:59,734
on the show today talking about her latest

119
00:04:59,734 --> 00:05:02,474
advent book, radiant birth. Advent

120
00:05:02,474 --> 00:05:05,434
readings for a bright season. So a very

121
00:05:05,434 --> 00:05:09,678
warm welcome from a very cold place to our

122
00:05:09,678 --> 00:05:17,646
friend Leslie Leyland Fields. Hi Leslie,

123
00:05:17,646 --> 00:05:19,490
it's so great to have you on the world of

124
00:05:19,490 --> 00:05:22,530
difference podcast today, all the way from

125
00:05:22,530 --> 00:05:25,346
Alaska. Thank you for having me. And is

126
00:05:25,346 --> 00:05:28,398
the sun shining down there in California?

127
00:05:28,398 --> 00:05:30,566
We are having a sunshiny day. We have a

128
00:05:30,566 --> 00:05:32,374
lot of those here in the Bay area, I must

129
00:05:32,374 --> 00:05:36,274
say. How about you? Well, we have snow and

130
00:05:36,274 --> 00:05:39,190
snow is beautiful and we have clouds. The

131
00:05:39,190 --> 00:05:41,882
only thing if I could wish, I'd wish for a

132
00:05:41,882 --> 00:05:45,946
little more sun, but it's a good day. I'm

133
00:05:45,946 --> 00:05:47,706
sure it is. How many hours of sunshine do

134
00:05:47,706 --> 00:05:50,654
you get in December this time of year? It

135
00:05:50,654 --> 00:05:56,142
is of course our darkest month. And we get

136
00:05:56,142 --> 00:06:00,014
six or 7 hours of light. So not bad. I'm

137
00:06:00,014 --> 00:06:03,150
in southern Alaska. If you're in northern

138
00:06:03,150 --> 00:06:08,654
Alaska, you get like zero to one or two. I

139
00:06:08,654 --> 00:06:13,650
can't imagine it must really lead toward

140
00:06:13,650 --> 00:06:16,322
people feeling a lot of sadness or even

141
00:06:16,322 --> 00:06:18,102
some depression at times. Because I think

142
00:06:18,102 --> 00:06:20,182
you need sunshine to feel happy at some

143
00:06:20,182 --> 00:06:22,774
level, don't you? Oh, absolutely. It's

144
00:06:22,774 --> 00:06:25,442
really true. Yeah. There's just a lot of

145
00:06:25,442 --> 00:06:27,602
struggle through the dark season here up

146
00:06:27,602 --> 00:06:31,926
north. Yes. Yeah. That's hard. Well, I

147
00:06:31,926 --> 00:06:33,098
know that probably some of the stuff we're

148
00:06:33,098 --> 00:06:35,690
going to talk about today is about the

149
00:06:35,690 --> 00:06:38,026
difference between darkness and light. And

150
00:06:38,026 --> 00:06:39,686
the things that we can talk about around

151
00:06:39,686 --> 00:06:40,938
Christmas time, which are pretty

152
00:06:40,938 --> 00:06:43,450
beautiful. And speaking of beautiful, I

153
00:06:43,450 --> 00:06:45,038
have the COVID of your book right in front

154
00:06:45,038 --> 00:06:47,022
of me. And this book is such a beautiful

155
00:06:47,022 --> 00:06:49,246
cover. A radiant birth, advent readings

156
00:06:49,246 --> 00:06:52,174
for a bright season. It's such a great

157
00:06:52,174 --> 00:06:55,182
time of year to think through the advent

158
00:06:55,182 --> 00:06:57,534
time. We have listeners who practice

159
00:06:57,534 --> 00:07:00,114
advent all around the world. And some that

160
00:07:00,114 --> 00:07:01,698
maybe this word is new for them because

161
00:07:01,698 --> 00:07:03,758
they are different faith backgrounds. But

162
00:07:03,758 --> 00:07:05,522
I'd love to know what inspired you to

163
00:07:05,522 --> 00:07:07,958
write this book, this very unique advent

164
00:07:07,958 --> 00:07:10,182
book. Was there a specific experience or

165
00:07:10,182 --> 00:07:13,846
moment that sparked your idea for this?

166
00:07:13,846 --> 00:07:16,902
Know, I'd like to say there was, but no

167
00:07:16,902 --> 00:07:19,466
other than a friend saying to me, you

168
00:07:19,466 --> 00:07:21,622
know, Leslie, would you like to do an

169
00:07:21,622 --> 00:07:25,226
advent book together with me? And this is

170
00:07:25,226 --> 00:07:29,222
a good friend, Paul Willis, who's my co

171
00:07:29,222 --> 00:07:34,730
editor here. And we share similar

172
00:07:34,730 --> 00:07:37,326
sensibilities. And I thought this would be

173
00:07:37,326 --> 00:07:41,406
a wonderful project. So we joined together

174
00:07:41,406 --> 00:07:45,234
on this book. I joined him because I

175
00:07:45,234 --> 00:07:51,710
needed it. I needed the light. I need

176
00:07:51,710 --> 00:07:56,134
radiance in this dark time of the year.

177
00:07:56,134 --> 00:07:59,398
Living in Alaska, as we just said, there's

178
00:07:59,398 --> 00:08:04,854
a lot of darkness and cold and winter. And

179
00:08:04,854 --> 00:08:08,810
I needed to remind kind of my heart and my

180
00:08:08,810 --> 00:08:14,570
soul about a source of light that's more

181
00:08:14,570 --> 00:08:17,946
than the light in the sky that we only see

182
00:08:17,946 --> 00:08:23,246
for a few hours a day. Yeah, I love that.

183
00:08:23,246 --> 00:08:25,486
And it can be a challenge in the darkest

184
00:08:25,486 --> 00:08:27,914
of times, whether literally or

185
00:08:27,914 --> 00:08:30,558
figuratively, to remind ourselves about

186
00:08:30,558 --> 00:08:33,194
light and advent. It really carries a deep

187
00:08:33,194 --> 00:08:36,518
significance for many people. And so you

188
00:08:36,518 --> 00:08:38,254
selected readings and themes for this

189
00:08:38,254 --> 00:08:39,794
advent book, but how did you approach

190
00:08:39,794 --> 00:08:42,354
that? What was your process there? Yeah,

191
00:08:42,354 --> 00:08:44,734
and our process is there are a lot of

192
00:08:44,734 --> 00:08:47,378
books out there for advent and for

193
00:08:47,378 --> 00:08:49,846
Christmas and a lot of them fall into what

194
00:08:49,846 --> 00:08:53,414
we would call devotionals. And there are

195
00:08:53,414 --> 00:08:55,174
many beautiful ones. I have a whole shelf

196
00:08:55,174 --> 00:08:59,562
of them myself. But Paul and I really

197
00:08:59,562 --> 00:09:02,598
wanted this book to not be another

198
00:09:02,598 --> 00:09:04,854
devotional. We wanted it to be a

199
00:09:04,854 --> 00:09:07,802
collection of readings, literary readings,

200
00:09:07,802 --> 00:09:12,814
of poems and stories and meditations that

201
00:09:12,814 --> 00:09:17,326
would not tell you what to think or tell

202
00:09:17,326 --> 00:09:21,774
you how to feel about the season, but

203
00:09:21,774 --> 00:09:25,474
would instead sort of crack it open so

204
00:09:25,474 --> 00:09:30,914
that you can feel your own feelings and

205
00:09:30,914 --> 00:09:34,302
have your own profound moments and

206
00:09:34,302 --> 00:09:38,086
experiences and encounters with Jesus,

207
00:09:38,086 --> 00:09:41,542
with the birth of Jesus and all that that

208
00:09:41,542 --> 00:09:46,134
know into the world. That's beautiful.

