In this special video series, prominent authors, thought leaders, and others answer the question, “ What is the nicest thing a non-family member has ever done for you? ”

Anne Lamott’s Story
Bestselling author

EXCERPT: When I got sober at 32, I wrote a letter of amends, an apology from really the depths of my soul. And she responded really beautifully. And then, a couple of years ago, I was doing a writing conference at a big bookstore and she came to it. I hadn’t seen her in all these years.

To watch the video and read the transcript of Anne’s 1-minute story about a profound act of forgiveness, click here.

Cyndi Dale’s story
Mystic, medium, and author, and a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

EXCERPT: And so I decided that I wanted to die. I decided I was done. I decided I was going to leave. And so I told my parents, “I’m going to die.” And they looked at me like they did with many of the phrases that I would utter. And they said, "Whatever," and between themselves said, "Isn’t she imaginative?" And I woke up the next morning really, really ill. I had the flu, I had a fever. I was very sick.

To watch the video and read the transcript of Cyndi’s 10-minute story about the supernatural voice that saved her life, click here.

Suzanne Giesemann’s story
Mystic, medium, and author, and a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

EXCERPT: We ended up getting off a ferry in Croatia for the final leg of the trip. We needed a taxi or we needed a bus and basically we were dumped out in this parking lot and there was nobody around but this tow truck. We had to get back to our boat. We didn’t speak the language. We were exhausted. We were numb from the grief. I looked over at this tow truck and I said to my husband Ty, “Well, that’s our only hope right there.”

To watch the video and read the transcript of Suzanne’s harrowing 11-minute story about tragic loss and finding some measure of healing in a vacant parking lot in Croatia, click here.

Robert Moss’ story
Creator of Active Dreaming, and a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

EXCERPT: I was busy, as usual, traveling and teaching a lot around the world, and my book deadline was two weeks away. Although I write fast, two weeks isn’t very long to write a book when you actually haven’t knuckled down and done any of it as a draft up to that point. A friend of mind in Europe sent me a message and said, "How’s the book coming along?" I said, "Well, I don’t really know what to say. The deadline’s in two weeks. It’s all with me in a sense, but I haven’t put anything really on paper, yet." She said, "Okay. Maybe this dream will help you, Robert. I want to give you a dream. It’s a dream about you."

To watch the video and read the transcript of Robert’s fascinating 4-minute story, click here.

Eileen McKusick’s story
Founder of Biofield Tuning, and a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

EXCERPT: When we moved to Vermont in 2002, my kids were little, they were two and five, and we had gone through a very devastating experience where my husband had been in a car accident. He was hit by a drunk driver, and he wasn’t able to work for a few years, and this combined with some other things caused us to lose everything. We went into a complete and utter financial meltdown.

To watch the video and read the transcript of Eileen’s humbling 3-minute story, click here.

Bernadette Pleasant’s story
Creator of Femme!, a mind-body wellness program, and a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

EXCERPT: I wasn’t sleeping, I wasn’t eating, I was stressed out, I’d left my husband. I can recall getting a phone call from my boss. I didn’t quite understand the phone call and why he was calling me. He says, "Bernadette, where have you been?" I recall looking at the phone, thinking, What are you talking about? He says, "Are you okay?" "Sure, I’m okay." I have all this question in my voice, because I don’t understand why he’s calling me. And he says, "Bernadette, it’s Thursday. You haven’t been to work all week. You haven’t called in. I don’t understand."

To watch the video and read the transcript of Bernadette’s 5-minute story about the caring friend who transformed her life, click here.

If you missed any “Nicest Thing” stories, you can catch up on all of them here.

Healing Ancestral Trauma to Heal Our Democracies
By Resmaa Menakem and Rabbi Tirzah Firestone, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

The roaring masses who barreled into the Capitol flaunted symbols and regalia common to the scenes of crimes we suffered for generations: Confederate flags, nooses and gallows, white power hand signals, insignias proclaiming 6MWE (an acronym for “Six Million Wasn’t Enough”), and a sweatshirt emblazoned with “Camp Auschwitz.”

These were references to history, but they were also overt signs of racialized and religionized trauma that have festered inside American bodies for more than four centuries. These unhealed wounds have been passed down, from body to body, from generation to generation. To read more, click here.

Voices of Our Ancestors: Their Physical and Subtle Legacies
By Cyndi Dale, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

During the initial COVID-19 lockdown, I caught myself acting as compulsively as it seemed nearly everyone else was. If there was a spare package of toilet paper to be found, I’d find it. Only satisfied when I’d pretty darn-near filled my utility room with sundry toilet paper rolls, I turned to other necessities, like cans of beans. I figured if everything went south, even the dogs could survive on bean chili. After a couple weeks of paranoia, I stopped myself. Why was I acting this way? It wasn’t like we were re-entering the Great Depression — or maybe... To read more, click here.

Unfinished Business: Healing Hearts Across Dimensions
By Suzanne Giesemann, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

Interactions with those closest to us can be challenging when they’re out in the open, but unresolved issues can fester for years, if not lifetimes. These can cover the spectrum from hurt feelings or broken hearts to loving words or praise left unsaid when a loved one passes. Guilt and regret can feel like a stone on the chest adding to the grief for those left behind.

