Michelle Cassandra Johnson – You Are Protected

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My name is Victor Furman. Some call me The Voice.
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I've always been fascinated with human nature, spirituality, science, and
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the crossroads at which they meet. Join me now and
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we will explore these topics and so much more with
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fascinating guests, authors, and experts who will guide us to
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Destination Unlimited. Between global uncertainty, constant digital overstimulation, and the
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heavy emotional toll of the collective climate, today's mystics are
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running on empty. Many in the magical community know how
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to cast a circle or perform a manifestation ritual, but
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they struggle with the foundational requirement of the craft. how
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to maintain their own energetic boundaries and avoid spiritual burnout.
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My guest this week on Destination Unlimited, acclaimed mystic, activist,
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and intuitive healer, Michelle Cassandra Johnson, says with a robust
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spiritual hygiene plan, you are protected. Michelle Cassandra Johnson is
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a beloved teacher, activist, and clinical social worker with a
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background of over two decades of practice. She's led dismantling
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racism work in many settings, and her work centers on
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healing from individual and collective trauma, coming back into wholeness,
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and aligning the mind, body, spirit, and heart. She's the
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author of several books, including Illuminating Our True Nature. Her
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website is michellecjohnson.com, and she joins me this week to
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share her path and new book, You Are Protected, invoking
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spiritual support to sustain your energy. Please join me in
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welcoming to Destination Unlimited, Michelle Cassandra Johnson. Welcome, Michelle.
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Thank you so much. I'm happy to be here.
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Michelle, please share with our listeners your early path and
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the foundational lessons that you learned that shaped your life.
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I love this question and to begin in this place.
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In this way, I was a pensive child, I will say.
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I was aware that there was some connection and recognition
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from spirit that I was here in this incarnation and
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body when I was very, very young, even connected to
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how I came into the world and my birth story
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and the struggles around coming into this body at this time.
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And I was a child who understood that the universe
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and spirit were in deep relationship with me and conversation
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with me, sending signals often in the more than human world.
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And this continues now, but sending symbols to me through nature.
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So four leaf clovers, which I found since I was
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a very young child, hearts in nature, in many different
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places and other symbols and signs to let me know
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I'm here, I'm present, and that I'm not alone. That
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feels really prominent as a memory from my childhood. I
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also grew up in a home where my mother, I
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grew up with my mom and my brother. My mother
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was Christian. She still is. deeply devoted to God. And
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so was my grandmother and many of the people in
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my family. And so I named this because I grew
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up going to a Black Baptist church from the time
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I was born until I was about 18 when I
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went to college. And I still attended church, but not
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as much. When I was a child, we went every
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Sunday and my grandmother went every Wednesday and Sunday. My grandmother, Dorothy,
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my maternal grandmother, is very present in my life. She
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transitioned in 2017, but she's the ancestor I feel the
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most around me all of the time. And so I
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watched many of the women on the maternal side in
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my family pray and engage in ritual and teach me
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about what it meant to be devoted, which amplified what
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I think I already knew about spirit and our connection
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to spirit and also the idea that we are divine beings, um,
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and animate and that every, uh, sentient being is divine
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in some way. I didn't really have words for what
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I just shared with you when I was five or
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six or 10 or even 15. And it's, this is,
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you know, upon reflection and looking back at the lessons
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that I observed, um, from the more than human world.
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And then my family, um, about ceremony and about God
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and about this idea that we're here in these human
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bodies for a short amount of time. We have big
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work to do, but a short amount of time. And
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so to make meaning of this time that we have,
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that is a central lesson I learned from my mom
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and from my grandmother, for sure. The only other thing
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I'll name about my path, which there's a lot more,
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but is that I was a curious child and Just
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the other day, my husband said to me, he said,
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you ask God-like questions. And I said, well, what do
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you mean? And he said, just you ask big questions,
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like these questions about the universe. And he likes them,
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but sometimes he comes home from work and I'm asking
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all these God-like, I'm putting that in quotes, questions where
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they're big questions. So I've been curious since I came
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into being in this body. And I actually really appreciate
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that curiosity and the mystery that accompanies it.
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Absolutely. You share the story of your maternal grandmother and
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her influence on you. What did you learn from her
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and how did you incorporate this in your own life?
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I have learned so much from Dorothy. I learned about
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service and showing up in the world for others. I
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also learned about showing up for oneself from her in
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many ways, but she engaged in a ritual every morning
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that I didn't understand was a ritual at the time,
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but where she drank coffee, she would read her daily devotional,
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she would pray. And I realized it was her time
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to come into herself and to remember who she was
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and that she was held and loved by spirit, by God,
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by ancestors and whomever else she called into her space.
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So I learned about the importance of tending to one's
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inner sanctuary and before entering the outer sanctuary of the world.
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Not that they're separate, but the importance of like, what
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do I do to tend myself as I prepare to
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go out in the world and be of service in
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some way? I also learned about, um, bravery and like,
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and courage from Dorothy, um, and strength. Like she, so resilient, uh,
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and so very present, um, Even now, I mean, she
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transitioned years ago, but so very present. And her stick-to-it-ness,
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I would say, is something I learned about. So those
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are a few things.
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How did your spiritual path manifest?
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This is a God-like question, a big question. I think
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it manifested from being in the sanctuary of the Black
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Baptist Church, in which I grew up, and listening to
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the choir. sing. That was my favorite part of church.
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And really that has to do with the vibration and
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sound and movement and history and ancestry and remembering that
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we're bigger than our bodies. That's where the seed was planted.
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But then after I turned 18 and went to church
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less and less, that kind of church, I started to
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explore other spiritualities and lineages and started to practice, for example, yoga,
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attended Unitarian services, Unitarian Universalist services, and definitely delved into
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an interspiritual path. And I actually attended a 16-month spiritual
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direction program that started three years ago and am now
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have introduced that into my healing work. And this interspiritual
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path and program really drew from various lineages of Buddhism
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and Sufism and Christianity and many other lineages, paganism, right?
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Many other lineages of this path where we believe in
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something bigger than us, whatever name we might call that.
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So I consider myself to be interspiritual, but I think
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it all started in that vibratory space of recognizing in
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church and the sound of song, recognizing, oh, there's something
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else that moves here with us, right? There's something I
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can't see that feels intangible. There's something that, I mean,
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it's God, right? That feels ever-present, omnipresent is what I
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would say.
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We have many listeners who practice different forms of yoga.
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You had mentioned yoga coming into your life. How did
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that happen? And what lessons did you learn from the practice?
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It's so fascinating because no one in my family practiced
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what they called yoga.
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Right?
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Or the yoga that I understand, that I've trained in,
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that I offer, that I teach. But yoga is about
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union and connection to spirit through these different technologies, like
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working with the breath or moving the body, right? Or
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discipline or devotion. or drawing energy into oneself, right? Withdrawing
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in a way to come back to oneself or concentration
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or single point in concentration. I do think my family
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did practice those things in the context of that Christian
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church and on their own spiritual paths from the lineages
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they drew from. But yoga came into my life, even
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though I didn't have anyone in my family who talked
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about yoga, When I was 14, I somehow I found
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a book at the library about yoga. I don't know
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why I was interested in it. I didn't even know
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what yoga was. And it was this book with this
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person who was engaged in all of these different asanas
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or postures, yogic postures. There was some philosophy in the
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book as well. And I studied that book with curiosity
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about what this was, right? I just didn't understand it.