209
00:09:46,134 --> 00:09:48,042
There are so many people that listen to

210
00:09:48,042 --> 00:09:52,550
this podcast, a particular segment of

211
00:09:52,550 --> 00:09:56,406
listeners that have experienced some maybe

212
00:09:56,406 --> 00:09:58,774
trauma in a religious environment or even

213
00:09:58,774 --> 00:10:01,394
spiritual abuse, where they've been in

214
00:10:01,394 --> 00:10:04,346
worship experiences, or even behind closed

215
00:10:04,346 --> 00:10:06,586
doors with maybe a religious leader or a

216
00:10:06,586 --> 00:10:09,162
pastor in an office where they felt

217
00:10:09,162 --> 00:10:11,502
coerced to feel something, or coerced to

218
00:10:11,502 --> 00:10:14,570
do something. And religion and

219
00:10:14,570 --> 00:10:17,234
spirituality in the wrong hands can be

220
00:10:17,234 --> 00:10:18,962
used to coerce. And it is a beautiful

221
00:10:18,962 --> 00:10:21,630
thing to allow people to discover the

222
00:10:21,630 --> 00:10:24,306
mystery and put some things out there that

223
00:10:24,306 --> 00:10:28,146
are even some writings from even church

224
00:10:28,146 --> 00:10:30,566
fathers and mothers that go way back and

225
00:10:30,566 --> 00:10:33,842
kind of ground us into a faith tradition

226
00:10:33,842 --> 00:10:38,066
that's long and beautiful. As you were

227
00:10:38,066 --> 00:10:39,994
writing this book, did anything in

228
00:10:39,994 --> 00:10:43,626
particular stand out to you in the writing

229
00:10:43,626 --> 00:10:45,514
of it, in the selections? That was one of

230
00:10:45,514 --> 00:10:47,980
your favorites, or just a special one for

231
00:10:47,980 --> 00:10:50,654
you? Oh, I was afraid you were going to

232
00:10:50,654 --> 00:10:54,286
ask me that, because I was afraid, because

233
00:10:54,286 --> 00:10:58,670
I said, how do I choose? I mean, we chose

234
00:10:58,670 --> 00:11:02,990
all of these readings because each one was

235
00:11:02,990 --> 00:11:06,606
striking in its own way. They're striking

236
00:11:06,606 --> 00:11:08,066
individually, and then you put them

237
00:11:08,066 --> 00:11:10,802
together into this collection, and I've

238
00:11:10,802 --> 00:11:13,922
just been rereading it myself. So, Lori,

239
00:11:13,922 --> 00:11:16,866
the process is really interesting. When

240
00:11:16,866 --> 00:11:21,014
Paul and I were compiling this book, the

241
00:11:21,014 --> 00:11:25,590
process is that we just go out and read

242
00:11:25,590 --> 00:11:30,294
and gather as many pieces of beautiful

243
00:11:30,294 --> 00:11:33,494
writing that we can all around this

244
00:11:33,494 --> 00:11:35,878
season, which means, of course, we're

245
00:11:35,878 --> 00:11:39,526
overwhelmed by all of the richness and the

246
00:11:39,526 --> 00:11:41,566
goodness. But then to start to put it

247
00:11:41,566 --> 00:11:45,038
together in some kind of pattern or some

248
00:11:45,038 --> 00:11:50,878
kind of. So what we chose was kind of a

249
00:11:50,878 --> 00:11:56,706
three part process. And the first section

250
00:11:56,706 --> 00:12:00,798
of the book is called Jesus Born in

251
00:12:00,798 --> 00:12:07,830
Bethlehem. And this goes to the historical

252
00:12:07,830 --> 00:12:14,294
facts of this man, God man, I believe, who

253
00:12:14,294 --> 00:12:16,982
was born in this little tiny town in the

254
00:12:16,982 --> 00:12:21,820
Middle east. And it's all around that

255
00:12:21,820 --> 00:12:25,446
event, Jesus born in Bethlehem. And

256
00:12:25,446 --> 00:12:29,306
there's some incredible poems that sort of

257
00:12:29,306 --> 00:12:32,240
open that up. The wonder of this whole

258
00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:36,846
idea of God, the God of the universe

259
00:12:36,846 --> 00:12:40,030
taking on human flesh and to come in the

260
00:12:40,030 --> 00:12:43,822
form of a baby, like the most powerful

261
00:12:43,822 --> 00:12:48,830
divine being, deciding to become a

262
00:12:48,830 --> 00:12:52,100
newborn, the most helpless of creatures

263
00:12:52,100 --> 00:12:55,790
possible. So there's all the wonder and

264
00:12:55,790 --> 00:12:58,886
mystery and beauty of that in Jesus born

265
00:12:58,886 --> 00:13:02,034
in Bethlehem. And then the next section is

266
00:13:02,034 --> 00:13:04,630
Jesus born in us. And that question of,

267
00:13:04,630 --> 00:13:09,458
okay, so know, baby born into the world,

268
00:13:09,458 --> 00:13:11,466
how does that change us? How does that

269
00:13:11,466 --> 00:13:14,774
make a difference in us personally? So

270
00:13:14,774 --> 00:13:17,722
it's stories and poems that kind of open

271
00:13:17,722 --> 00:13:21,182
up that. Again, I love your word, mystery,

272
00:13:21,182 --> 00:13:24,666
that open up that mystery and kind of

273
00:13:24,666 --> 00:13:27,134
invite us into that experience. What does

274
00:13:27,134 --> 00:13:29,886
that look like? What does that feel like?

275
00:13:29,886 --> 00:13:33,266
And then the last section is, and maybe

276
00:13:33,266 --> 00:13:37,554
this is my favorite section, Jesus in us

277
00:13:37,554 --> 00:13:41,186
for the world. Jesus in us for the world.

278
00:13:41,186 --> 00:13:45,494
And the idea is, know, God came and took

279
00:13:45,494 --> 00:13:50,534
on human flesh to be with us, not just for

280
00:13:50,534 --> 00:13:55,942
our good and our benefit and our peace and

281
00:13:55,942 --> 00:13:59,482
our joy, but for the sake of the world, so

282
00:13:59,482 --> 00:14:03,194
that we could be empowered to love others,

283
00:14:03,194 --> 00:14:06,614
to reach out to others and to bring that

284
00:14:06,614 --> 00:14:09,210
peace and that love and that radiance,

285
00:14:09,210 --> 00:14:13,614
that radiance out into the world around

286
00:14:13,614 --> 00:14:16,830
us. So that's what Paul and I were looking

287
00:14:16,830 --> 00:14:22,526
for, were pieces that really just cracked

288
00:14:22,526 --> 00:14:25,186
all of that open so we could experience

289
00:14:25,186 --> 00:14:27,746
kind of that threefold process, each one

290
00:14:27,746 --> 00:14:33,006
of us. Beautiful. And I can just hear the

291
00:14:33,006 --> 00:14:35,058
passion in your voice of what it must have

292
00:14:35,058 --> 00:14:36,414
been like to read through all those

293
00:14:36,414 --> 00:14:38,194
readings. I mean, there's no shortage of

294
00:14:38,194 --> 00:14:40,534
things written on Christmas and advent, is

295
00:14:40,534 --> 00:14:42,198
there? But you were digging through a lot

296
00:14:42,198 --> 00:14:44,466
of that and making choices and carefully

297
00:14:44,466 --> 00:14:46,518
choosing which ones go into your book. How

298
00:14:46,518 --> 00:14:48,246
do you hope readers will kind of engage

299
00:14:48,246 --> 00:14:50,474
with your book during this Advent season?

300
00:14:50,474 --> 00:14:53,546
And what do you sort of aim for? What are

301
00:14:53,546 --> 00:14:55,414
you hoping it will have as, like, an

302
00:14:55,414 --> 00:14:58,714
impact on them spiritually? Yeah. The book

303
00:14:58,714 --> 00:15:03,054
is set up to be a series of readings that

304
00:15:03,054 --> 00:15:05,102
walk you through day by day, through the

305
00:15:05,102 --> 00:15:07,838
whole season of Advent, which is about 40

306
00:15:07,838 --> 00:15:12,666
days. So it's set up so that each day

307
00:15:12,666 --> 00:15:15,022
there's a reading and it's only a few

308
00:15:15,022 --> 00:15:17,140
pages. It doesn't have to take a lot of

309
00:15:17,140 --> 00:15:20,754
time. Many of the poems are just short.