Often, when people consult with a medium, they tend to think only in terms of their personal opportunity to say things they didn’t say before their loved one’s transition. What many don’t realize is that a medium serves an equally important role as a mouthpiece for those who no longer have a physical voice. The eagerness to enjoy clear communication extends to both sides of the veil. To read more, click here.

400 Years: Beyond Anti-Racism — the Embodiment of Ancestral Healing
By Bernadette Pleasant, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

This work is like having a meal. Honoring a process of unlearning a centuries-old reality of racism can’t be treated like grabbing fast food on the run. When a table is set and a healthy meal is prepared and served well while sitting together at a table, it has a way of calming the nervous system and leading to proper digestion.

My ancestors were calling me to set that table and serve that meal. So, I created a program called 400 Years: Unlearning Racism Through the Body, Storytelling and Deep Listening. My ancestors had learned to communicate just by looking at each other; by gesturing, by symbolism. It was an unspoken communication, private and silent because it had to be. They had to be silent; but now I was being called to be silent no more/ To read more, click here.

I’m Not *That* Bad! Are You?
By Lisa Bonnice, host of the Ancestral Healing Summit

Dig this: I’m not a bad enough person to feel as bad as I once did. While I’m not perfect, I’ve never caused enough harm to deserve the levels of guilt and anxiety I’ve dealt with most of my life. In order to feel this much guilt and fear of punishment, I would have had to commit a heinous crime. Guess what... not guilty.

So where do these unwanted feelings of unwarranted unworthiness come from? Societal conditioning? Brain washing by Madison Avenue and/or the Illuminati? Past life karma? Or, it could come from ancestral trauma.

To read more, click here.

Releasing Ancestral Karma
By Robert Moss, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

She stands before the fire, straight and tall as a flame, her fierce green eyes blazing. Irene stoops for a moment to make an offering to the fire, a pinch of tobacco, a sprig of sage. Then she carefully unfolds the first piece of paper. She reads aloud the following statement she has written: “I give to the fire all deep, encrusted feelings of powerlessness that drove my ancestors, our beloved men, into alcohol dependency.”

She consigns the paper to the fire, and the fire takes it hungrily. She unfolds the second message and reads it in a clear, ringing voice so that even the people on the edge of the circle can hear her without leaning in. To read more, click here.

Langston Kahn: A Story of Spiritual Reparations Through Ancestral Healing
Excerpt from a session in the Ancestral Healing Summit

Click here to watch a 4-minute clip from the conversation between Ancestral Healing Summit host Lisa Bonnice and Langston Hughes. Their full conversation, “Liberating Our True Longing With the Ancestors” will be broadcast as part of the Ancestral Healing Summit on Thursday, February 25, at 10:00am Pacific.

Connect Across the Veil in 7 Steps
By Suzanne Giesemann, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

Do you want to connect with guides or loved ones who have passed? Suzanne Giesemann’s "BLESS ME Method’ for connecting with higher consciousness has helped thousands to enter an expanded state quickly and merge with individuated aspects of consciousness. Have you tried meditation and can’t quiet your mind? You don’t need to. This lightly structured yet easily individualized process leads you to a focused, interactive experience called "sitting in the Power." This teaching is offered as a gift to you to bring more love into our world. May the ripples spread outward! Click here to watch this 20-minute video.

The World Tree Meditation
By Cyndi Dale, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

Experience the creation of the entire Universe as part of the World Tree. She — the World Tree — is the holiness that began it all. As you move through the creation process with her, you become all that is in the world, from elements to consciousness.

Click here to listen to this 10-minute meditation.

Season for Nonviolence 2021
Principles of Nonviolence & Working for a Department of Peacebuilding

The Season for Nonviolence (SNV) falls between the memorial dates of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and honors the principles of nonviolence which are critical today and foundational in legislation to establish a cabinet-level Department of Peacebuilding (DoP).

A DoP is about finding a way to be the nation we need to be. No justice, no peace. No peacebuilding, no justice. Be part of building a Beloved Community as we turn the Season for Nonviolence into a culture of peace. 1) Ask your member of Congress to cosponsor legislation to create a Department of Peacebuilding. 2) If you would like to assist the SNV team by contacting additional members of Congress, please write to nancy@peacealliance.org.

Wounds into Wisdom: Healing Intergenerational Jewish Trauma
By Rabbi Tirzah Firestone, a featured speaker in the Ancestral Healing Summit

Our past does not simply disappear. The painful history of our ancestors and their rich cultural wisdom intertwine within us to create the patterns of our future. Even when past trauma remains unspoken or has long been forgotten, it becomes part of us and our children ― a legacy of both strength and woundedness that shapes our lives. Tirzah Firestone brings to life the profound impact of protracted historical trauma through the compelling narratives of Israeli terror victims, Holocaust survivors, and those whose lives were marred by racial persecution and displacement. Seven principles emerge from these wise narratives ― powerful prescriptive tools that speak to anyone dealing with the effects of past injury. Click here to order your copy.