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And then ended up practicing some of the postures and
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asanas and noticing, oh, it feels this way, right, when
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I place my hand or foot here or when I
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deepen my breath in my body. And then in college,
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I took a yoga class, what was called a yoga class.
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I actually took many, but it was a semester-long physical
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education class that included yoga. And it wasn't presented in
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that space as a spiritual path. it was really presented
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as exercise or asanas, working with the physical body, which
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of course is only one part of yoga. And then
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I went to graduate school for social work, for clinical
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social work, and I experienced an assault actually during my
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first semester of graduate school. And a friend right after
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that assault, I think he was very present to the
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fact that I was disassociating from my body and he
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was a yogi and wanted to invite me to engage
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in a practice that might help me come back into
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my body in a safe way. And so I started
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practicing yoga and the teacher of that class presented the
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yogic path as a spiritual path. So there was no
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separation from asana or movement, right? Or breath practice or
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meditation that wasn't separate from spirit. And that's when I
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like caught the bug of, oh, I need to deepen
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my study of this. What is this? And from that
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point on, practiced yoga in many different ways, in many
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different spaces, learned a lot of different lineages or ways
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to practice yoga. And it's a huge part of my
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life and definitely a path I'm devoted to now and
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something that I offer to others now. one-to-one, for healing,
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but also within group spaces.
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You are a prolific author. Congratulations on your just-published new book,
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You Are Protected. Congratulations on that.
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Thank you so much.
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You're welcome. Now, before we discuss this amazing work, let's
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look at some of your previous books, starting with Skill
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in Action, Radicalizing Your Yoga Practice to Create a Just World.
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What do you share with listeners in that?
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Skill in Action, yes, as you mentioned, it was my
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first book. And it actually began with the desire I
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had that would not leave me, the desire to apply
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the teachings of yoga to this present context we're in.
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You know, a lot of the philosophy, it can be
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difficult for people to really integrate that into their lives,
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particularly if they practice yoga and it's not directly connected
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to their own DNA. that path, right, their biological path
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or journey. And so I learned about the philosophy from
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the Yoga Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita, which is the
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text that I study the most, and really wanted to
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think about, well, how do I live my yoga? If
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this is a spiritual path, how do I live my yoga?
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And skill and action came from that place of wanting
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to really, in some ways, ignite people's path and invite
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them into being of service to others, but also into
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deep analysis about the ways in which the world of
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wellness and even spirituality, these worlds and realms, the business
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of them can be exclusive. Of course, we understand the
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paths of spirituality and yoga as something that's expansive, but
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the way we, and even wellness is expansive, but the
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way that we might offer these in the context of
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a capitalist culture can be so exclusive. And so I
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wanted to bring attention to that and invite people to
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think about, well, what contribution can I make to the
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world through this path of yoga if I live this path?
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So that is where skill and action came from. And
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I have created so many bodies of work from that,
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you know, teacher trainings and working with studio owners or
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community holders who in some way practice yoga and offer
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yoga training people to, I've mentored people around the concept
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of skill and action, which some of your listeners might
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know that that phrase skill and action is from the
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Bhagavad Gita. There's a verse there that is yoga is
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skill and action. And when I heard that, I felt
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that sense of that inner fire and internal flame become bigger.
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So that's a little bit about skill and action.
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Please tell us about the Wisdom of the Hive, what
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honeybees can teach us about collective well-being.
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I love that you asked this because I am a beekeeper.
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I have three hives now and they're doing well. I
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sit with them every day. I sat with them this
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morning and I co-wrote the Wisdom of the Hive with
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my best friend, Amy Bertain, who is also a beekeeper,
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a bee tenderer. We both love to observe the bees
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and have learned more about community care from the bees
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than any other species we've come into contact with. That said,
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we could look at the mycelial network. We could look
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at a grove of trees. We could look at a
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body of water. We could look at a mountain or
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mountain range and learn a lot about community and the
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larger ecosystem and our place in it. And because the
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bees are superorganism, which means they do not think of
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themselves as individuals, they only think of themselves as an
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extension of the hive, we can learn a lot about
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what it might mean to embody this superorganism way of being.
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We're an extension of one another. We are oneness, right?
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We come from one place. And there's so much in
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our world that makes us forget that. So the wisdom
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of the hive is a call toward looking at the
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the honeybee, the hive, every part of it, the hum
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of the hive, the connection to the larger ecosystem, and
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then reflecting on what we might learn to steward and
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shepherd ourselves through these times in which there's so much
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divisiveness and polarization.
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Absolutely. We need collective unity and respect and love more
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than ever.
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Absolutely.
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And a space for us. A Guide for Leading Black, Indigenous,
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and People of Color Affinity Groups. What inspired this and
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what do you share with readers?
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I have been a racial equity educator and space holder
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for that kind of transformation for almost 30 years. And
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I also live in a black body. Of course, I
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have many other things, but I name that. just to
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add another layer of context for this particular, the book
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you just mentioned is space for us. And so after
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years of leading racial equity trainings within multiracial spaces, within
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those trainings, often we would offer what are called affinity groups,
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and they can happen based on many identities, not just
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racial identity, And so a space for us is a
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guide for folks engaged in healing work, community work, racial
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equity work, perhaps other forms of equity work because they're interrelated.
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It's a guide for them to think about how do
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I set up the space? How do I hold the space?
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What do I need to understand? It has frameworks included
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in it. It has facilitation tips.
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It has.
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case studies, if you will, related to what might come
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up in an affinity group, a multiracial, even if it's
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just folks of color, what might come up in that space.
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So it came from community and people asking, how do
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we hold this kind of space? How do we hold
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change in this way?
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My wife in her mid-60s began to study history and
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museum science in And one of the eye openers she
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had was about cultural appropriation. Please define this for us
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and what actions may we take to correct it and
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honor the source cultures?
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Yes. Cultural appropriation, I first learned about it actually in
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a dismantling racism training as I was training up to
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become a racial equity educator. with a collaborative. And cultural
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appropriation is really when we take something from a culture
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that's not our own. So we extract it from a culture.
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And I'll give an example of this in just a moment.
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without appreciation for that culture or without a relationship with
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that particular culture. So it's very transactional and extractive. Cultural
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appreciation is different than that. We have a relationship, there's reciprocity,
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that principle of reciprocity is present when we appreciate a culture.
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And I'll also say, given the context, and then I'll
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give the example of And I mean, the times in
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which we live and particularly in spiritual spaces, there's a
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lot of cultural appropriation. And so often people are profiting
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from practices in some way. It might be financial, it
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might be spiritual, it might be emotional or mental or psychic.
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They're profiting from practices in some way that are not
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connected to their source culture. And I think there's a
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way that we can engage relationally with other cultures and practices.
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I mentioned I'm interspiritual, right? And so that means I
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am connected to many different lineages, but I also want
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to think about how do I give back and how
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do I do this relationally? We talked about yoga earlier.
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So yoga is a good example, particularly a westernized version
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of yoga, where millions of people practice yoga here. And
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some people have no relationship with it being a spiritual
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practice or the place from which it originated. I learned
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a lineage that we can trace back to India. There
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are other lineages like Kemetic yoga, which we can trace
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back to Africa. But I learned this lineage that's based
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in India. And what I try to do is honor
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that practice by thinking about who I learned from. So
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learning from teachers who are from that source culture, also
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naming people, what cultural appropriation is, and thinking about learning
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Sanskrit and using that in class, if that makes sense,
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as I'm teaching. Learning the intentions behind mantras as I
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share them and chant them and the invocations that I offer.