310
00:15:20,754 --> 00:15:24,420
But what a poem does, it sort of takes you

311
00:15:24,420 --> 00:15:28,754
from TikTok time, from Kronos time. It

312
00:15:28,754 --> 00:15:30,966
drops you into Cairo's time, right where

313
00:15:30,966 --> 00:15:33,542
there is no TikTok. It's sort of, you just

314
00:15:33,542 --> 00:15:36,150
feel like you're falling into

315
00:15:36,150 --> 00:15:39,946
timelessness. So people can use the book

316
00:15:39,946 --> 00:15:41,546
that way, and many people are using it

317
00:15:41,546 --> 00:15:47,114
that way. Just the daily readings, I am

318
00:15:47,114 --> 00:15:50,714
not regimented like that. So my favorite

319
00:15:50,714 --> 00:15:52,958
thing to do, and this is what I'm doing,

320
00:15:52,958 --> 00:15:55,934
is I just pick it up and I open it up

321
00:15:55,934 --> 00:15:58,318
until I come to something. Oh, I'm going

322
00:15:58,318 --> 00:16:02,478
to read this piece Monday, Thursday, or I

323
00:16:02,478 --> 00:16:05,566
want to read this poem by Jeannie Murray

324
00:16:05,566 --> 00:16:09,010
Walker. And so I just sort of pick it up

325
00:16:09,010 --> 00:16:13,490
and turn to the piece that I think that

326
00:16:13,490 --> 00:16:19,670
maybe I need that very day. So for

327
00:16:19,670 --> 00:16:25,094
readers, I'm hoping that they will do some

328
00:16:25,094 --> 00:16:31,014
of both. And I want this journey as we

329
00:16:31,014 --> 00:16:34,410
divided the book into these three

330
00:16:34,410 --> 00:16:38,026
sections. And I'm hoping that people will

331
00:16:38,026 --> 00:16:43,310
kind of follow that movement so that this

332
00:16:43,310 --> 00:16:51,566
radiance doesn't go away when the calendar

333
00:16:51,566 --> 00:16:54,190
we tear off December and we tear off

334
00:16:54,190 --> 00:16:56,846
January. And I want this radiance. I'm

335
00:16:56,846 --> 00:17:00,500
hoping that it will be birthed inside of

336
00:17:00,500 --> 00:17:05,402
us and it will go beyond the immediate

337
00:17:05,402 --> 00:17:09,046
season till it becomes part of us. Just

338
00:17:09,046 --> 00:17:11,254
the wonder and the mystery and the beauty

339
00:17:11,254 --> 00:17:16,182
of a God who loves us so much that he

340
00:17:16,182 --> 00:17:21,270
wanted to be with us in all things,

341
00:17:21,270 --> 00:17:25,500
everywhere and every time. Yeah. So

342
00:17:25,500 --> 00:17:29,226
beautiful. And there's also no shortage of

343
00:17:29,226 --> 00:17:31,082
things that have been written or spoken or

344
00:17:31,082 --> 00:17:33,566
even, I guess, sung about with Christmas,

345
00:17:33,566 --> 00:17:36,426
about how we can get so lost in the

346
00:17:36,426 --> 00:17:38,014
busyness of the season that we forget to

347
00:17:38,014 --> 00:17:41,486
be still and meditate on what this is all

348
00:17:41,486 --> 00:17:44,660
about. And it can get quite busy,

349
00:17:44,660 --> 00:17:46,834
especially for families listening with

350
00:17:46,834 --> 00:17:48,462
kids. You've got school, Christmas

351
00:17:48,462 --> 00:17:51,874
parties, and you've got church sometimes

352
00:17:51,874 --> 00:17:53,554
does so many events, you don't have time

353
00:17:53,554 --> 00:17:55,314
to breathe. And you're volunteering so

354
00:17:55,314 --> 00:17:57,234
much in some of the burnout cultures of

355
00:17:57,234 --> 00:17:59,926
certain churches. And for any people who

356
00:17:59,926 --> 00:18:01,814
are on a staff at a Church, it's really

357
00:18:01,814 --> 00:18:05,042
hard to celebrate and take time. But I was

358
00:18:05,042 --> 00:18:06,774
wondering for you, as you think about

359
00:18:06,774 --> 00:18:08,354
people reading this book, or maybe for

360
00:18:08,354 --> 00:18:09,882
yourself personally, are there any

361
00:18:09,882 --> 00:18:12,186
particular traditions or practices you

362
00:18:12,186 --> 00:18:14,374
have found helpful? Or may you would

363
00:18:14,374 --> 00:18:16,266
suggest to readers to enhance their

364
00:18:16,266 --> 00:18:18,666
experience of advent along with reading

365
00:18:18,666 --> 00:18:26,458
the book? I think you're so right. That.

366
00:18:26,458 --> 00:18:29,582
Stillness and that quiet is really hard to

367
00:18:29,582 --> 00:18:31,598
find. I have several pieces in here. One

368
00:18:31,598 --> 00:18:35,506
of them is no silent night. And I have six

369
00:18:35,506 --> 00:18:37,906
children. I raised six children. They're

370
00:18:37,906 --> 00:18:40,130
all grown. And I have grandchildren now.

371
00:18:40,130 --> 00:18:42,606
But I remember the Christmas, and I've

372
00:18:42,606 --> 00:18:48,934
written about that, such a frantic time.

373
00:18:48,934 --> 00:18:53,090
And I don't think there's joy in that

374
00:18:53,090 --> 00:18:58,022
busyness. There's joy in that giving to

375
00:18:58,022 --> 00:19:00,806
others, serving others. There's a lot of

376
00:19:00,806 --> 00:19:03,818
joy to be had in that, and that's part of

377
00:19:03,818 --> 00:19:07,754
the blessing of the season. But at the

378
00:19:07,754 --> 00:19:11,334
same time, if we ourselves are not

379
00:19:11,334 --> 00:19:13,326
allowing ourselves to just kind of sit in

380
00:19:13,326 --> 00:19:16,574
the radiance of God's love for us, which

381
00:19:16,574 --> 00:19:21,130
is not dependent on what we do and is not

382
00:19:21,130 --> 00:19:24,394
dependent on how much we give and how much

383
00:19:24,394 --> 00:19:28,210
we serve. God loves us simply for who we

384
00:19:28,210 --> 00:19:32,206
are. He loves us because he made us. He

385
00:19:32,206 --> 00:19:34,450
loves us and he came to be with us just

386
00:19:34,450 --> 00:19:37,654
because he wants to be with us. I think we

387
00:19:37,654 --> 00:19:42,966
need to just stop. And if we can, each day

388
00:19:42,966 --> 00:19:47,046
a few moments, that is wonderful and so

389
00:19:47,046 --> 00:19:49,458
good. I couldn't do that when all six of

390
00:19:49,458 --> 00:19:52,426
my children were at home. So it's whenever

391
00:19:52,426 --> 00:19:55,386
I could find that quiet time, it might be

392
00:19:55,386 --> 00:19:58,394
I was in the car waiting to pick up my

393
00:19:58,394 --> 00:20:01,454
kids from school, but I would bring a book

394
00:20:01,454 --> 00:20:05,680
with me and I would just take those five

395
00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:09,274
minutes, and again, five minutes of that

396
00:20:09,274 --> 00:20:12,254
quiet five minutes around a beautiful poem

397
00:20:12,254 --> 00:20:15,620
can suddenly empty. It can suddenly open

398
00:20:15,620 --> 00:20:21,042
up into what feels like timelessness. And

399
00:20:21,042 --> 00:20:25,578
just this moment again, of wonder, of

400
00:20:25,578 --> 00:20:29,986
worship, of gratitude. And that's what

401
00:20:29,986 --> 00:20:33,462
feeds us and that's what keeps us going.

402
00:20:33,462 --> 00:20:38,440
So everybody take some quiet moments for

403
00:20:38,440 --> 00:20:41,558
yourself. Be sure and do that. And I hope

404
00:20:41,558 --> 00:20:44,060
you'll do that even with this book,

405
00:20:44,060 --> 00:20:46,826
because it's not going to tell you again

406
00:20:46,826 --> 00:20:52,286
how to feel. It's just going to break

407
00:20:52,286 --> 00:20:55,678
through that busyness and that noise. It's

408
00:20:55,678 --> 00:20:58,814
going to give you a few quiet moments with

409
00:20:58,814 --> 00:21:03,838
the God who loves you. Yeah. It's so hard.

410
00:21:03,838 --> 00:21:08,174
It takes a lot of intentionality. My

411
00:21:08,174 --> 00:21:10,158
therapist told me the past couple of weeks

412
00:21:10,158 --> 00:21:13,026
we've been working on self care, and I

413
00:21:13,026 --> 00:21:14,946
live in Silicon Valley, and I'm a mom of

414
00:21:14,946 --> 00:21:18,142
three teenagers, and I'm a podcast. And

415
00:21:18,142 --> 00:21:21,814
it's, know, we're busy people. And so she

416
00:21:21,814 --> 00:21:23,318
has this thing where she's like, I know if

417
00:21:23,318 --> 00:21:24,946
I give you things that last too long,

418
00:21:24,946 --> 00:21:26,086
you're probably not going to implement

419
00:21:26,086 --> 00:21:27,878
them in your life. I'm like, yes, that was

420
00:21:27,878 --> 00:21:29,766
a good call. But she's like, if you could

421
00:21:29,766 --> 00:21:32,220
just do this thing and it's just called

422
00:21:32,220 --> 00:21:33,962
be. And even if you're sitting in your

423
00:21:33,962 --> 00:21:35,354
office chair, I just want you to sit

424
00:21:35,354 --> 00:21:37,274
there, even just 10 seconds, and don't

425
00:21:37,274 --> 00:21:39,914
look at anything, don't read anything.

426
00:21:39,914 --> 00:21:41,866
Just be like, try to empty any thoughts in

427
00:21:41,866 --> 00:21:43,790
your head just because your body needs to

428
00:21:43,790 --> 00:21:46,910
just calm. And I think that I always feel

429
00:21:46,910 --> 00:21:48,874
like as a mom, ever since. I mean, my

430
00:21:48,874 --> 00:21:53,220
oldest is now 19, almost 20. I think about

431
00:21:53,220 --> 00:21:58,174
his first Christmas up until now, and

432
00:21:58,174 --> 00:21:59,426
Christmas just changed all of a sudden.

