A Path To Call Your Own: Recent Episodes
Matthew Foley
Host Matthew Robertson shares an audio essay exploring something that many of us would say we are looking for in our romantic partnerships… a love that feels like home. Safe, accepting, and unconditionally loving.But unfortunately, our sense of what feels like “home” can also be influenced by lessons from childhood that associate “home” with dynamics that aren’t actually healthy for us, despite how “familiar” they might feel. To find a truly healthy love, we are going to have to unlearn some of those lessons that keep us choosing toxic relationships that feel familiar for all the wrong reasons. That’s what we’ll explore in this short audio essay. You can also find a video version on my YouTube channel and a text version on my Substack page, both of which are under the name A Path To Call Your Own.And If you are looking for support on your journey of healing from childhood wounds & discovering healthy love and relationships, I'd love to talk with you about how life coaching can help you on your path. You can learn more about my 1-on-1 coaching offerings at my website: apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Robertson shares an audio essay exploring narcissistic behavior and the realities of experiencing narcissistic abuse.You can also find a video version on my YouTube channel and a text version on my Substack page, both of which are under the name A Path To Call Your Own.And if you have experienced narcissistic abuse and are looking for guidance on your healing journey, I’d love to talk with you about how I can support you on your recovery & healing process. You can learn more about my 1-on-1 coaching offerings at my website, apathtocallyourown.com"When a highly narcissistic individual walks into a room of other people, their narcissistic skills go to work to construct an image, a mask, of the false self they imagine themselves to be: perfected and free from the toxic shame that resides within. With subtle psychological manipulation, they will strive to influence, coerce, and lovebomb you into seeing them as they wish to be seen… or else suffer the consequences. The key mission of their narcissistic behavior is to establish themselves as the most central, important person in the room, the sun around which the rest of us are expected to circle faithfully in its orbit.. or face their narcissistic rage."
Host Matthew Robertson welcomes guest Ashley Hutt (speaker, coach, & hypnotherapist) for a discussion on the twin themes of re-parenting the inner child and parenting a child in the world. We begin the conversation with how Ashley first came to inner child work through her training in Rapid Transformational Therapy and how connecting to her inner child helped with her life-long struggle with migraines. Then we discuss how inner child work shows up in her work with clients: how we can connect to our inner self at different ages & stages of childhood and learn to become the safe, loving adult our inner child needed all those years ago.Finally, we connect inner child work with the raising of a living child in the modern world. As a mother, Ashley talks about her inner work informs how she shows up for her daughter and how she makes choices as a parent.If you are a parent, are thinking about becoming a parent, or are interested in becoming that safe, loving "inner parent" to your own inner child - this is a conversation you will definitely appreciate.
Host Matthew Foley shares an audio essay to inspire your creative journey.
"Creativity has been a frequent theme on this podcast & my own creative practice has been a renewed center of my life recently. I felt inspired to share my thoughts about how we can awaken our creative spark.. especially when we’ve gone through a season of feeling disconnected from it, which I think happens to all artists & creatives at various times in our life.
I wrote the following audio essay, Reignite Your Creative Fire, in hopes that it will offer insights & inspiration for your creative journey.. whether you write, sing, dance, paint, perform, or express yourself in any way.
Stick around to the end of the episode when I’ll talk about specific opportunities to work with me to kickstart your creativity, whether 1-on-1 or as part of a special creativity-centered group challenge I’ll be hosting in October 2021."
Learn more at apathtocallyourown.com
Poetry has always been one of the great languages of the sacred.
For thousands of years, great spiritual teachers, mystics, and seekers have turned to poetry to convey the deep mysteries of the divine and to express the wisdom they’ve discovered on the spiritual journey.
In the newest episode of A Path To Call Your Own, I share with my podcast listeners a collection of poems - some written by myself, some by a few of my favorite poets - that offer insights, guidance, and support as you follow your own soul’s path.
Featured poets include Mary Oliver, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Mark Nepo.
Many of my own poems shared on the podcast are brand new, written within the last few months. I also read aloud one of my favorite poems from my most recent poetry book, Mountain Medicine, which is available for sale on the A Path To Call Your Own website.
You can also read more of my poetry by visiting the Writing page of my website: apathtocallyourown.com
Body like a mountain. Heart like an ocean. Mind like the sky. - Dōgen
Host Matthew Foley guides listeners through a meditation using the classic Zen poem above for inspiration as we cultivate these qualities of body, heart, and mind.