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Storytelling and really developing a relationship with the deity that
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I might be telling a story about, not just sharing
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it because I heard it or read it, right? Developing
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a deep relationship with these gods and goddesses. So again,
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that's relational and that's deep study and discipline and devotion.
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These are some things we can think about that in
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some ways, I think, repair that extractive way of being,
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which really comes from like convenience. We kind of take
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and don't think about where things come from. And so
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the invitation with cultural appreciation is to think about where
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do things come from? And if I know that, what
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does that call me into versus appropriation taking?
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My guest, Michelle Cassandra Johnson, her brand new book, You
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Are Protected, Invoking Spiritual Support to Sustain Your Energy. Michelle,
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please share with our listeners where they can get all
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of your books and find out more about you and
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your wonderful work.
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Yes. My website, michellecjohnson.com, so it's my name, michellecjohnson.com, is
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the best place to keep up with me. There are
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events that I offer regularly. virtually and also in person
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all over the place if people are interested in that.
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I used to host my own podcast. There are episodes there.
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There's writing there and there's a books tab there. You
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Are Protected is my seventh book. And so everybody can
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find out information about all of my books on my website.
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And I'm also on social media on Instagram, Skill in Action.
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The title of my first book is my handle there.
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That's a great place to keep up with me as well.
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And we'll be back with more of Michelle after these
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words on the OM Times Radio Network.
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The cutting edge of conscious radio, OM Times Radio, IOM FM.
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OM Times Magazine is one of the leading online content
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00:24:05.349 --> 00:24:10.680
providers of positivity, wellness, and personal empowerment. A philanthropic organization,
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00:24:11.039 --> 00:24:14.680
their net proceeds are funneled to support worldwide charity initiatives
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00:24:14.859 --> 00:24:19.119
via Humanity Healing International. Through their commitment to creating community
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and providing conscious content, they aspire to uplift humanity on
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a global scale. OM Times, co-creating a more conscious lifestyle.
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Back on Destination Unlimited, my guest this week, Michelle Cassandra Johnson,
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her brand new book, You Are Protected, invoking spiritual support
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to sustain your energy. Michelle, you begin with a discussion
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of becoming a vessel. How do you define a vessel?
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I'm just chuckling because I'm thinking about my grandmother Dorothy
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again and the story that I shared about her ritual
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in the morning and tending one's inner sanctuary and how
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that connects to the recognition that we are sacred vessels.
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We are channels. We are conduits for change, whatever that
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might be, whether that is one-to-one with people or in
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groups or our work and practice and connection with the
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more than human world, whether that is through energy work
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we might do or song, sound, movement, or facilitation, right?
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We're all vessels for change. And I actually first really
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thought about being a sacred vessel. I think I was
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aware of it, but a friend named it to me.
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She reflected it back to me. She mirrored it. She said,
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thank you for being a sacred vessel. And this was
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after I had written A Space for Us and it
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had launched in the world. And this was a colleague
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of mine. And she just thanked me, gave me all
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my flowers for being a sacred vessel and allowing healing
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medicine to move through me in the form of words
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that people hear and that they read and reflection questions
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and exercises or activities for contemplation that people connect with.
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So I love the idea of being a vessel, which
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we know vessels, like I have a glass of water
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next to me, it holds water that is nourishing to me.
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And sometimes there are vessels like a bowl that may
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not yet hold something, but will in the future or
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holds energy, right? Or air or hold space. There's emptiness
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within that. So there are a lot of different ways
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we can think about the vessels around us and the
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vessel within us. And I think this calls us into intention.
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What do I want to do with this opportunity to
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be a sacred vessel and channel what wants to move
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through me? How does it want to move through me?
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How can I get out of the way so that
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it can? This is some of how I think about
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a vessel, right? It holds something with intention that is sacred.
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And what are some of the ways we may protect
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the vessel that we become?
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This is huge. Because it's not as if some of
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what is happening now is new, although I do in
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the world, I do think that the intensity of these
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times and technology and sort of the rapid pace at
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which we consume information, stuff is coming at us, which
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can overwhelm the vessel, right? Which speaks to the importance
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of caring for this? I've called it a vessel, an
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inner sanctuary. How do we tend to ourselves on all
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different levels, not just the physical body, right? How do
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I take care of my emotional landscape and my mind
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and my heart and my spirit and my soul and
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my soul's calling, right? And my energy body, how do
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these things happen? And what I've seen through my work
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as a space holder, a facilitator, someone who interacts with
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a lot of people and has a deep connection with
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the more than human world is that, um, there's a
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way folks who might identify as caregivers in some way, right? Um,
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there's a way that we can give and give and
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give and deplete our energy. Um, and there's a way
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for us to give and show up and be in
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service while tending ourselves. Um, and while bringing energy back
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to us so that we can continue to show up.
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And so protection in this way is not, and I
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wrote about this, it's not armor. It's not like self-defense
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in the way we may have been conditioned to think
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about self-defense. So I'm, I'm not defending myself against someone.
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I want to be open and relational and warm and,
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and connect. Um, And it is about understanding that how
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I care for myself is connected to how I care
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for the collective and that I need to turn toward
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myself enough to think about what do I need to
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sustain my energy so that I can show up fully
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in this world and contribute the medicine that wants to
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move through this vessel. This is how I think about protection.
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And the book talks about many different ways that we
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can protect our energy from And the importance of why,
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because I've just witnessed people burn out. And I think
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the context, the cultural and social and political context is
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enough to burn someone out, regardless of the work they
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do in the world. It's enough to overwhelm the system
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and cause disruption. And so you are protected as part
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of the medicine and antidote to this depletion and overwhelm.
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It is a way to come back to one center.
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And as you put it, we must pour into ourselves
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as much as we pour into others and the world.
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Yes, absolutely. Yes. And I think this can be a
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challenge for so many reasons. And I also think we,
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I'm not positioning myself as a martyr, right? And so
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I understand that archetypal energy and role and the importance
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of that and the way people embody that. And I
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want to continue to show up for a long time
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if that is what is in the plan, right? If
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that's part of the unfolding, I don't have control over that.
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But if that's part of what wants to, needs to,
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if that's part of what's been written for me, I
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would like to continue to show up. And so I
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need to fill my cup and fill this vessel as
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much as I pour into community. Because eventually something gives, right?
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Meaning when we give and give and give and deplete ourselves,
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the body breaks down. We may not be able to
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think as clearly. We may feel uninspired. We may not
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be able to tap into that creative force that moves
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through all of us or that life force, prana, that energy.
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We may feel despondent in a way or lost or untethered.
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And so this pouring into our own cup is a
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00:31:12.569 --> 00:31:15.329
tether to the here and now and our soul's calling.
479
00:31:15.589 --> 00:31:17.490
And that's why it feels so important to me.
480
00:31:18.490 --> 00:31:21.650
As I shared to you offline, I became a caretaker
481
00:31:21.670 --> 00:31:24.630
at a very young age. And continued to do that
482
00:31:24.670 --> 00:31:28.250
throughout my adult life until my early 40s when it
483
00:31:28.309 --> 00:31:30.670
actually started affecting my health because I was running around
484
00:31:30.750 --> 00:31:34.029
taking care of everybody else except myself. And when I
485
00:31:34.089 --> 00:31:37.119
made that decision, a poem came through me. Can I
486
00:31:37.150 --> 00:31:37.799
share that with you?
487
00:31:37.819 --> 00:31:39.400
Yes, please.