433
00:21:59,426 --> 00:22:02,450
When I had kids, it got busy, it was

434
00:22:02,450 --> 00:22:05,874
different. And finding the time to be

435
00:22:05,874 --> 00:22:08,786
still and know that God is God and I'm

436
00:22:08,786 --> 00:22:11,554
God's child and I'm loved. Those are such

437
00:22:11,554 --> 00:22:13,894
rare and special moments. And I do find

438
00:22:13,894 --> 00:22:16,598
that sometimes authors and writers can put

439
00:22:16,598 --> 00:22:18,546
together words and books like advent

440
00:22:18,546 --> 00:22:20,166
devotionals or a book like yours or

441
00:22:20,166 --> 00:22:23,414
radiant birth, and help give us a fresh

442
00:22:23,414 --> 00:22:25,978
perspective in a new way. And so, yeah, I

443
00:22:25,978 --> 00:22:27,866
agree. Sometimes even a sentence that you

444
00:22:27,866 --> 00:22:31,178
could repeat. My therapist told me this

445
00:22:31,178 --> 00:22:32,986
great sort of sentence she often repeats

446
00:22:32,986 --> 00:22:35,674
when she's meditating. And it's like,

447
00:22:35,674 --> 00:22:38,654
spirit, I'm one with you and loved, you

448
00:22:38,654 --> 00:22:40,318
know, just a little like breath prayer. I

449
00:22:40,318 --> 00:22:42,366
had a spiritual director when my kids were

450
00:22:42,366 --> 00:22:43,898
little and I was living in Indonesia. And

451
00:22:43,898 --> 00:22:45,674
she's like, you don't have time for long

452
00:22:45,674 --> 00:22:46,626
devotionals. She's like, I'm going to send

453
00:22:46,626 --> 00:22:49,682
you some breast prayers to just pray. So,

454
00:22:49,682 --> 00:22:52,018
yeah, I'm glad that you address those busy

455
00:22:52,018 --> 00:22:53,714
people because that's just the reality of

456
00:22:53,714 --> 00:22:58,690
our world. And as you are speaking of

457
00:22:58,690 --> 00:23:01,222
busy, you are not only an author, but you

458
00:23:01,222 --> 00:23:04,614
also coach authors and you help people to

459
00:23:04,614 --> 00:23:06,946
write their story, and you have people

460
00:23:06,946 --> 00:23:08,806
joining you for that. And so I'd love to

461
00:23:08,806 --> 00:23:10,954
know a little more about how you approach

462
00:23:10,954 --> 00:23:13,706
the writing process, maybe specifically

463
00:23:13,706 --> 00:23:15,306
with this book or any book. Like, what is

464
00:23:15,306 --> 00:23:18,442
your philosophy of writing, and how do you

465
00:23:18,442 --> 00:23:19,942
explain that to people who are thinking

466
00:23:19,942 --> 00:23:24,400
about writing? That is a really big

467
00:23:24,400 --> 00:23:30,062
question. Anywhere you want to take that.

468
00:23:30,062 --> 00:23:36,910
But thank you for asking it. We're all

469
00:23:36,910 --> 00:23:39,634
wired a bit differently, right? So we all

470
00:23:39,634 --> 00:23:41,570
would probably approach writing

471
00:23:41,570 --> 00:23:45,798
differently. What I found is that many

472
00:23:45,798 --> 00:23:48,918
people want to write or know they have a

473
00:23:48,918 --> 00:23:51,414
story to tell, and they want to tell it,

474
00:23:51,414 --> 00:23:57,522
they need to tell it. But how? It's

475
00:23:57,522 --> 00:23:59,850
overwhelming. Just even the thought of a

476
00:23:59,850 --> 00:24:02,554
book, it becomes this really heavy weight

477
00:24:02,554 --> 00:24:04,746
that people are often carrying around on

478
00:24:04,746 --> 00:24:08,538
their shoulders. And I've heard so many

479
00:24:08,538 --> 00:24:11,246
times, someone will say, oh. People say to

480
00:24:11,246 --> 00:24:13,946
me, oh, you have to write a book. Because

481
00:24:13,946 --> 00:24:17,582
I've lived an extraordinary life, and I

482
00:24:17,582 --> 00:24:20,400
believe that we've all lived extraordinary

483
00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:23,954
lives, and I think everybody should write.

484
00:24:23,954 --> 00:24:30,306
And so my starting point is first to say,

485
00:24:30,306 --> 00:24:33,858
you can do it. Everybody can do it.

486
00:24:33,858 --> 00:24:38,774
Anybody can do it. Because good writing is

487
00:24:38,774 --> 00:24:42,534
not actually about writing. It's not about

488
00:24:42,534 --> 00:24:46,534
the words on the page. It's about opening

489
00:24:46,534 --> 00:24:52,026
our heart. It's about seeing the story

490
00:24:52,026 --> 00:24:55,770
that we're living. And once our eyes get

491
00:24:55,770 --> 00:24:59,274
open to the remarkable stories that we

492
00:24:59,274 --> 00:25:03,338
are, each of us, living, oh, my goodness,

493
00:25:03,338 --> 00:25:06,826
it's like opening a dam and stories pour

494
00:25:06,826 --> 00:25:11,834
onto the page. And that's my goal as a

495
00:25:11,834 --> 00:25:15,154
coach, is to empower people to see past

496
00:25:15,154 --> 00:25:18,706
their fears, past the voices in their head

497
00:25:18,706 --> 00:25:20,654
and the voices in their heart and the

498
00:25:20,654 --> 00:25:24,382
voices in their past that tell them, you

499
00:25:24,382 --> 00:25:28,646
can't write or you're this kind of person,

500
00:25:28,646 --> 00:25:33,314
or you can't tell that story, or we will

501
00:25:33,314 --> 00:25:37,454
disown you. All of these voices, right? We

502
00:25:37,454 --> 00:25:41,482
carry them. So my first job is to silence

503
00:25:41,482 --> 00:25:45,850
those voices and then help people

504
00:25:45,850 --> 00:25:48,822
discover, oh, my goodness. Look at this

505
00:25:48,822 --> 00:25:52,634
incredible story that you are living.

506
00:25:52,634 --> 00:25:56,474
Let's start getting it down on the page.

507
00:25:56,474 --> 00:25:58,874
That's incredible. I love that. So

508
00:25:58,874 --> 00:26:01,918
inspiring. And I'm sure that's the reason

509
00:26:01,918 --> 00:26:04,254
people love to be coached by you in terms

510
00:26:04,254 --> 00:26:07,294
of writing, because I think everybody. I

511
00:26:07,294 --> 00:26:09,390
wholeheartedly agree. I think people are

512
00:26:09,390 --> 00:26:10,834
fascinating. I've never met a single

513
00:26:10,834 --> 00:26:12,562
person that I thought, oh, you have

514
00:26:12,562 --> 00:26:14,322
nothing for me to learn from. Everybody

515
00:26:14,322 --> 00:26:18,978
has so much unique perspective. I do

516
00:26:18,978 --> 00:26:20,406
training, and I just have been training

517
00:26:20,406 --> 00:26:22,118
this leadership summit at the headquarters

518
00:26:22,118 --> 00:26:25,126
of the tech company where I work. And as I

519
00:26:25,126 --> 00:26:27,346
was researching for some of it, I was

520
00:26:27,346 --> 00:26:29,526
listening to the Stanford graduate School

521
00:26:29,526 --> 00:26:32,986
of Business professor, and he was talking

522
00:26:32,986 --> 00:26:34,858
with someone, and they said, the way we

523
00:26:34,858 --> 00:26:36,902
listen is so unique to us because the

524
00:26:36,902 --> 00:26:39,254
filters of our brains are based on our own

525
00:26:39,254 --> 00:26:41,386
narratives and our experiences. And so

526
00:26:41,386 --> 00:26:43,106
when we listen, we listen through those

527
00:26:43,106 --> 00:26:45,306
filters of our own life, which is as

528
00:26:45,306 --> 00:26:48,046
unique for every human as our fingerprint.

529
00:26:48,046 --> 00:26:50,234
And it was fascinating. Like, we're so

530
00:26:50,234 --> 00:26:51,470
fascinating, our fingerprints are

531
00:26:51,470 --> 00:26:53,614
different. How we listen is so unique to

532
00:26:53,614 --> 00:26:55,834
us. And, of course, how we would write or

533
00:26:55,834 --> 00:26:57,874
express our story, our unique story would

534
00:26:57,874 --> 00:26:59,874
be really different. It's kind of why I

535
00:26:59,874 --> 00:27:01,474
started this podcast. I love talking with

536
00:27:01,474 --> 00:27:03,186
people and our differences, and I think we

537
00:27:03,186 --> 00:27:05,154
make a difference better together. Right.

538
00:27:05,154 --> 00:27:07,254
So, as you've been coaching and writing

539
00:27:07,254 --> 00:27:09,398
and helping people learn to write their

540
00:27:09,398 --> 00:27:11,782
story, do you see common pitfalls that

541
00:27:11,782 --> 00:27:14,598
people fall into, common obstacles, maybe,

542
00:27:14,598 --> 00:27:16,546
that you're helping people overcome on a

543
00:27:16,546 --> 00:27:20,460
regular basis as a writer coach? Yes,

544
00:27:20,460 --> 00:27:24,346
absolutely. One really common obstacle is

545
00:27:24,346 --> 00:27:28,314
the idea that I'm just living an ordinary

546
00:27:28,314 --> 00:27:30,286
life. I didn't run with the hell's angels

547
00:27:30,286 --> 00:27:34,138
and then get converted, and now I dig

548
00:27:34,138 --> 00:27:36,814
wells for orphanages in Africa. You think,

549
00:27:36,814 --> 00:27:39,390
okay, that's a story, okay, that your

550
00:27:39,390 --> 00:27:43,662
story matters. But me, I'm a soccer mom. I

551
00:27:43,662 --> 00:27:49,470
shop at Walmart. I live in Okie Fenoki,

552
00:27:49,470 --> 00:27:52,580
Florida. And I just have an ordinary life.

