What if the challenges of our time aren’t only asking us to do more, solve more, or move faster, but to remember something we’ve lost?

In this episode of Rooted & Wild, I welcome back Michael Kass, founder of Story & Spirit, for a conversation about what it means to re-member the Sacred and why restoring a sense of connection, meaning, and reverence may be essential to how we meet this moment in history.

We live in a time of enormous complexity. Our attention is fragmented, our institutions are shifting, technology is transforming how we relate to one another, and many of us feel increasingly disconnected from ourselves, our communities, and the living world around us.

Michael invites us to consider another way forward.

Rather than treating the Sacred as something confined to religion, ritual, or a particular spiritual tradition, we explore it as a way of being in relationship with life itself. A recognition that we belong to something larger than our individual identities, ambitions, fears, and stories.

And the word re-membering matters.

Because perhaps the work isn’t about discovering something entirely new. Perhaps it is about bringing the fragmented pieces back together. Remembering our bodies. Remembering one another. Remembering our relationship with the natural world. Remembering meaning, mystery, and the things that cannot always be measured.

Drawing from 25 years of work spanning storytelling, embodied leadership, breathwork, organizational transformation, and coaching, Michael explores how these ideas can move beyond philosophy and become something we actually practice in our relationships, workplaces, communities, and everyday lives.

Because meeting the times may require more than better strategies.

It may require remembering what we consider sacred in the first place.

In this episode, we explore:

• What Michael means by “re-membering” the Sacred
• How the Sacred can exist beyond traditional religious frameworks
• Why modern life can leave us feeling fragmented and disconnected
• The relationship between story, meaning, and belonging
• Reconnecting with ourselves, each other, and the wider living world
• Embodiment as a pathway back into relationship
• Creating space for mystery, reverence, and wonder
• What leadership looks like when humanity and connection come first
• Bringing the Sacred into organizations and everyday work
• How storytelling shapes the worlds we create together
• Meeting uncertainty without immediately trying to control it
• The role of ritual and intentional gathering
• What our current moment may be asking us to remember
• Moving from individual transformation toward collective connection

About Michael Kass

Michael Kass, founder of Story & Spirit, is a convening designer, facilitator, consultant, and embodied leadership coach who works with organizations and individuals to weave new stories that bring us into greater connection with ourselves, each other, and the wider world.

Over the past 25 years, his work has ranged from touring an award-winning solo storytelling show across the United States to helping teams navigate periods of intense growth, facilitating breathwork rituals around the world, and coaching founders and multinational CEOs through profound transitions.

Michael is an ICF Certified Executive Coach, Certified Breathwork Facilitator, author of Story Maps: Wayfinding Tools for the Modern Seeker, and serves on the Board of Directors for Wild Gift.

Connect with Michael Kass

Website: www.storyandspirit.org
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/5PEqbjjjA6gkwnMvQiz2bq?si=74c2aaf18f6a4ecb
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michaelkass1

Rooted & Wild provides general information for educational and informational purposes only. The views and opinions expressed by guest speakers are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Henry Hawk. The content shared on this podcast is not intended to replace individualized medical, psychological, or therapeutic advice, nor should it be used to diagnose or treat any health condition. Listeners are encouraged to consult with qualified healthcare professionals regarding any medical or mental health concerns.