488
00:31:39.859 --> 00:31:43.400
The poem is called The Healing Power of No. A
489
00:31:43.480 --> 00:31:47.920
time comes for choosing rather than losing the essence that
490
00:31:48.019 --> 00:31:52.359
makes us so. And in the bestowing, there's power in knowing.
491
00:31:52.869 --> 00:31:56.849
the freedom that comes with no. When said with compassion,
492
00:31:57.150 --> 00:32:01.450
not angry in fashion, and letting the self-love flow, there's
493
00:32:01.490 --> 00:32:06.099
a sense of renewing and deep soul imbuing, the awareness
494
00:32:06.180 --> 00:32:10.519
that comes with no. So, with gentle voice, and the
495
00:32:10.579 --> 00:32:13.960
power of choice, and the courage to make it so,
496
00:32:14.839 --> 00:32:18.779
I'm still here, my friends. There's no means in this end,
497
00:32:19.259 --> 00:32:21.720
just the healing that comes with no.
498
00:32:24.769 --> 00:32:28.789
I love that. I love, thank you for sharing that
499
00:32:28.849 --> 00:32:30.069
with me and with us.
500
00:32:30.450 --> 00:32:31.309
Thank you.
501
00:32:31.829 --> 00:32:36.089
It's powerful and makes me think a lot about boundary
502
00:32:36.130 --> 00:32:40.059
setting and the importance of that in service of oneself,
503
00:32:40.140 --> 00:32:44.400
but there's no disconnection, right? We're connected to the larger
504
00:32:44.480 --> 00:32:49.380
whole and the entire multiverse. And so no is such
505
00:32:49.420 --> 00:32:51.759
a powerful word.
506
00:32:52.420 --> 00:32:55.509
Especially when applied to situations where there are those who
507
00:32:55.549 --> 00:32:58.410
can really take care of themselves and sort of fall
508
00:32:58.470 --> 00:33:01.049
upon you because you're so open and giving all the time.
509
00:33:01.069 --> 00:33:04.109
If you stop, if you don't take care of yourself,
510
00:33:04.150 --> 00:33:06.509
you won't be around to take care of anybody else either.
511
00:33:07.190 --> 00:33:12.509
It's very true. I appreciate you sharing that. My mother
512
00:33:12.549 --> 00:33:19.069
has Alzheimer's and I am her main caretaker. And it's
513
00:33:19.089 --> 00:33:23.750
like a different level of caretaking. for folks who've journeyed
514
00:33:23.809 --> 00:33:29.369
through dementia and Alzheimer's and caretaking and also being a child, right?
515
00:33:29.390 --> 00:33:34.990
Like I'm her child. And so it's just really taught
516
00:33:35.029 --> 00:33:38.289
me about exactly what you shared in your poem and
517
00:33:39.009 --> 00:33:42.369
the tension around saying no to certain things or setting
518
00:33:42.430 --> 00:33:46.470
a limit and also the recognition that I have to
519
00:33:46.509 --> 00:33:49.890
take care of myself if I am going to continue
520
00:33:49.910 --> 00:33:52.029
to be in this role of taking care of my mom.
521
00:33:52.190 --> 00:33:54.769
Like there, there's no other option. So I just, I
522
00:33:54.789 --> 00:33:58.170
just share that as an example of that's maybe it's
523
00:33:58.210 --> 00:34:00.190
a role I've chosen, right? We could, we can have
524
00:34:00.210 --> 00:34:03.650
a long conversation about that, but or maybe it shows
525
00:34:03.710 --> 00:34:08.190
me I don't feel resentment about it. I just recognize
526
00:34:08.250 --> 00:34:11.449
that I have to take care of myself to be
527
00:34:11.550 --> 00:34:15.019
able to stay in relationship with my mom and her
528
00:34:15.059 --> 00:34:18.239
disease and the progression of it as I'm being called
529
00:34:18.280 --> 00:34:18.460
to do.
530
00:34:19.150 --> 00:34:24.039
Absolutely. In your book, and I quote, we have an
531
00:34:24.119 --> 00:34:29.760
entire team of guides, allies, ancestors to help protect us
532
00:34:30.079 --> 00:34:34.059
and our energy. Let's start with ancestors. How may we
533
00:34:34.119 --> 00:34:35.219
draw from their wisdom?
534
00:34:36.809 --> 00:34:40.969
Yes, I love to talk about ancestors. I've already mentioned one, Dorothy,
535
00:34:41.010 --> 00:34:43.889
but I've written about more, and you are protected, both
536
00:34:43.929 --> 00:34:53.219
my grandmothers, Sally and Dorothy. And ancestors can feel, there
537
00:34:53.239 --> 00:34:56.360
could be a mixed bag of emotions connected to ancestors.
538
00:34:56.940 --> 00:34:59.800
Often people who come to me to work with ancestors,
539
00:35:00.239 --> 00:35:03.119
they may have some fear about working with certain ancestors.
540
00:35:03.159 --> 00:35:05.579
They may not understand how to open that portal, which
541
00:35:05.639 --> 00:35:09.260
is part of what I help them with. And we
542
00:35:09.300 --> 00:35:11.579
may need to start with the more than human world
543
00:35:11.659 --> 00:35:14.750
as a living ancestor to like a mountain that is
544
00:35:14.789 --> 00:35:16.929
much older than me or a tree that is much
545
00:35:17.030 --> 00:35:19.769
older than me or a body of water to tap
546
00:35:19.849 --> 00:35:24.929
in there before we work with ancestors in their blood lineage.
547
00:35:25.170 --> 00:35:28.010
There's also the opportunity to work with ancestors who are
548
00:35:28.070 --> 00:35:30.610
not in one's blood lineage. Like we can work with
549
00:35:30.659 --> 00:35:36.219
teachers or teachings, right? Lessons from different lineages or other
550
00:35:37.199 --> 00:35:40.659
ancestors who have transitioned, maybe that we didn't know, but
551
00:35:40.679 --> 00:35:44.179
we looked up to, right? Who we, who, Maybe we
552
00:35:44.239 --> 00:35:48.070
read their work or heard them speak or were influenced
553
00:35:48.110 --> 00:35:51.769
in some deep way. I always say that I think
554
00:35:51.789 --> 00:35:57.670
the healthy and well and benevolent ancestors are waiting to
555
00:35:57.719 --> 00:36:01.019
work with us and to show up. And that part
556
00:36:01.079 --> 00:36:09.280
of the practice is beginning to believe that that we
557
00:36:09.320 --> 00:36:12.210
can have an ancestral connection, even if we don't see
558
00:36:12.309 --> 00:36:15.969
our ancestors in physical form anymore. We have to kind
559
00:36:16.010 --> 00:36:18.829
of work with, you know, I believe that something is
560
00:36:18.869 --> 00:36:23.110
there energetically, even if I can't see it, I feel it, right?