553
00:27:52,580 --> 00:27:57,800
But I really want to shift people's lens

554
00:27:57,800 --> 00:28:01,414
to not just the outer story that we're all

555
00:28:01,414 --> 00:28:03,654
living, an outer story where we live,

556
00:28:03,654 --> 00:28:08,314
where we work, the dinner that we fix at

557
00:28:08,314 --> 00:28:11,162
night, all of those things, but we're all

558
00:28:11,162 --> 00:28:15,866
living a very deep inner story and

559
00:28:15,866 --> 00:28:20,220
everyone has a profound inner story. And

560
00:28:20,220 --> 00:28:25,166
so one of my main goals as a writing coach

561
00:28:25,166 --> 00:28:30,240
is to help people find that inner story

562
00:28:30,240 --> 00:28:35,154
that twines through their life right back

563
00:28:35,154 --> 00:28:37,714
from their earliest memory. And when

564
00:28:37,714 --> 00:28:40,942
people start to tap into that, they

565
00:28:40,942 --> 00:28:45,700
realize, oh, wow, I am a rather remarkable

566
00:28:45,700 --> 00:28:51,798
person. I love that. That's incredible.

567
00:28:51,798 --> 00:28:53,266
Yeah. And I'm sure you get to hear all

568
00:28:53,266 --> 00:28:55,142
kinds of fascinating things from where you

569
00:28:55,142 --> 00:28:57,320
sit and being able to coach so many

570
00:28:57,320 --> 00:29:00,698
people. If someone's thinking, because I

571
00:29:00,698 --> 00:29:02,826
know we're listening to this podcast here

572
00:29:02,826 --> 00:29:04,442
at the end of the year, it's Christmas

573
00:29:04,442 --> 00:29:06,486
time, and then we're headed into New

574
00:29:06,486 --> 00:29:09,530
Year's resolutions. If somebody's thinking

575
00:29:09,530 --> 00:29:11,274
exactly what you mentioned, people keep

576
00:29:11,274 --> 00:29:12,366
saying, you should write a book, you

577
00:29:12,366 --> 00:29:14,254
should write a book. And they're feeling

578
00:29:14,254 --> 00:29:16,366
this kind of urging, but they don't really

579
00:29:16,366 --> 00:29:19,166
know where to start. What's your advice to

580
00:29:19,166 --> 00:29:24,034
them on how to start? Well, I want to say

581
00:29:24,034 --> 00:29:27,166
sign up for my course. Yes, it's okay to

582
00:29:27,166 --> 00:29:30,322
plug your course. The other thing is

583
00:29:30,322 --> 00:29:33,454
something that's maybe easier and

584
00:29:33,454 --> 00:29:37,798
immediate is a couple of books ago, I have

585
00:29:37,798 --> 00:29:41,142
a book. Your story matters, and that book

586
00:29:41,142 --> 00:29:44,310
will walk you through this writing process

587
00:29:44,310 --> 00:29:48,614
that anybody can do. And I don't mean yes,

588
00:29:48,614 --> 00:29:50,410
it's simple. It's simple enough that

589
00:29:50,410 --> 00:29:54,714
anybody can do it. And yet the profundity

590
00:29:54,714 --> 00:29:58,154
is in the simplicity of the process. And

591
00:29:58,154 --> 00:30:00,746
when something is simpler, people are a

592
00:30:00,746 --> 00:30:03,198
lot more likely to do it. I'm not going to

593
00:30:03,198 --> 00:30:06,958
lay 25 rules on you. I'm going to just

594
00:30:06,958 --> 00:30:10,938
open up this path that is so doable and

595
00:30:10,938 --> 00:30:12,802
it's going to enable you to reach into

596
00:30:12,802 --> 00:30:16,494
that inner story and you're going to be

597
00:30:16,494 --> 00:30:20,866
amazed at what you can do. That's awesome.

598
00:30:20,866 --> 00:30:23,234
I love that. Yeah. Just helping free

599
00:30:23,234 --> 00:30:26,146
people up and serve them as you're trying

600
00:30:26,146 --> 00:30:28,270
to help their stories be born. There's a

601
00:30:28,270 --> 00:30:30,166
lot of people online that when their book

602
00:30:30,166 --> 00:30:31,458
gets published, they'll treat it like a

603
00:30:31,458 --> 00:30:32,886
baby and have these cute little pictures

604
00:30:32,886 --> 00:30:38,726
on instagram. It's a girl. Yeah. There is

605
00:30:38,726 --> 00:30:40,866
an element of it that feels like birthing

606
00:30:40,866 --> 00:30:43,546
something new into the world. And we need

607
00:30:43,546 --> 00:30:46,166
our doulas and we need our nurses and

608
00:30:46,166 --> 00:30:47,706
doctors to help us give birth to baby. And

609
00:30:47,706 --> 00:30:50,522
we need sometimes coaches and people like

610
00:30:50,522 --> 00:30:52,938
you who walk people through the process

611
00:30:52,938 --> 00:30:54,718
and just to sit, cheer us on and be like,

612
00:30:54,718 --> 00:30:56,298
you can do this. So thank you for that

613
00:30:56,298 --> 00:30:57,806
role that you play because it helps us to

614
00:30:57,806 --> 00:30:59,914
get to read these exciting stories as

615
00:30:59,914 --> 00:31:03,742
readers as well. So I want to sort of

616
00:31:03,742 --> 00:31:06,046
finish out here with just some of your

617
00:31:06,046 --> 00:31:08,546
thoughts around the Christmas season. I

618
00:31:08,546 --> 00:31:10,814
know you raised six children. Now you have

619
00:31:10,814 --> 00:31:12,734
grandchildren. Do you have any favorite

620
00:31:12,734 --> 00:31:15,166
Christmas traditions? I mean, I think our

621
00:31:15,166 --> 00:31:17,134
stereotype is Alaska always gets a white

622
00:31:17,134 --> 00:31:18,718
Christmas. I'm not sure if that's true.

623
00:31:18,718 --> 00:31:20,258
But what do you do at Christmas time?

624
00:31:20,258 --> 00:31:23,046
What's your favorite things? Yeah, so one

625
00:31:23,046 --> 00:31:25,400
of my favorite things is something that I

626
00:31:25,400 --> 00:31:28,054
started, boy, I'm going to say, at least

627
00:31:28,054 --> 00:31:31,258
25 years ago, and that is we have this

628
00:31:31,258 --> 00:31:35,946
special Christmas Eve dinner. We often go

629
00:31:35,946 --> 00:31:38,010
to church on Christmas Eve. We have this

630
00:31:38,010 --> 00:31:41,390
beautiful candlelight service, and that's

631
00:31:41,390 --> 00:31:44,590
very common in my faith tradition. I think

632
00:31:44,590 --> 00:31:45,982
everybody looks forward to that,

633
00:31:45,982 --> 00:31:49,450
especially the kids. Like what fire in

634
00:31:49,450 --> 00:31:53,258
church we can have in church, right? But

635
00:31:53,258 --> 00:31:55,730
it's so beautiful. And we sing silent

636
00:31:55,730 --> 00:31:58,366
night, and we hold our candles up in the

637
00:31:58,366 --> 00:32:00,706
dark in church. It's really beautiful. And

638
00:32:00,706 --> 00:32:03,554
then we come home after that and we have

639
00:32:03,554 --> 00:32:10,066
this meal. And I've sort of created it. So

640
00:32:10,066 --> 00:32:12,886
it's actually pigs in a blanket, but we

641
00:32:12,886 --> 00:32:16,214
call it babes and swaddling clothes. So

642
00:32:16,214 --> 00:32:18,762
you take little sausages and you wrap them

643
00:32:18,762 --> 00:32:21,930
in, like, biscuit dough. So we have a

644
00:32:21,930 --> 00:32:25,462
whole sheet of babes and swaddling

645
00:32:25,462 --> 00:32:27,834
clothes. And then we have hay and straw.

646
00:32:27,834 --> 00:32:32,022
So we have this meal of. It's green

647
00:32:32,022 --> 00:32:35,374
fettuccine and whole wheat. So it looks

648
00:32:35,374 --> 00:32:38,174
like hay and straw. Just very simple hay

649
00:32:38,174 --> 00:32:41,278
and straw. And then we have a coleslaw

650
00:32:41,278 --> 00:32:44,242
that I call Mary and Joseph's law. It's

651
00:32:44,242 --> 00:32:47,906
green and purple cabbage. And we eat with

652
00:32:47,906 --> 00:32:50,974
the lights off and with candles. So we

653
00:32:50,974 --> 00:32:54,654
imagine ourselves in the stable where

654
00:32:54,654 --> 00:32:56,854
Jesus was born. And it's a simple meal.

