In this episode, Courtney Ellis joins me for a really lovely discussion on the gifts and challenges of silence (including Courtney’s love of birding!). We talk about all the things we miss when we distract ourselves with noise and activity and how silence helps us to be grateful and present, whatever that might look like.

For the transcript for this episode, visit BeckyLMcCoy.com/podcast/94

HOW TO PRACTICE SILENCE:

1. Pick a comfortable place to sit or lie down. Close your eyes or keep them open. Resist the urge to have background noise or music of any kind.

2. Take some deep breaths and notice what’s happening in your body. Where do you have tension? Pain?

3. Start with just a few minutes of silence at a time. It’s okay if your mind wanders or you get bored.

4. Just a little bit of silence is great. Experiment with it in different ways. Use it in the car or while folding laundry instead of listening to something. Over time you can expand the amount of time you spend in silence.

5. Try birding!

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Courtney’s new book Weathering Change

• Thee Quaker Podcast

• Documentary: Into Great Silence (a silent monastery in the French Alps)

Becky L McCoy is a writer, retreat leader, and spiritual director. She is the communications and outreach coordinator for the Brian Dagle Foundation and podcast host of Sucker Punched. She earned her master of arts in Christian theology and spiritual formation from Regent University and is pursuing a doctor of ministry in spiritual formation and soul care.

Courtney Ellis is author, speaker, pastor, and host of “The Thing With Feathers Podcast.” She’s also a birder based in Orange County, California where she lives with her husband (also a pastor!) and three children. Together they serve Presbyterian Church of the Master. Her newest book, Weathering Change: Seeking Peace Amid Life’s Tough Transitions is available anywhere books are sold.

FIND BECKY ONLINE:

Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com

Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

FIND COURTNEY ONLINE:

Website: CourtneyBEllis.com

Social Media: @courtneyellis____

In this episode, Mandy Capehart and I discuss labyrinth walking. We explore some special labyrinth experiences in our own lives, why somatic practices are an essential part of navigating grief, and how being present with our body, heart, mind is an essential part of healing and wholeness.

For the transcript for this episode, visit BeckyLMcCoy.com/podcast/93

HOW TO WALK A LABYRINTH:

1. Find a labyrinth, a looped trail, or a walking path where you don’t have to make any directional choices.

2. Walk toward the center of the labyrinth or to your halfway point, paying attention to your breath.

3. Pray, meditate, or repeat a breath prayer as you go, letting go of everything that is overwhelming you.

4. At the center (or halfway point), take a few deep breaths, pray, and notice what you are feeling.

5. Begin the walk back to the starting point, filling up with the peace and calm you crave.
   

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• My new book "In the Company of the Weary: Ten Gentle Spiritual Practices for Your Tired Soul"

• Labyrinth directory online

• Circles in the Sand labyrinths at the beach in Oregon

Becky L McCoy is a writer, retreat leader, and spiritual director. She is the communications and outreach coordinator for the Brian Dagle Foundation and podcast host of Sucker Punched. She earned her master of arts in Christian theology and spiritual formation from Regent University and is pursuing a doctor of ministry in spiritual formation and soul care.

Mandy Capehart is on a mission to normalize grieving and cultivate the conversations that bring us healing. She is the founder and CEO of The Restorative Grief Project, an online community focusing on one another’s stories and new methodologies for grief to create a safe environment for our souls to heal and our spirits to be revived. She is also the host of a weekly podcast, Restorative Grief with Mandy Capehart and the monthly podcast for premium subscribers, Restorative Grief: Expanding the Conversations, as well as a published author, certified trauma professional, grief educator, one-to-one coach, and somatic embodiment practitioner. She also specializes in working at the intersection of grief and faith, educating faith communities on how to create helpful healing environments to avoid spiritual bypassing and platitudes.

FIND BECKY ONLINE:
Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com
Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

FIND MANDY ONLINE:
Website: MandyCapehart.com
Social Media: @MandyCapehart

Sometimes when we share the innermost parts of ourselves we leave the encounter feeling like we've been stripped bare, sometimes even flayed on the altar of vulnerability. It can even feel like a hangover - like you can't face the world and your whole self is now too tender to even try.

CLICK HERE FOR THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Shop Our Place Cookware: BeckyLMcCoy.com/OurPlace
Daring Greatly by Brené Brown
Vulnerability is my Superpower by Jackie Davis
You are Your Best Thing by Tarana Burke
4 Mantras for When I'm Overwhelmed: BeckyLMcCoy.com/4mantras

FIND BECKY ONLINE:
Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com
Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

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Links may be affiliate links, so you're supporting this podcast when you buy through them. Thanks!

We all experience loneliness. And we all have a built in desire to feel like we belong. But when we realize that loneliness and belonging can co-exist - what do we do with that?

CLICK HERE FOR THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
40% of Spiritual Direction & Coaching with Becky: BeckyLMcCoy.com/SpiritualDirection-FlashSale
Shop Our Place Cookware: BeckyLMcCoy.com/OurPlace
The Great Belonging by Charlotte Donlon
The Art of Belonging by Charles Vogl
All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle
4 Mantras for When I'm Overwhelmed: BeckyLMcCoy.com/4mantras

FIND BECKY ONLINE:
Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com
Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

Subscribe, rate, review, and share this podcast with the resilient people in your life!

Links may be affiliate links, so you're supporting this podcast when you buy through them. Thanks!

When it comes to friendship, there's some kind of unspoken fear that we have to have it all together or our friends won't want to be our friends anymore. Do you find yourself worrying that if your friends could see your *insert weakness, fault, or fear here* they'd go running? What if friendship was less about two perfect people finding each other and more about finding the people who compliment and fit in with your own humanity?

CLICK HERE FOR THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Shop Rothy's Shoes: BeckyLMcCoy.com/Rothys
Big Friendship by Aminitou Sow and Ann Friedman
Friendship in the Age of Loneliness by Adam Smiley Poswolsky
The Art of Showing Up by Rachel Wilkerson Miller
4 Mantras for When I'm Overwhelmed: BeckyLMcCoy.com/4mantras

FIND BECKY ONLINE:
Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com
Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

Subscribe, rate, review, and share this podcast with the resilient people in your life!

Links may be affiliate links, so you're supporting this podcast when you buy through them. Thanks!

If friends aren't the people we play with at recess or live down the hall from in the college dorm, what are they? Why do we need them if not to have a friend for hide and seek or someone to share the highs and lows of growing up with? Why do we even need friends at all?

CLICK HERE FOR THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE

STUFF MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Shop Rothy's Shoes: BeckyLMcCoy.com/Rothys
Thank You, Omu! by Oge Mora
How We Show Up by Mia Birdsong
The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker
4 Mantras for When I'm Overwhelmed: BeckyLMcCoy.com/4mantras

FIND BECKY ONLINE:
Website: BeckyLMcCoy.com
Social Media: @BeckyLMcCoy

Subscribe, rate, review, and share this podcast with the resilient people in your life!

Links may be affiliate links, so you're supporting this podcast when you buy through them. Thanks!