We’ll begin by sitting like a mountain - grounded, steady, and solid; opening our hearts like an ocean - soft, accepting, and spacious; and widening our minds like the sky - clear, open, and free.
Listeners are encouraged to have a journal or paper + pen nearby for a brief period of reflection before the meditation.
This is a live recording of my Monday Meditation class from June 28th, 2021. If you would like to join these Monday Meditation gatherings, head to my website apathtocallyourown.com and head to the Meditation page, where you can book a spot for the upcoming Monday night Zoom call. You’re also welcome to reach out to me on Facebook or Instagram & I’ll send the Zoom link your way.
Host Matthew Foley welcomes Brianna Brown, a spiritual mentor & soul-body alchemist, to discuss the shadow, inner child work, and her program Cultivating Inner Harmony.
In this interview, Brianna shares her own spiritual healing journey & what led her into her current work with clients, which incorporates healing trauma, stepping into personal sovereignty, integrating the shadow, breaking free from social constructs, and discovering inner harmony.
Matthew & Brianna dive deep into a discussion of shadow work. They explore how we can shine a light on those shamed, repressed, or unloved parts of ourselves by paying close attention to what triggers or annoys us in others. By shining that light, we can learn to uncover & celebrate the inner gold that was previously hidden in shadow.
They also discuss the related subject of healing the inner child. Matthew & Briana both share experiences of learning how to reconnect to the child within, recognizing ways in which that child might not have been seen or loved as they properly deserved, and offering love & awareness to the gifts of our inner child - a sense of play, freedom, joy, and wholeness.
To learn more about Brianna’s work, including her Cultivating Inner Harmony program, follow her on Instagram: @brianna.r.brown
Host Matthew Foley shares a teaching & guided meditation on the theme of "Gratitude & Generosity" from his Monday Meditation class, which he hosts every Monday night on Zoom from 7-8 pm (EST).
Inspired by the book "The Diamond Cutter: The Buddha on Managing Your Business and Your Life" explores how a mindset of generous giving & grateful receiving can add incredible value to our lives & financial well-being. In his opening teaching, Matthew gives specific examples about how we can practice more generosity (even on a tight budget) and how we can experience receiving from others with a deeper sense of gratitude.
In the meditation, Matthew guides students into a breath-centered practice, connecting to these concepts of grateful receiving & generous giving to the flow of our inhales & exhales.
If you would like to attend one of Matthew's Monday Meditation classes, head to his website apathtocallyourown.com and click the Meditation tab. There you can register for that week’s meditation & receive a Zoom link for the upcoming Monday night.
This episode is a recording from the new Spirit Talks conversation series I’m hosting, where I invite a special guest to join me AND a virtual audience to share a community dialogue about a particular topic related to the spiritual journey.
To kick off this experiment, I reached out to one of my favorite previous podcast guests: my good friend Sarah Familar-Ragsdale. I thought Sarah would be the perfect person to explore a topic that’s on my mind quite a bit: the art of spiritual mentoring.
What does it mean to have a spiritual mentor.. someone who guides or supports us on our spiritual journeys?
And for those of us who work as coaches, therapists, teachers, or guides.. what does it mean to be a spiritual mentor? What qualities should a good mentor possess, and what ethical principles must be followed to ensure that a mentoring relationship is healthy for everyone involved?
Sarah & I both share our personal experiences of the mentors who have shaped our spiritual journeys and how we approach the art of spiritual mentorship in our professional lives. And then we open it up to questions & comments from the audience, as they share their own stories related to spiritual mentorship.
Sarah will offer an introduction to her philosophy & work in the recording, but if you’d like to learn more about Sarah, I highly encourage you to check out our first conversation together on this podcast, Episode 21: Season of the Witch.
In this solo episode, host Matthew Foley discusses two archetypes that help guide the life coaching journey towards wholeness: 1) The Ruler/King/Queen and 2)The Magician/Wizard/Priestess.
"These two archetypal images symbolize our capacity for sovereignty and transformation, power and wisdom. Together, they help us take our proper place in both earthly life and in the life of the spirit.
Our inner King/Queen/Ruler is the part of our being who knows how to stand in our power and use that power for good and noble ends, who creates proper order and structure in our lives, who offers blessing and protection to our friends, family, and community.
Our inner Magician/Wizard/Priestess is that aspect of ourselves who is deeply connected to spirit, who opens our being to a dialogue with the sacred, and who, based on the wisdom of that deep listening, masters of the arts of inner transformation and spiritual healing.
Together, these two archetypes offer us a compelling image of the fully realized Self - wise, empowered, and whole."