655
00:32:56,854 --> 00:32:59,990
And that's the idea, right? It's a simple

656
00:32:59,990 --> 00:33:02,626
meal. And I think of all our family

657
00:33:02,626 --> 00:33:05,720
traditions, that is probably my kids and

658
00:33:05,720 --> 00:33:10,806
my very favorite one. I love that. So

659
00:33:10,806 --> 00:33:12,314
unique to your family and something you

660
00:33:12,314 --> 00:33:15,690
came up just with all of you, that's

661
00:33:15,690 --> 00:33:17,386
obviously going to be special memories,

662
00:33:17,386 --> 00:33:20,218
even with the grandchildren. And some of

663
00:33:20,218 --> 00:33:22,026
the best family traditions are ones like

664
00:33:22,026 --> 00:33:23,626
that, that are just super special and

665
00:33:23,626 --> 00:33:25,614
unique to each family. And traditions

666
00:33:25,614 --> 00:33:27,662
really do draw family together and ground

667
00:33:27,662 --> 00:33:31,102
you. My family of origin, as well as the

668
00:33:31,102 --> 00:33:34,046
family where I'm the mom. We've lived in a

669
00:33:34,046 --> 00:33:35,614
lot of countries, and something that's

670
00:33:35,614 --> 00:33:37,686
always grounded us has been those

671
00:33:37,686 --> 00:33:39,330
traditions that we have carried with us

672
00:33:39,330 --> 00:33:41,298
and helps us know that if everything might

673
00:33:41,298 --> 00:33:43,378
be a little chaotic out there, but we're

674
00:33:43,378 --> 00:33:45,234
okay when we're still doing the thing we

675
00:33:45,234 --> 00:33:47,094
always do this time of year kind of thing.

676
00:33:47,094 --> 00:33:51,302
So it's really special. As we kind of

677
00:33:51,302 --> 00:33:53,062
finish up here, I wanted to give you a

678
00:33:53,062 --> 00:33:57,170
chance to sort of give us some of your

679
00:33:57,170 --> 00:33:58,406
imagination a little bit, because I know

680
00:33:58,406 --> 00:34:03,354
as a writer, you have this creativity, a

681
00:34:03,354 --> 00:34:05,542
part of yourself, and obviously your

682
00:34:05,542 --> 00:34:07,526
tradition of food is showing your creative

683
00:34:07,526 --> 00:34:11,194
style as well. But sometimes we get so

684
00:34:11,194 --> 00:34:15,246
stuck in our ruts of living life, living

685
00:34:15,246 --> 00:34:18,830
this grind. And Christmas time can

686
00:34:18,830 --> 00:34:21,054
sometimes be a time, at least here in the

687
00:34:21,054 --> 00:34:23,214
United States, where we take Christmas day

688
00:34:23,214 --> 00:34:24,766
off. Sometimes people get Christmas eve

689
00:34:24,766 --> 00:34:27,314
off or they're lucky a little bit more.

690
00:34:27,314 --> 00:34:29,154
And in other countries around the world

691
00:34:29,154 --> 00:34:31,602
where there is enough christians,

692
00:34:31,602 --> 00:34:33,106
sometimes people will get that holiday off

693
00:34:33,106 --> 00:34:35,474
as well. But as we're thinking about time

694
00:34:35,474 --> 00:34:37,202
off at the end of the year and spending

695
00:34:37,202 --> 00:34:41,426
time with family, as you've seen some

696
00:34:41,426 --> 00:34:43,926
shifts in our world as a grandma, and you

697
00:34:43,926 --> 00:34:45,622
look back to your childhood and look

698
00:34:45,622 --> 00:34:47,126
forward to the world your grandchildren

699
00:34:47,126 --> 00:34:49,766
are going to be living in, what is some of

700
00:34:49,766 --> 00:34:51,930
your imagination of what you hope for

701
00:34:51,930 --> 00:34:54,506
people as they continue to love one

702
00:34:54,506 --> 00:34:56,666
another and live out the love of God in

703
00:34:56,666 --> 00:34:58,314
their communities? What is something you

704
00:34:58,314 --> 00:35:03,422
hope to see in your grandkids generation?

705
00:35:03,422 --> 00:35:06,254
I haven't told any of my backstory. I grew

706
00:35:06,254 --> 00:35:09,818
up without Christmas. My family was very

707
00:35:09,818 --> 00:35:15,602
poor, and we had no money, nor did we know

708
00:35:15,602 --> 00:35:19,154
about Jesus, the coming of God to be with

709
00:35:19,154 --> 00:35:23,250
us. I didn't know about that until later.

710
00:35:23,250 --> 00:35:27,654
So I came from a place of no celebration

711
00:35:27,654 --> 00:35:34,726
and no joy and no traditions. And so that

712
00:35:34,726 --> 00:35:37,646
has made my own journey, especially as a

713
00:35:37,646 --> 00:35:40,170
mother and now as a grandmother, so much

714
00:35:40,170 --> 00:35:44,086
more thoughtful and so much more

715
00:35:44,086 --> 00:35:46,714
intentional. And that Christmas Eve dinner

716
00:35:46,714 --> 00:35:52,810
that I just described, that was from

717
00:35:52,810 --> 00:35:55,454
deciding, I want to start some traditions.

718
00:35:55,454 --> 00:35:58,142
I want to start some things that anchor

719
00:35:58,142 --> 00:36:01,406
our family. And there's no way that I want

720
00:36:01,406 --> 00:36:04,594
to prescribe to anybody what to do, what

721
00:36:04,594 --> 00:36:08,340
to say, what to think, how to celebrate.

722
00:36:08,340 --> 00:36:15,074
But my vision and my desire and my hope is

723
00:36:15,074 --> 00:36:17,350
that one four letter word that you already

724
00:36:17,350 --> 00:36:20,182
said, and that is love. And that is to

725
00:36:20,182 --> 00:36:24,022
have love for one another and that our

726
00:36:24,022 --> 00:36:27,602
love for one another, that it would be so

727
00:36:27,602 --> 00:36:32,634
full within our families, but that it

728
00:36:32,634 --> 00:36:35,126
would spread outward from our families. I

729
00:36:35,126 --> 00:36:38,474
don't think that our love is intended to

730
00:36:38,474 --> 00:36:42,346
be insular, that it's intended to bind us

731
00:36:42,346 --> 00:36:44,138
together just to our families. I think

732
00:36:44,138 --> 00:36:46,654
it's to bind us together so that then we

733
00:36:46,654 --> 00:36:49,374
are strengthened and filled, to go out

734
00:36:49,374 --> 00:36:51,886
into the world, to go out into the world

735
00:36:51,886 --> 00:36:54,686
and to take this radiant light that's been

736
00:36:54,686 --> 00:36:58,318
born within us and to go out into the

737
00:36:58,318 --> 00:37:01,698
places where it's dark and where it's cold

738
00:37:01,698 --> 00:37:05,358
and where it's lonely and for us to grow

739
00:37:05,358 --> 00:37:10,646
out in love and serve together. And that

740
00:37:10,646 --> 00:37:13,302
is my joy. That is my vision. That is my

741
00:37:13,302 --> 00:37:16,790
hope. And I see my children and my

742
00:37:16,790 --> 00:37:19,306
grandchildren beginning to do that within

743
00:37:19,306 --> 00:37:26,442
their own families. So I am so thankful.

744
00:37:26,442 --> 00:37:29,850
So beautiful, and I'm just so thrilled for

745
00:37:29,850 --> 00:37:34,234
you that you get to see that joy and hope

746
00:37:34,234 --> 00:37:38,106
fulfilled already. What a treasure and a

747
00:37:38,106 --> 00:37:40,074
gift. And I do hope that you and your

748
00:37:40,074 --> 00:37:41,854
families have a very special Christmas

749
00:37:41,854 --> 00:37:44,922
this year. I would love for you to let our

750
00:37:44,922 --> 00:37:46,706
audience know how they can find you in

751
00:37:46,706 --> 00:37:48,594
more of your writing. And if they want to

752
00:37:48,594 --> 00:37:51,506
sign up for coaching with you as well.

753
00:37:51,506 --> 00:37:53,554
Just let people know how they can find

754
00:37:53,554 --> 00:37:56,742
you. Yeah, so I have a website and it's

755
00:37:56,742 --> 00:37:59,634
just my name, so that's really easy.

756
00:37:59,634 --> 00:38:04,886
Leslie leylandfields.com and everything is

757
00:38:04,886 --> 00:38:08,834
on there, including photos of Alaska and

758
00:38:08,834 --> 00:38:10,566
fishing. We are commercial fishermen in

759
00:38:10,566 --> 00:38:12,710
the summer and we live out in the

760
00:38:12,710 --> 00:38:15,194
wilderness, so there's a lot going on in

761
00:38:15,194 --> 00:38:19,180
my life, but most of it is on the website.