561
00:36:23.150 --> 00:36:25.909
I can't, I don't see my grandmother Dorothy in physical
562
00:36:26.010 --> 00:36:28.670
form unless she visits me in a dream, but I
563
00:36:28.769 --> 00:36:32.329
feel her all of the time. Sometimes even feel her
564
00:36:32.369 --> 00:36:35.860
physical touch her hand on my back is the, that's
565
00:36:35.900 --> 00:36:38.989
most often how she will communicate with me and let
566
00:36:39.010 --> 00:36:42.449
me know she's present. I also feel her energy. And
567
00:36:42.469 --> 00:36:45.550
of course I remember what she looked like, but I
568
00:36:45.590 --> 00:36:49.329
don't see her. Some people may see their ancestors. I
569
00:36:49.369 --> 00:36:53.280
just think there's this way. And some of it's our
570
00:36:53.300 --> 00:36:59.219
conditioning that we've been taught, you know, that we need
571
00:36:59.239 --> 00:37:01.809
to see things to believe they're true or there. And I,
572
00:37:03.050 --> 00:37:05.780
as spiritual beings, right? There's the essence of who we
573
00:37:05.929 --> 00:37:09.420
are that we may not see, but we feel. And
574
00:37:09.460 --> 00:37:11.920
so this is a starting place for people to lean
575
00:37:12.000 --> 00:37:15.980
into that. Oh, right. There's a whole other realm or
576
00:37:16.059 --> 00:37:18.800
many realms of experience that I may not be able
577
00:37:18.860 --> 00:37:21.730
to see in physical form. And I think this is
578
00:37:21.829 --> 00:37:26.369
one of the muscles to build the ability to, to
579
00:37:26.469 --> 00:37:29.230
see in different ways is the muscle to build. If
580
00:37:29.269 --> 00:37:32.420
we want to work with the full team of allies and,
581
00:37:32.829 --> 00:37:36.789
but particularly ancestors. And to remember that even if we
582
00:37:36.829 --> 00:37:42.369
had ancestors who did horrific things, which is most often
583
00:37:42.409 --> 00:37:46.639
what I hear from people, that we likely also had
584
00:37:46.659 --> 00:37:50.920
an ancestor who was healthy and well, who worked to
585
00:37:50.960 --> 00:37:57.739
disrupt whatever horrific things or bad behavior other ancestors may
586
00:37:57.780 --> 00:38:01.079
have engaged in. So this is some of how we began.
587
00:38:01.179 --> 00:38:07.250
And one simple practice is building an ancestor altar, which
588
00:38:07.289 --> 00:38:11.730
could be placing pictures if we have them or items.
589
00:38:11.769 --> 00:38:15.829
Like I have my grandmother's gloves, her ushering gloves from
590
00:38:15.889 --> 00:38:19.570
church on my altar. I have her Bible. I have
591
00:38:19.610 --> 00:38:23.559
her wedding rings. Not everyone has access to items like this.
592
00:38:24.199 --> 00:38:27.420
So we might put an empty picture frame in the
593
00:38:27.460 --> 00:38:32.090
space and imagine that as our ancestor altar. Because they're
594
00:38:32.110 --> 00:38:36.260
also ancestors that we didn't know, right? Who transitioned before
595
00:38:36.360 --> 00:38:40.559
we came into being. Or we can place flowers on
596
00:38:40.579 --> 00:38:44.519
an ancestor altar, things we think that our ancestors, our
597
00:38:44.539 --> 00:38:50.269
healthy and well ancestors may have liked and may appreciate now. Just,
598
00:38:50.489 --> 00:38:53.670
it's like an altar holds space and it also builds energy.
599
00:38:53.690 --> 00:38:56.289
And this is a way we can invite in, I
600
00:38:57.030 --> 00:39:01.099
keep saying healthy and well, because it's, that's the language
601
00:39:01.119 --> 00:39:03.980
that I've been taught. But also it is that no
602
00:39:04.000 --> 00:39:07.619
that you read about and that boundary of, I don't
603
00:39:07.679 --> 00:39:12.130
claim that I'll do all of the work for my ancestors,
604
00:39:12.510 --> 00:39:14.969
every one of them. I call in the healthy and
605
00:39:14.989 --> 00:39:18.670
well ones because I assume they're ready to show up
606
00:39:18.750 --> 00:39:23.710
for me and to express that benevolence. I also do
607
00:39:23.769 --> 00:39:27.550
some work on behalf of ancestors who may have had
608
00:39:27.570 --> 00:39:30.630
some unfinished business As most of us do. when we
609
00:39:30.690 --> 00:39:33.590
leave our physical bodies. But we can also set boundaries
610
00:39:33.639 --> 00:39:36.380
there too, which feels important for folks to understand.
611
00:39:37.219 --> 00:39:39.800
So we have ancestors. What about the guides? How may
612
00:39:39.840 --> 00:39:42.559
we identify and connect with our guides?
613
00:39:43.920 --> 00:39:45.900
We can call on them, right? We can build an
614
00:39:45.960 --> 00:39:48.199
altar for them. We can call on our guides and
615
00:39:48.559 --> 00:39:51.480
Sometimes people say spirit guides. We can call in our
616
00:39:51.519 --> 00:39:58.050
guides to support us, the benevolent guides and energies, entities,
617
00:39:58.090 --> 00:40:01.789
energetic forms to support us. Some of these are human.
618
00:40:01.829 --> 00:40:03.650
Some of these are more than human. Some of these
619
00:40:03.710 --> 00:40:09.869
may be deities or archetypal energies that we call on
620
00:40:11.130 --> 00:40:14.530
to be present with us. And we might call on
621
00:40:14.550 --> 00:40:17.579
them for specific needs. So if I'm in ceremony with people,
622
00:40:18.260 --> 00:40:20.840
And I call in the directions and cast a circle
623
00:40:20.880 --> 00:40:22.619
at the beginning of it to hold the energy of
624
00:40:22.719 --> 00:40:25.719
our work and practice that I may call in certain
625
00:40:25.780 --> 00:40:29.530
guides to be with us during that ceremony and to
626
00:40:29.590 --> 00:40:32.050
help hold the circle with me. Of course, we can
627
00:40:32.090 --> 00:40:34.750
call on them for protection. We can call on them
628
00:40:34.809 --> 00:40:38.010
for wisdom. We can call on them to hold something
629
00:40:38.070 --> 00:40:41.639
that maybe feels bigger than what we can hold. We
630
00:40:41.659 --> 00:40:43.820
can call on them to be with us as we travel,
631
00:40:44.599 --> 00:40:46.880
which I do all of the time. But our guides,
632
00:40:47.039 --> 00:40:50.880
you know, we think about guides and guidance and spiritual support,
633
00:40:50.940 --> 00:40:54.900
and that's exactly what they are present for and designed
634
00:40:54.980 --> 00:40:55.280
to do.
635
00:40:56.099 --> 00:40:59.469
And lastly, the allies. Who are the allies and how
636
00:40:59.489 --> 00:41:01.510
may they assist us?
637
00:41:01.650 --> 00:41:08.050
They're everyone. It's like the guides, the protectors, the animal energies,
638
00:41:08.130 --> 00:41:12.820
the elemental energies. We can think about allies and camaraderie
639
00:41:13.139 --> 00:41:15.699
and allyship, which means showing up.
640
00:41:16.030 --> 00:41:16.389
Right?
641
00:41:16.469 --> 00:41:20.070
Not necessarily on behalf of, although that might be part
642
00:41:20.110 --> 00:41:24.449
of it, but in solidarity with someone or a group
643
00:41:24.510 --> 00:41:27.190
of people that we show up as an ally to
644
00:41:27.250 --> 00:41:30.719
provide that support. That's how I think about allies in
645
00:41:30.760 --> 00:41:34.260
this conversation and the allies that are presented in You
646
00:41:34.320 --> 00:41:37.440
Are Protected, that they're on our side, right? They want
647
00:41:37.480 --> 00:41:40.619
what is best for us and the highest good, and
648
00:41:40.639 --> 00:41:43.320
they show up in service of that. This is how
649
00:41:43.360 --> 00:41:44.289
we can think about allies.