Spiritual life coach Matthew Foley leads listeners on a guided inner journey to discover clarity about their life path & purpose. This guided meditation uses the power of the imagination to help you "walk your soul path" and form a deeper relationship with who you really are. It will also provide insights into what tools & forms of support that can help you maintain that connection and live a more soul-inspired life. To join Matthew on the life coaching journey, head to his website: apathtocallyourown.com
In this solo episode released in honor of the Winter Solstice, host Matthew Foley shares ideas & inner resources for making this winter an intentional & soulful experience.
"In symbolic terms, I see this winter as an opportunity to enter into our Inner Cave.
Looking towards the wisdom of the natural world, we might think of bears & other creatures who seek out caves to spend their winters in hibernation.
In many spiritual traditions, caves are often symbols of contemplative retreat from the world. Spiritual hermits of all kinds - Buddhist monks, Indian sadhus, and early Christian monastics - were known for seeking out caves for periods of silence, solitude, and deep meditation.
Caves are also a mythological symbol for dark places where we fear to look. Heroes in myths & fantasy novels are likely to find dragons and other monsters waiting in the depths of deep, dark caves. But in these stories, it is precisely those dragons & fearsome monsters who are guarding the treasure the hero seeks.
These stories point towards a deep psychological truth: when we peer into the depths of ourselves during times of deep solitude and introspection, we do run the risk of discovering dragons - our fears, our doubts, our unhealed wounds. But it is precisely beneath those fears, doubts, and wounds that we also discover gold - specifically, the gold of a deeper self-knowing.
Joseph Campbell was absolutely right: 'The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.'
So, let me offer some tools for entering into this season of the Inner Cave - resources for uncovering the inner treasure that awaits you. May these be like torches that help light your way through the dark."
Host Matthew Foley talks with Tina Lambert about the sacred use of psychedelic plant medicines, particularly ayahuasca. Tina teaches us about the history of Ayahuasca, how it is prepared, and experienced among shamans in South America. We trade stories of some of our first profound spiritual experiences with psychedelics, me recounting my first experience with mushrooms and Tina sharing her first time drinking ayahuasca. Tina also opens up about the personal healing she has experienced through ayahuasca, including repairing relationships with her family. We talk about ayahuasca’s relationship to the divine feminine, and how many people experience this plant medicine as MOTHER Ayahuasca. Finally, we talk about the future of psychedelics, including possible legalization and both the promises & perils of more mainstream acceptance of plant medicines. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley talks with Ashley Mizzell, a yoga teacher & social activist in Charleston, South Carolina. We dive into the racial history of Charleston & Ashley’s experience growing up in that community as a woman of color. Ashley shares how she discovered yoga & stepped into her power as a yoga teacher with a mission to create welcoming spaces for folks who may often feel alienated from mainly white, privileged yoga studios. We get into some real honest conversation about the legacy of cultural appropriation in Western yoga, the spiritual bypassing that occurs within wellness communities, and the misuse of spiritual concepts like Oneness to stifle honest conversation about issues in our communities. We talk about the potential for spiritual practice to help heal ancestral trauma & trauma created by oppression and the importance of self-care among activists to prevent burn-out & feeling overwhelmed by the state of the world. This conversation will leave you feeling inspired & fired up combining spiritual practice with a practice of social awareness & standing up for justice. To learn more about the podcast & Matthew's work as a spiritual life coach, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley talks with Nicole Yallum, creator & founder of Boundless Beings, where she serves clients through what she describes as a “soulful & energetically focused alternative to traditional therapy.” They discuss navigating 2020 as a spiritual healer & entrepreneur, leaning into the unknown, the history & practice of Reiki, integrating Eastern & Western medicine, the balance of the spiritual & the human experience, and how we can best get out of our own way & let the healing process happen.
In this solo episode, Matthew Foley talks about the shamanic practice of "soul retrieval" and how this ancient art of finding soul can speak to us in the modern world. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com/podcast
Host Matthew Foley chats with Sarah Familar-Ragsdale - a witch & high priestess of the divine feminine living in Charleston, South Carolina. Sarah & I explore the rebalancing of masculine & feminine in the spiritual life, our shared experiences in the Southern Baptist church as children, the history of pagan religions before the emergence of Christianity, the wisdom of the seasons, and the growing interest in witchcraft, magic, and spiritual paths that deeply honor the earth, our Great Mother. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
The day after the first presidential debate in 2020, host Matthew Foley shares his thoughts on the role spirituality can play in taking social action. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley chats with musician Tanner Kirk about creativity, protest art, current social justice issues in America, the changing definition of masculinity, and Tanner's year in Mr. Foley's English class. The episode features Tanner's new song "Wear Your Colors On Your Face". To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
In this solo episode, host Matthew Foley explores how we can experience joy at the center of our lives, not just on the margins.