762
00:38:19,180 --> 00:38:23,200
So please go there and visit and say

763
00:38:23,200 --> 00:38:27,182
hello. Yeah, definitely hope people do

764
00:38:27,182 --> 00:38:29,742
that from all around the world. Such a

765
00:38:29,742 --> 00:38:31,818
special thing to be coached by you. You've

766
00:38:31,818 --> 00:38:33,134
written a couple of really great books

767
00:38:33,134 --> 00:38:35,866
that people have read and then also

768
00:38:35,866 --> 00:38:38,290
helping people and give birth to their own

769
00:38:38,290 --> 00:38:40,066
story in written form. So thank you for

770
00:38:40,066 --> 00:38:42,274
the work that you do, and we're going to

771
00:38:42,274 --> 00:38:43,906
have you continue the conversation with

772
00:38:43,906 --> 00:38:46,258
our difference makers in our other

773
00:38:46,258 --> 00:38:47,662
community. And I'll ask you another

774
00:38:47,662 --> 00:38:49,894
question there for the paid community. But

775
00:38:49,894 --> 00:38:52,054
for now, thank you so much for being on

776
00:38:52,054 --> 00:38:54,726
today. I wish you, Leslie, and your whole

777
00:38:54,726 --> 00:38:57,906
family a very merry Christmas. Thank you,

778
00:38:57,906 --> 00:39:01,126
Lori, and you as well. And to everyone

779
00:39:01,126 --> 00:39:03,514
who's listening well, as. You are sitting

780
00:39:03,514 --> 00:39:06,330
either in a warm or a cold or somewhere in

781
00:39:06,330 --> 00:39:09,190
between plays listening to this Christmas

782
00:39:09,190 --> 00:39:13,054
Advent podcast, I hope that it has brought

783
00:39:13,054 --> 00:39:15,598
some warmth and some light into your heart

784
00:39:15,598 --> 00:39:17,326
and your mind and your spirit today. As

785
00:39:17,326 --> 00:39:20,830
you heard Leslie describe her experience

786
00:39:20,830 --> 00:39:23,370
of writing this book, radiant birth, and

787
00:39:23,370 --> 00:39:26,322
also collecting all the writings that she

788
00:39:26,322 --> 00:39:29,234
read through to prepare for bringing all

789
00:39:29,234 --> 00:39:31,474
these writings together in this book,

790
00:39:31,474 --> 00:39:34,322
which, as she said, was not intended to

791
00:39:34,322 --> 00:39:37,086
tell people what to think or to put

792
00:39:37,086 --> 00:39:40,278
thoughts in people's heads, to sway them

793
00:39:40,278 --> 00:39:41,942
in a particular direction, but just to

794
00:39:41,942 --> 00:39:43,890
offer you the thoughts and the

795
00:39:43,890 --> 00:39:45,446
perspectives of the different writers who

796
00:39:45,446 --> 00:39:48,306
are writing about this advent season

797
00:39:48,306 --> 00:39:50,966
throughout the years. And I hope that you

798
00:39:50,966 --> 00:39:52,474
will get your hands on this book. It's

799
00:39:52,474 --> 00:39:55,446
once again a beautiful cover and it has

800
00:39:55,446 --> 00:39:58,106
brought a lot of light into my life. A

801
00:39:58,106 --> 00:40:00,586
very special radiance this time of year,

802
00:40:00,586 --> 00:40:02,634
which for those of us who are in North

803
00:40:02,634 --> 00:40:04,894
America, I'm in northern California, which

804
00:40:04,894 --> 00:40:07,294
is about as north as I feel free to live.

805
00:40:07,294 --> 00:40:11,546
Being a tropical person myself and used to

806
00:40:11,546 --> 00:40:13,186
consistent amount of light all year round.

807
00:40:13,186 --> 00:40:16,286
As we get closer to the winter solstice,

808
00:40:16,286 --> 00:40:18,546
I'm always feeling the cold darkness and

809
00:40:18,546 --> 00:40:21,986
the longer, darker days in a very embodied

810
00:40:21,986 --> 00:40:25,758
way. And also just my own experience of

811
00:40:25,758 --> 00:40:29,286
the winter solstice was three years ago at

812
00:40:29,286 --> 00:40:32,370
this .1 of the darkest days of my life, of

813
00:40:32,370 --> 00:40:34,482
experiencing a very spiritually abusive

814
00:40:34,482 --> 00:40:37,618
environment in the office where two

815
00:40:37,618 --> 00:40:39,686
pastors kind of really mobbed me and

816
00:40:39,686 --> 00:40:42,154
ambushed me and berated me with questions.

817
00:40:42,154 --> 00:40:46,182
And it was an especially dark day of

818
00:40:46,182 --> 00:40:49,946
December 21 and 2020 for me. And so every

819
00:40:49,946 --> 00:40:52,278
year I celebrate my freedom day and look

820
00:40:52,278 --> 00:40:54,926
for the light, remember that moment and

821
00:40:54,926 --> 00:40:56,558
the light that God gave me in the middle

822
00:40:56,558 --> 00:40:59,086
of that darkness. And also knowing that

823
00:40:59,086 --> 00:41:01,870
some of us experiencing this Christmas

824
00:41:01,870 --> 00:41:04,606
season are experiencing darkness, whether

825
00:41:04,606 --> 00:41:08,494
you've walked through spiritual abuse or

826
00:41:08,494 --> 00:41:10,882
emotional abuse or abuse of any kind, or

827
00:41:10,882 --> 00:41:13,026
also whether you are sitting right now in

828
00:41:13,026 --> 00:41:16,450
a place where peace does not reign, I know

829
00:41:16,450 --> 00:41:19,110
that many of our friends, including I have

830
00:41:19,110 --> 00:41:20,966
friends who are palestinian Christians

831
00:41:20,966 --> 00:41:23,974
from Bethlehem. And Bethlehem is not what

832
00:41:23,974 --> 00:41:26,502
it has been in years past this year. And

833
00:41:26,502 --> 00:41:28,970
even the Christmas celebrations that are

834
00:41:28,970 --> 00:41:32,106
public have been canceled because of the

835
00:41:32,106 --> 00:41:33,786
situation there. And there is a darkness

836
00:41:33,786 --> 00:41:39,366
that is really heavy in the place where

837
00:41:39,366 --> 00:41:43,134
Jesus was born and where we worldwide

838
00:41:43,134 --> 00:41:44,686
think about this city every year. And

839
00:41:44,686 --> 00:41:47,934
there is a darkness and a heaviness where

840
00:41:47,934 --> 00:41:50,830
we sing about joy and peace. And this

841
00:41:50,830 --> 00:41:53,150
year, it's not as easily or readily

842
00:41:53,150 --> 00:41:55,594
available to many of us, especially those

843
00:41:55,594 --> 00:41:58,254
in this part of the world that we are so

844
00:41:58,254 --> 00:42:01,666
mindful about right now. And I also am

845
00:42:01,666 --> 00:42:03,666
just mindful of those of you who have lost

846
00:42:03,666 --> 00:42:07,506
a loved one very recently. We have friends

847
00:42:07,506 --> 00:42:10,306
of our family, a beloved mother that

848
00:42:10,306 --> 00:42:13,286
passed away, a friend of my husband's

849
00:42:13,286 --> 00:42:14,978
where he was growing up in Thailand that

850
00:42:14,978 --> 00:42:16,486
passed away recently. I know many of you

851
00:42:16,486 --> 00:42:19,050
have lost loved ones this time of year, in

852
00:42:19,050 --> 00:42:21,690
past years, and this is a reminder of that

853
00:42:21,690 --> 00:42:24,058
loss. Or many of you are walking through

854
00:42:24,058 --> 00:42:27,082
difficult situations, such as a surprising

855
00:42:27,082 --> 00:42:29,654
health diagnosis in this season. And

856
00:42:29,654 --> 00:42:32,700
Christmas is not what it was in years

857
00:42:32,700 --> 00:42:35,698
past. And maybe you also are celebrating

858
00:42:35,698 --> 00:42:37,262
Hanukkah this time of year. And this has

859
00:42:37,262 --> 00:42:40,650
also been a time of loss and mourning and

860
00:42:40,650 --> 00:42:42,494
grief because of what your family has gone

861
00:42:42,494 --> 00:42:45,042
through, or maybe what through relatives

862
00:42:45,042 --> 00:42:48,100
have been going through in Israel at the

863
00:42:48,100 --> 00:42:50,158
moment. I know there are many

864
00:42:50,158 --> 00:42:52,946
perspectives, many tragedies, many losses

865
00:42:52,946 --> 00:42:54,766
that can come at a time of year where

866
00:42:54,766 --> 00:42:56,774
you're expecting joy and hope and peace

867
00:42:56,774 --> 00:42:59,206
and light, and if you're needing just to

868
00:42:59,206 --> 00:43:03,446
be reminded of that, I do really encourage

869
00:43:03,446 --> 00:43:05,894
you to pick up this book, radiant birth,

870
00:43:05,894 --> 00:43:07,906
because it's not one person's perspective.