650
00:41:44.860 --> 00:41:49.570
My guest, Michelle Cassandra Johnson, her new book, You Are Protected,
651
00:41:49.969 --> 00:41:53.909
Invoking Spiritual Support to Sustain Your Energy. We'll be back
652
00:41:53.929 --> 00:41:57.829
with more after these words on the OM Times Radio Network.
653
00:41:59.269 --> 00:42:03.730
Humanity Healing International is a small nonprofit with a big dream.
654
00:42:04.170 --> 00:42:08.920
Since 2007, HHI has been working tirelessly to bring help
655
00:42:08.960 --> 00:42:12.869
to communities with little or no hope. Our projects are
656
00:42:12.909 --> 00:42:17.170
not broad mandates, nor are they overnight solutions, but they
657
00:42:17.210 --> 00:42:20.210
bring the reassurance that no one is alone and that
658
00:42:20.329 --> 00:42:26.599
someone cares. To learn more, please visit humanityhealing.org. Humanity healing
659
00:42:26.860 --> 00:42:28.059
is where your heart is.
660
00:42:30.179 --> 00:42:34.570
Imagine yourself being transported to India to the banks of
661
00:42:34.619 --> 00:42:39.070
the Ganga and an ashram in Rishikesh. Visualize that you
662
00:42:39.150 --> 00:42:42.889
are welcome to satsang with an American sannyasi who shares
663
00:42:42.949 --> 00:42:48.309
the wisdom of her guru. Your visualization has manifested. Join
664
00:42:48.409 --> 00:42:54.159
Satvi Bhagawati Saraswati for inspiration and transformation every Thursday at
665
00:42:54.159 --> 00:42:57.460
11 a.m. Eastern on OM Times Radio.
666
00:42:59.579 --> 00:43:01.719
So I'm a cat, and I just moved in with
667
00:43:01.739 --> 00:43:04.110
this new human, and she's got this little toy she's
668
00:43:04.250 --> 00:43:07.460
always playing with. All day long. Tap, tap, tap, tap.
669
00:43:07.480 --> 00:43:08.019
Bloop, bloop.
670
00:43:08.300 --> 00:43:11.300
She can't put it down. There it is. Oh, and
671
00:43:11.340 --> 00:43:14.159
get this. She even talks to it. Last week, she
672
00:43:14.219 --> 00:43:17.619
asked it for Chinese. And guess what? Eggroll showed up.
673
00:43:18.139 --> 00:43:18.840
Like magic.
674
00:43:19.320 --> 00:43:21.750
Humans have cool toys. A person is the best thing
675
00:43:21.769 --> 00:43:23.969
to happen to a shelter pet. Be that person.
676
00:43:24.309 --> 00:43:24.690
Adopt.
677
00:43:25.030 --> 00:43:27.889
Brought to you by the Ad Council and the ShelterPetProject.org.
678
00:43:30.289 --> 00:43:33.550
The more you listen to your kids, the closer you'll be.
679
00:43:33.929 --> 00:43:36.949
So we asked kids... What do you want your parents
680
00:43:37.010 --> 00:43:37.489
to hear?
681
00:43:37.510 --> 00:43:40.690
I feel sometimes that I'm not listened to. I would
682
00:43:40.710 --> 00:43:42.809
just want you to listen to me more often and
683
00:43:42.829 --> 00:43:46.469
evaluate situations with me and lead me towards success.
684
00:43:47.280 --> 00:43:52.500
We're not adults, so just be there and listen. I
685
00:43:52.519 --> 00:43:54.699
just want someone to yap to. And I just feel
686
00:43:54.719 --> 00:43:57.739
like I'll be fine if someone just hears me talk
687
00:43:57.780 --> 00:43:59.320
and talk and talk and talk.
688
00:43:59.139 --> 00:44:02.440
And talk and talk. You're doing a really good job.
689
00:44:02.719 --> 00:44:04.239
And I don't think I tell you that enough.
690
00:44:04.440 --> 00:44:08.000
And I know sometimes we get into it and it's
691
00:44:08.019 --> 00:44:10.440
just hard on both of us.
692
00:44:11.139 --> 00:44:13.679
But, you know, try to understand me more and I'll
693
00:44:13.699 --> 00:44:14.579
try to do the same.
694
00:44:15.559 --> 00:44:19.010
Listening is a form of love. Find resources to help
695
00:44:19.050 --> 00:44:23.809
you support your kids and their emotional well-being at SoundItOutTogether.org.
696
00:44:23.989 --> 00:44:28.409
That's SoundItOutTogether.org. Brought to you by the Ad Council and Pivotal.
697
00:44:30.000 --> 00:44:35.139
Back on Destination Unlimited, my guest this week, Michelle Cassandra Johnson.
698
00:44:35.159 --> 00:44:38.679
We're talking about her brand new book, You Are Protected,
699
00:44:39.199 --> 00:44:44.090
Invoking Spiritual Support to Sustain Your Energy. So in the
700
00:44:44.130 --> 00:44:47.610
last segment, we talked about the ancestors. We talked about
701
00:44:47.650 --> 00:44:51.230
the guides. We talked about the allies. How may we
702
00:44:51.289 --> 00:44:54.829
determine which of them feel aligned to build an effective
703
00:44:54.909 --> 00:44:57.329
daily spiritual hygiene practice with?
704
00:44:58.570 --> 00:45:02.510
Yes, I'm really glad you mentioned spiritual hygiene because I've
705
00:45:02.530 --> 00:45:05.489
been having conversations with people about it and they've been like, oh,
706
00:45:05.719 --> 00:45:09.159
I've never heard that. And I just want to plug
707
00:45:09.280 --> 00:45:14.179
that spiritual hygiene is just like any other form of
708
00:45:14.260 --> 00:45:17.800
hygiene and the way that we care for our bodies
709
00:45:18.219 --> 00:45:21.710
or the way we might engage in meditation to care
710
00:45:21.809 --> 00:45:27.099
for the mind. the way we might practice gratitude or
711
00:45:27.119 --> 00:45:31.159
a practice of awe every day, which is something that
712
00:45:31.260 --> 00:45:33.179
I do, is a way we might take care of
713
00:45:33.820 --> 00:45:36.969
the heart or spirit or soul, right? That can touch
714
00:45:36.989 --> 00:45:40.230
many different parts of who we are. So I just
715
00:45:40.250 --> 00:45:43.210
wanted to name, that's what I mean when I say
716
00:45:43.250 --> 00:45:46.269
spiritual hygiene is what are the things that feed the
717
00:45:46.309 --> 00:45:49.110
spirit and all parts of who we are and how
718
00:45:49.130 --> 00:45:54.340
do we practice those in a ritualistic way Just as
719
00:45:54.400 --> 00:45:56.500
I brush my teeth, right, every day, which is part
720
00:45:56.519 --> 00:46:00.139
of my physical and dental hygiene. And the way we
721
00:46:00.179 --> 00:46:05.679
might begin to connect with and find these allies and
722
00:46:06.139 --> 00:46:12.030
protective agents and be those may be ancestors or as
723
00:46:12.070 --> 00:46:16.389
we've talked about, they may be guides, they may be archetypes,
724
00:46:16.409 --> 00:46:20.010
they may be animal energies or the elemental energy more
725
00:46:20.050 --> 00:46:23.130
than human world. it's similar in some ways to what
726
00:46:23.190 --> 00:46:26.429
I named about ancestors. You know, we open ourselves to
727
00:46:26.510 --> 00:46:32.780
develop a relationship with the benevolent, um, supports that wish
728
00:46:32.800 --> 00:46:36.880
to be present, but we also might look back, uh,
729
00:46:37.019 --> 00:46:41.559
and review our lives and think about the energetic forms, um,
730
00:46:41.659 --> 00:46:44.800
the deities, the guides who've shown up over and over.