"When we were young, we dreamed of lives where our happiness and inspiration, our curiosity and creativity would be at the very center of our life. But somewhere along the way, we buy into the idea that this is all a fool’s dream, a childhood fantasy we inevitably have to wake up from on the path to adulthood.We resign ourselves to finding our joy in the margins, in those tiny slices of time between work, making dinner, folding the laundry, and getting to bed at a reasonable hour. Reasonable. Responsible. Realistic. But how is your soul? How is your heart? Are you living the life you actually want to be living?"
To learn more about Matthew's coaching work, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley talks with Raven McKevlin - poet, filmmaker, and queer Christian - about her journey of spiritual healing, a journey of realizing that loving God & loving oneself is really the same love. We talk about what it’s like to recover from “spiritual trauma” - experiences of guilt, shame, and fear brought on by religious belief & religious community. We’ll explore the unlearning that both of us did to see & understand the Divine in new ways, that welcome all of who we are, and help us release old stories that told us we were unworthy in the eyes of God. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley talks with Charleston SC musician John Brewster about spirituality, creativity, and living the best version of yourself. Learn more about the podcast at apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley announces the start of Season 2 of the podcast, focused on conversations for spiritual seekers. Learn more about the podcast at apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley talks with yoga teacher & Tantric practitioner Laura Jarrait about the path of conscious relationships. They explore how to see our relationships as a spiritual path, full of challenge and promise, that can lead us to awakening. To support the podcast, head to patreon.com/apathtocallyourown
Host Matthew Foley talks with yoga teacher & birth doula Nicci Kristine about the sacred masculine & feminine in each of us. To support the podcast on Patreon, head to patreon.com/apathtocallyourown
Host Matthew Foley talks with life coach Jane Coburn about finding the joy in the midst of life's challenge through gratitude & awareness. Support the podcast on Patreon: patreon.com/apathtocallyourown
Life coach Matthew Foley leads a guided meditation on love featuring original music by musician John Brewster. To support the podcast on Patreon, head to patreon.com/apathtocallyourown.com
Host Matthew Foley sits down with Derek Berry, writer & host of the Contribute Your Verse Podcast, to discuss the "myth of the tortured artist." Derek & Matt discuss their personal journeys as writers and how we can reimagine a new myth for the creative life that is healthier & more sustainable for artists.
Host Matthew Foley shares original poetry that speaks to the spiritual journey & how each of us can find our way during challenging times. Become a supporter of the podcast on Patreon: patreon.com/apathtocallyourown
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with author & writing coach Jaime Fleres about the healing power of stories, maintaining a healthy relationship with our own creativity, and writing as a spiritual practice. Become a supporter of the podcast on Patreon: patreon.com/apathtocallyourown
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with Jungian author & teacher Lori Green about depth psychology, archetypes, dreams, and intentionally entering into the unknown. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with Asheville NC meditation teacher Carter Layfield. Learn more about the podcast at apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with writer, performer, and creativity coach Nina Hart about creativity, how to nurture aspiring artists, the importance of discovery & play, the effects of fear & shame on the creative life, and how to “heal the heartbroken artist”. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with Asheville NC business coach Amber Brown-Short about aligning with an abundant life rooted in passion & purpose. We discuss spirituality, recovery, money stories, balancing the masculine & feminine in business, and much more. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley talks with Asheville NC musician Asher Leigh about her unfolding process of finding purpose, moments of spiritual awakening and unraveling, how music came into her life, and how we can create safe spaces for our creativity to blossom - within ourselves and within our relationships. To learn more about the podcast, head to apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley leads listeners through a process for discovering their life purpose. The second in a two part series, this episode explores how we can use our "deep gladness" (our gifts, our joy, our tools for healing) to be of service to the world's "deep hunger". Includes an exercise of crafting your own unique life purpose statement. To learn more, visit apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley leads listeners through a process for discovering their life purpose. The first in a two part series, this episode explores our "deep gladness" and how we can use our joy, gifts, and healing experiences to be of service to the world. To learn more, visit apathtocallyourown.com
Life coach Matthew Foley welcomes listeners to the first episode of A Path To Call Your Own, a podcast on finding purpose.