871
00:43:07,906 --> 00:43:09,990
It's many people's writings throughout

872
00:43:09,990 --> 00:43:12,426
time that have shown us where the light is

873
00:43:12,426 --> 00:43:14,934
and where the radiance iS. And even in the

874
00:43:14,934 --> 00:43:17,354
darkest of days, my experience is that if

875
00:43:17,354 --> 00:43:19,626
we look for the light, we will find it,

876
00:43:19,626 --> 00:43:22,354
and it will somehow bring us comfort and

877
00:43:22,354 --> 00:43:25,214
peace in a very embodied way. And so

878
00:43:25,214 --> 00:43:27,182
whether you're needing to take a walk

879
00:43:27,182 --> 00:43:30,174
outside in know one or 2 hours, where you

880
00:43:30,174 --> 00:43:32,574
experience light in northern Alaska right

881
00:43:32,574 --> 00:43:34,206
now, or whether you're blessed to be in

882
00:43:34,206 --> 00:43:36,522
the tropical warm zones of the world,

883
00:43:36,522 --> 00:43:38,334
experiencing a lot of sunshine, or

884
00:43:38,334 --> 00:43:39,538
particularly in the southern hemisphere

885
00:43:39,538 --> 00:43:40,994
where you're getting a lot of sunshine

886
00:43:40,994 --> 00:43:43,538
these days, I hope that wherever you are,

887
00:43:43,538 --> 00:43:45,374
that you will look for that light and the

888
00:43:45,374 --> 00:43:47,586
radiance, and that you will just allow it

889
00:43:47,586 --> 00:43:50,486
to soak into your eyes and into your body

890
00:43:50,486 --> 00:43:52,694
and into your soul in ways that give you

891
00:43:52,694 --> 00:43:56,326
just a moment of comfort and peace when

892
00:43:56,326 --> 00:43:58,520
the world seems to be a little bit out of

893
00:43:58,520 --> 00:44:01,402
control. And I know that many of you are

894
00:44:01,402 --> 00:44:03,194
in the zones of the world where you're

895
00:44:03,194 --> 00:44:05,814
making a difference and trying to bring

896
00:44:05,814 --> 00:44:07,626
healing and peace, especially those of you

897
00:44:07,626 --> 00:44:10,694
who are working in the area of Israel and

898
00:44:10,694 --> 00:44:13,374
Gaza right now. And I just thank you for

899
00:44:13,374 --> 00:44:16,014
the great work that you do and hope that

900
00:44:16,014 --> 00:44:18,622
you are also finding ways to experience

901
00:44:18,622 --> 00:44:20,478
light in that particular part of the

902
00:44:20,478 --> 00:44:23,338
world, especially when the whole world's

903
00:44:23,338 --> 00:44:26,558
eyes are on this location right now. And I

904
00:44:26,558 --> 00:44:31,826
pray that you find peace very soon for

905
00:44:31,826 --> 00:44:33,506
your loved ones and your friends that you

906
00:44:33,506 --> 00:44:35,634
are working with and trying to bring hope

907
00:44:35,634 --> 00:44:38,226
to there. We know that many decision

908
00:44:38,226 --> 00:44:40,710
makers around the world are having to make

909
00:44:40,710 --> 00:44:43,590
hard calls, both politically and in the

910
00:44:43,590 --> 00:44:45,634
business world, the education world, the

911
00:44:45,634 --> 00:44:47,926
nonprofit world. And for those of you who

912
00:44:47,926 --> 00:44:50,502
are doing that, we also hope that you are

913
00:44:50,502 --> 00:44:52,442
looking for the light and making decisions

914
00:44:52,442 --> 00:44:54,474
based on the light, because the darkness

915
00:44:54,474 --> 00:44:56,394
can sometimes feel like it's overcoming

916
00:44:56,394 --> 00:44:58,906
us, or we don't feel we have good choices

917
00:44:58,906 --> 00:45:01,994
that we can make. So, once again, all the

918
00:45:01,994 --> 00:45:05,134
more reason to pick up this book and to

919
00:45:05,134 --> 00:45:08,554
just dig into the words of others

920
00:45:08,554 --> 00:45:10,426
throughout time. I'm so appreciative of

921
00:45:10,426 --> 00:45:11,646
Leslie and the work that she's done in

922
00:45:11,646 --> 00:45:13,166
this book, the way she's compiled these,

923
00:45:13,166 --> 00:45:14,746
the way she did so much research and

924
00:45:14,746 --> 00:45:17,278
reading to bring it together in this form,

925
00:45:17,278 --> 00:45:19,298
and it's such a gift to us. And to the

926
00:45:19,298 --> 00:45:21,118
world, and along with many of her other

927
00:45:21,118 --> 00:45:22,386
writings and other books. Check out her

928
00:45:22,386 --> 00:45:24,706
other books I mentioned in the intro. She

929
00:45:24,706 --> 00:45:27,506
is an award winning author and her books

930
00:45:27,506 --> 00:45:29,186
have really meant a lot to many people.

931
00:45:29,186 --> 00:45:31,094
She's written 14 books, not just this one.

932
00:45:31,094 --> 00:45:34,166
So check out her other books as well and

933
00:45:34,166 --> 00:45:36,902
stay tuned. Those of you who are in our

934
00:45:36,902 --> 00:45:38,746
difference maker community because we are

935
00:45:38,746 --> 00:45:40,774
going to be dropping a special exclusive

936
00:45:40,774 --> 00:45:43,594
episode for you where she goes into a

937
00:45:43,594 --> 00:45:45,914
little more deeper about her experiences

938
00:45:45,914 --> 00:45:49,254
around the world. She has some kind of

939
00:45:49,254 --> 00:45:52,266
wild tales in there of things that she's

940
00:45:52,266 --> 00:45:54,286
experienced, both just her and her husband

941
00:45:54,286 --> 00:45:56,906
and as a family raising her six kids and

942
00:45:56,906 --> 00:46:00,442
choices they have made to make travel a

943
00:46:00,442 --> 00:46:02,910
priority and the educational nature of

944
00:46:02,910 --> 00:46:04,414
travel itself. So we dig a little deeper

945
00:46:04,414 --> 00:46:06,062
with her in our difference maker

946
00:46:06,062 --> 00:46:08,406
community. So we're releasing an exclusive

947
00:46:08,406 --> 00:46:10,274
episode for you there. And if you are not

948
00:46:10,274 --> 00:46:11,874
yet a part of our difference maker

949
00:46:11,874 --> 00:46:13,618
community, this is a very warm welcome for

950
00:46:13,618 --> 00:46:15,214
you to join. Maybe give yourself a

951
00:46:15,214 --> 00:46:17,794
Christmas gift this year. It's only $5 a

952
00:46:17,794 --> 00:46:20,518
month to join at our most basic level and

953
00:46:20,518 --> 00:46:22,886
you can cancel anytime. But just yeah, try

954
00:46:22,886 --> 00:46:24,754
us out for a month. There's tons of

955
00:46:24,754 --> 00:46:26,310
exclusive episodes in there and other

956
00:46:26,310 --> 00:46:28,882
content. You get to vote on some upcoming

957
00:46:28,882 --> 00:46:30,854
episodes. If you are interested in helping

958
00:46:30,854 --> 00:46:33,914
us plan for 2024 and want to see some

959
00:46:33,914 --> 00:46:35,626
particular topics covered, you can go in

960
00:46:35,626 --> 00:46:38,170
there and vote in our upcoming poll. And

961
00:46:38,170 --> 00:46:39,546
yeah, we'd love to have you in there to

962
00:46:39,546 --> 00:46:40,938
dig a little deeper with some of our

963
00:46:40,938 --> 00:46:43,146
guests where we go into these exclusive

964
00:46:43,146 --> 00:46:47,742
episodes with them. So that's

965
00:46:47,742 --> 00:46:50,222
www.patreon.com a worldofdifference once

966
00:46:50,222 --> 00:46:55,526
again, that is www. Dot Patreon

967
00:46:55,526 --> 00:46:56,386
comaworldofdifference where you can join

968
00:46:56,386 --> 00:46:59,646
for as little as a cup of your favorite

969
00:46:59,646 --> 00:47:02,754
latte at your local coffee shop. $5 for a

970
00:47:02,754 --> 00:47:05,778
whole month of exclusive content and we'd

971
00:47:05,778 --> 00:47:07,298
love for you to join us today to go a

972
00:47:07,298 --> 00:47:09,350
little bit deeper with us there. Once

973
00:47:09,350 --> 00:47:11,126
again, thank you for all of you who are

974
00:47:11,126 --> 00:47:12,710
making a difference around the world,

975
00:47:12,710 --> 00:47:15,474
happy holidays to those of you that

976
00:47:15,474 --> 00:47:18,034
celebrate, whether it's Hanukah or

977
00:47:18,034 --> 00:47:20,594
Christmas, and of course upcoming New

978
00:47:20,594 --> 00:47:23,030
Year's Eve celebrations all around the

979
00:47:23,030 --> 00:47:25,014
world. So we are so grateful for each of

980
00:47:25,014 --> 00:47:27,126
you that listen, this means so much to me

981
00:47:27,126 --> 00:47:28,646
that you would listen and dig in deeper

982
00:47:28,646 --> 00:47:30,686
with us to make a difference. And I just

983
00:47:30,686 --> 00:47:33,582
want to say, may you have peace, hope and

984
00:47:33,582 --> 00:47:35,146
light in your life wherever you're

985
00:47:35,146 --> 00:47:37,358
listening to this podcast and keep making