731
00:46:45.820 --> 00:46:49.949
For example, uh, Mary Magdalene is one of those for me, um,
732
00:46:51.909 --> 00:46:57.690
And Mary Magdalene, I have several different representations of Mary
733
00:46:57.730 --> 00:47:01.239
Magdalene in my space and outside my home, the Buddha
734
00:47:01.280 --> 00:47:04.820
as well, in my space and outside of my home
735
00:47:05.659 --> 00:47:09.659
and near the bees. So people can look back and
736
00:47:09.699 --> 00:47:16.750
think about, oh, I've always been drawn to this particular god, goddess, deity, archetype.
737
00:47:17.170 --> 00:47:21.150
I've been curious about this space where they come from.
738
00:47:21.429 --> 00:47:27.590
Like I've written about Hecate from Greek mythology in You
739
00:47:27.650 --> 00:47:31.690
Are Protected and creating a cloak of protection around oneself
740
00:47:32.369 --> 00:47:34.110
and have been drawn to many of the, I mean,
741
00:47:34.130 --> 00:47:36.320
my middle name is Cassandra, many of the gods and
742
00:47:36.360 --> 00:47:44.099
goddesses and myths connected to Greece and Minoan Crete and
743
00:47:44.119 --> 00:47:46.519
that space in the world, which isn't my blood lineage,
744
00:47:46.579 --> 00:47:49.050
but I think it's my soul's lineage. There's There's some
745
00:47:49.090 --> 00:47:51.429
part of my soul that was there. And so we
746
00:47:51.449 --> 00:47:54.130
can think about those inklings too, like what are we
747
00:47:54.170 --> 00:47:59.980
drawn to and why? From various spiritual spaces or paths
748
00:48:00.059 --> 00:48:03.400
or parts of the world, who are the recurring characters
749
00:48:03.820 --> 00:48:07.659
who've shown up for us in times of need and
750
00:48:07.679 --> 00:48:11.670
made us more curious. These are threads to follow for
751
00:48:11.710 --> 00:48:14.969
people if they're not sure where to start. But there
752
00:48:14.989 --> 00:48:18.210
are also images, I'm thinking about animal energies right now,
753
00:48:19.210 --> 00:48:23.119
There's an image of a lion, right? Which is deeply
754
00:48:23.179 --> 00:48:26.340
protective of their pride, which most people know that, right?
755
00:48:26.420 --> 00:48:31.239
That a lot of people have that association. We might
756
00:48:31.320 --> 00:48:34.530
call in that energy for protection of the spirit, or
757
00:48:34.570 --> 00:48:37.269
we might call in deer energy, which a lot of
758
00:48:37.329 --> 00:48:39.510
people have had some connection to deer, even if it's
759
00:48:39.530 --> 00:48:42.710
not been in physical form, and their deep compassion. So
760
00:48:43.349 --> 00:48:48.210
there's some images of and icons that are present and
761
00:48:48.269 --> 00:48:50.869
in some ways cross-cultural, because they show up in story
762
00:48:50.909 --> 00:48:54.059
and myth, that people might draw from as they begin
763
00:48:54.099 --> 00:48:57.159
to think about protecting their energy. And again, the openness
764
00:48:57.320 --> 00:48:59.659
is the thing we want to think about, being open
765
00:48:59.699 --> 00:49:03.000
to these energies showing up for us more fully, like
766
00:49:03.079 --> 00:49:05.239
any other relationship that we wish to deepen.
767
00:49:05.900 --> 00:49:10.090
Let's talk about gimmicks and things of that nature, physical objects.
768
00:49:10.710 --> 00:49:17.019
Daily spells using amulets, sigils... protective baths, and everyday natural curios.
769
00:49:17.380 --> 00:49:18.820
What are some that may be employed here?
770
00:49:20.059 --> 00:49:23.980
Yes, there's an entire chapter about natural curios, which I've
771
00:49:24.000 --> 00:49:28.639
written about them as herbs and tinctures and oils. And
772
00:49:28.679 --> 00:49:32.360
so this connection to the more-than-human world that's a little
773
00:49:32.420 --> 00:49:36.880
different but connected to elemental energy. Things like rosemary and
774
00:49:36.980 --> 00:49:45.099
rose or thyme. certain colors with candles or crystals like
775
00:49:45.139 --> 00:49:49.300
the color black, often it can absorb energy. It also
776
00:49:49.320 --> 00:49:53.619
can repel energy that we may not want to absorb, right?
777
00:49:53.760 --> 00:49:57.179
It's that kind of protection or clear quartz, which can
778
00:49:57.300 --> 00:50:02.769
amplify the energy that it's around or rose quartz, which
779
00:50:02.829 --> 00:50:05.829
is for the heart. And we don't... Somebody doesn't need
780
00:50:05.849 --> 00:50:08.110
to go out and buy a bunch of crystals or candles.
781
00:50:08.170 --> 00:50:12.469
We can work with these things energetically or herbs even, right?
782
00:50:13.010 --> 00:50:15.460
But often those are around us in some way, but
783
00:50:15.480 --> 00:50:18.440
we can call them in through visualization. Maybe it's a
784
00:50:18.460 --> 00:50:21.860
rosemary bush that we remember from the neighborhood in which
785
00:50:21.920 --> 00:50:24.079
we grew up, but we don't have one now. Or
786
00:50:24.400 --> 00:50:28.409
the smell of rose, which shows up in lots of ways.
787
00:50:29.440 --> 00:50:32.659
Or time, the herb time that we might use in cooking.
788
00:50:32.679 --> 00:50:34.610
I mean, there are a lot of different ways that
789
00:50:34.650 --> 00:50:37.730
we create spells. Cooking is alchemy. So that is one.
790
00:50:38.150 --> 00:50:42.309
But we can also bring these natural curios in to
791
00:50:42.369 --> 00:50:45.469
spell work. And spell work is really about setting an intention,
792
00:50:47.210 --> 00:50:49.909
gathering the items that we might need in physical form
793
00:50:49.989 --> 00:50:55.119
or energetically, setting the circle. I mentioned casting a circle earlier.
794
00:50:55.219 --> 00:50:58.139
So a circle or something, vessel to hold our work.
795
00:50:59.190 --> 00:51:02.369
and then enacting that intention, invoking it in some way.
796
00:51:02.849 --> 00:51:05.730
That might be through saying a prayer or a blessing
797
00:51:06.679 --> 00:51:09.860
or a specific invocation one has written for the particular
798
00:51:09.900 --> 00:51:14.219
protection spell that they're working with. We could also create
799
00:51:14.239 --> 00:51:17.940
a tincture with these herbs and natural curios. We could
800
00:51:17.980 --> 00:51:20.659
create an oil that we anoint the body with or
801
00:51:20.699 --> 00:51:24.579
we ingest if it is safe to do. These are
802
00:51:24.639 --> 00:51:26.969
some ways to work with natural curios.
803
00:51:28.300 --> 00:51:33.010
You say that practitioners may reclaim the archetype of the
804
00:51:33.090 --> 00:51:38.190
witch as a powerful, grounded alchemist who can transmute chaos
805
00:51:38.429 --> 00:51:42.230
into collective healing. How may this be done, and how
806
00:51:42.250 --> 00:51:43.150
does it feel to do it?
807
00:51:45.030 --> 00:51:48.360
I love this because I've been saying this book is
808
00:51:48.400 --> 00:51:52.679
the witchiest book I've written to date, and the witch
809
00:51:52.940 --> 00:51:57.179
is an archetype. It is the alchemist archetype. It is
810
00:51:57.300 --> 00:52:01.320
the being that stood around the cauldron, which I happen
811
00:52:01.340 --> 00:52:04.840
to have one that's 250 years old, right? It's the
812
00:52:05.219 --> 00:52:09.679
circle and ceremony. It's what people conjured. It's a connection
813
00:52:09.739 --> 00:52:12.059
to the more than human world and the rhythm of
814
00:52:12.139 --> 00:52:16.159
seasonal shifts and change. This is how I think about
815
00:52:16.179 --> 00:52:20.210
witchery and magic. And I think we all embody this,
816
00:52:20.250 --> 00:52:23.090
whether we call ourselves a mystic or an alchemist or
817
00:52:23.110 --> 00:52:26.829
a magician, right? Or a witch, whatever that might be.
818
00:52:26.909 --> 00:52:29.500
And you know, People have been coming for witches for
819
00:52:29.519 --> 00:52:33.510
a long time because there's deep knowledge there. Like witchery
820
00:52:33.829 --> 00:52:37.530
is ancient technology that we're tapping into that for me
821
00:52:38.010 --> 00:52:40.349
is connected to spirit and the divine and what is
822
00:52:40.409 --> 00:52:44.539
bigger than me. And what I named earlier about believing
823
00:52:44.599 --> 00:52:46.539
in things that we may not be able to see,
824
00:52:46.719 --> 00:52:51.239
but believing they're possible and they're present. And so I
825
00:52:51.300 --> 00:52:54.940
invite people to, in whatever way, reclaim the part of
826
00:52:55.059 --> 00:52:59.230
us that is magic. And that can transmute in the
827
00:52:59.269 --> 00:53:02.210
way that you name. There is so much chaos going on,
828
00:53:02.309 --> 00:53:04.489
and we can actually use that chaos to turn it
829
00:53:04.550 --> 00:53:07.880
into something else rather than being consumed by the chaos
830
00:53:07.920 --> 00:53:11.840
that is happening culturally, socially, and politically. And so this
831
00:53:12.000 --> 00:53:15.139
inner witch is about how do we respond to these
832
00:53:15.199 --> 00:53:18.110
times and create the medicine that is most needed now
833
00:53:18.449 --> 00:53:22.070
through these various elements we might put in our energetic cauldron,
834
00:53:22.130 --> 00:53:24.719
or if we have a physical cauldron, We can use
835
00:53:24.800 --> 00:53:27.980
that or in our circle and community with others. This
836
00:53:28.079 --> 00:53:30.179
is how I think about the witch and the importance
837
00:53:30.360 --> 00:53:34.429
of it and inviting people into that curiosity of how
838
00:53:34.469 --> 00:53:35.869
they too are an alchemist.
839
00:53:36.590 --> 00:53:38.750
What would you like your readers to take away from
840
00:53:38.769 --> 00:53:40.289
You Are Protected?
841
00:53:40.309 --> 00:53:45.070
I would love for readers to take away the importance
842
00:53:45.369 --> 00:53:50.219
of caring for, tending to, and the ways I've spoken
843
00:53:50.280 --> 00:53:55.829
about their inner sanctuary, that sacred space within them that
844
00:53:55.909 --> 00:54:00.010
is unmessable and will not be disturbed or thrown off
845
00:54:00.090 --> 00:54:03.730
center by the chaos around them and the chaos that
846
00:54:03.769 --> 00:54:06.909
might also exist within them, that there is a part
847
00:54:06.929 --> 00:54:11.099
of them connected to something bigger that can remain centered
848
00:54:11.480 --> 00:54:15.440
and is ever-present and continuous and part of the larger
849
00:54:15.500 --> 00:54:17.380
cosmic unfolding of this time.
850
00:54:18.280 --> 00:54:20.920
And what's next for Michelle Cassandra Johnson?
851
00:54:22.760 --> 00:54:27.639
I'm working on another book. I mentioned I'm a spiritual,
852
00:54:27.659 --> 00:54:29.739
I went to a spiritual direction program. I'm a spiritual
853
00:54:29.760 --> 00:54:34.309
director or spiritual guide. And I am co-writing a book
854
00:54:34.429 --> 00:54:38.469
for really anyone connected to spirit who works with people
855
00:54:38.489 --> 00:54:42.070
and provides spiritual guidance, but also specifically for folks in
856
00:54:42.090 --> 00:54:45.730
the field of spiritual direction focused on sacred activism and
857
00:54:45.769 --> 00:54:49.389
the importance of pairing those things together as we work
858
00:54:49.409 --> 00:54:53.170
with seekers and or people who are interested in deepening
859
00:54:53.210 --> 00:54:56.670
their spiritual study and spiritual practice, or who are deeply
860
00:54:56.730 --> 00:55:01.750
engaged and on a spiritual path. So that's what's next,
861
00:55:01.809 --> 00:55:05.139
plus many other offerings connected to You Are Protected. Something's
862
00:55:05.179 --> 00:55:06.170
always in the works for me.
863
00:55:06.920 --> 00:55:11.739
Our brand new book, You Are Protected, invoking spiritual support
864
00:55:11.800 --> 00:55:15.480
to sustain your energy. Michelle, please share with our listeners
865
00:55:15.780 --> 00:55:17.739
where they can get all of your wonderful books and
866
00:55:17.780 --> 00:55:19.760
find out more about you and your amazing work.
867
00:55:21.090 --> 00:55:26.619
Thank you. Yes, people can find me at michellecjohnson.com. That's
868
00:55:26.659 --> 00:55:31.699
my website. Everything is there. Books are there. Events are there.
869
00:55:32.489 --> 00:55:35.170
Interesting ways to connect with me. And there's a way
870
00:55:35.210 --> 00:55:37.889
to sign up for my newsletter through the website, which
871
00:55:37.929 --> 00:55:40.150
I've heard when I send it out weekly is like
872
00:55:40.230 --> 00:55:43.780
having a cup of tea with me. It ranges in topic.
873
00:55:44.380 --> 00:55:48.059
Some of them are very personal. And some are connected
874
00:55:48.139 --> 00:55:51.239
to the larger themes that are unfolding and playing out.
875
00:55:51.659 --> 00:55:54.210
But there's always a teaching in the newsletter. So that's
876
00:55:54.250 --> 00:55:56.309
a good way to get to know me more deeply.
877
00:55:56.409 --> 00:55:59.530
And I'm also on Instagram at Skill in Action, the
878
00:55:59.570 --> 00:56:01.570
title of my first book. So those are some good
879
00:56:01.610 --> 00:56:02.590
ways to connect.
880
00:56:03.030 --> 00:56:05.429
Michelle, thank you so much for joining us today and
881
00:56:05.489 --> 00:56:08.130
sharing this amazing wisdom that you've brought to the world.
882
00:56:09.050 --> 00:56:11.360
Thank you so much for having me here. It's been
883
00:56:11.380 --> 00:56:13.500
a real pleasure to be in conversation with you.
884
00:56:14.340 --> 00:56:18.420
And thank you for joining us on Destination Unlimited. I'm Victor,
885
00:56:18.659 --> 00:56:21.000
the voice, Furman. Have a wonderful week.