 

My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies
By Resmaa Menakem

Therapist Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of trauma and body-centered psychology. The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze, and it endures the trauma inflicted by the ills that plague society. Menakem argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. Our collective agony doesn’t just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans — our police. This book is a call to action for all of us to recognize that racism is not only about the head, but about the body, and introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched racialized divide. Click here to order your copy.
 

Emptiness Dreaming: The Story of Creation As Seen through the Eyes of The Quantum Void
By Bill Bauman

Prepare to explore a pioneering new theory of cosmology, derived from a rarely explored source: the Quantum Void! Bill Bauman leads readers through a compelling, eye-opening voyage — from the invisible depths of the quantum void to the endless heights of creation’s multiple dimensions, all the way to the space-time intricacies of our very own human existence.

Along this mind-expanding journey, Bauman adds his own visionary, mystical interpretations to well over 150 citations of current quantum physics studies, quantumly oriented scholars, and experts from related disciplines. In the process, he masterfully translates the complex language of science and intuition into one that is easy for the curious, open-minded, growth-oriented non-scientist to understand. To order your copy, click here.

World Peace Library. Designed for the layperson and professional peacebuilder alike, the World Peace Library has over 425 audio and video interviews with some of the most remarkable, inspiring peacebuilders in the world available to you at NO COST. You’ll find hundreds of hours of inspirational, peacebuilding, compassion-spreading talks and trainings at your fingertips with this FREE global resource. There’s no way you can’t come away from the World Peace Library deeply inspired, transformed — and part of the solution. Click here to find out how to take peace to the next level — and help co-create a global culture of peace that leaves a legacy of good for our children, our children’s children and all of humanity and life on earth.

Book by Stephen Dinan: Sacred America, Sacred World. Infused with visionary power, Sacred America, Sacred World is a manifesto for our country’s evolution that is both political and deeply spiritual. It offers profound hope that America can grow beyond our current challenges and manifest our noblest destiny, which the book shows is rooted in sacred principles that transcend left or right political views. To order your copy, click here.

If you would like to submit something to The Catalyst, please see the submission guidelines: click here.

Native Wellness Institute

A nonprofit organization founded in 2000, NWI’s mission is to “promote the wellbeing of Native people through programs and trainings that embrace the teachings and traditions of our ancestors.” “Wellness” might have the resonance of a 21st-century buzzword, but for the Native community, access to ancestral teachings to help physical, spiritual, emotional and mental wellbeing is a powerful tool for healing generations of trauma. For more information, click here.

Discover the Transformative & Liberating Powers of the Black Madonna — A free video event with award-winning author China Galland. Discover the Black Madonna as a powerful archetype that can help you heal, evolve, and find a new way forward... plus, experience a potent practice to call her in to help you resolve a current challenge and become a loving ally in your life. Wednesday, February 24, at 5:30pm Pacific

Unlock Your Superhuman Potential With a Healing Qigong Toolkit — A free video event with Lee Holden, an internationally renowned instructor in Qigong, meditation, and Tai Chi. Unleash your “superhuman” abilities using Qigong, breathwork, and meditation to live a life of purpose, power, and inner peace. Saturday, February 27, at 10:00am Pacific

Discover Your Mythic Edge for a Life of Magic, Courage & Fulfillment — A free video event with bestselling author and dream shaman Robert Moss. Tap into the transformative energies of mythic archetypes in a guided journey with Raven, a Trickster and Creator, to seek wisdom and healing, and glimpse the past or future. Wednesday, March 3, at 5:30pm Pacific

Improvisational Flute-Playing as a Tool for Personal Liberation, Healing & Playfulness — A free video event with author, drummer/flutist, and music therapist Christine Stevens. Build confidence, break through your inhibitions, and find healing when you express yourself through improvisation. Saturday, March 6, at 10:00am Pacific

Dreaming Yourself Awake — With spiritual emergence pioneer, teacher, and author
Paul Levy. Learn to perceive your reality as a dream — and the Universe as an Oracle — speaking to you through symbols as you create your life. Discover how the source of our collective madness lies in each of us individually — and how you have the power to awaken from the spell of scarcity as you perceive your reality as a “dream.” New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Monday, February 22

Tap Into Infinite Abundance by Activating Enlightened Prosperity Consciousness — With bestselling author and spiritual teacher Michael B. Beckwith, the founder of Agape International Spiritual Center. Discover teachings and practices to make yourself available to the universe’s infinite opportunities — and understand the true definition of “prosperity,” far beyond materialism — so you can thrive and know that all your needs are met. New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Thursday, February 25

The True Purpose of Your Soul’s Journey — With pioneering UK author and mystic Dr. William Bloom, the director of Spiritual Companions Trust. Know your life’s true meaning and mission through understanding the deep and inspiring teachings of the great mystical and wisdom traditions as you journey to a state of liberated consciousness and pure unconditional love and compassion. Find profound peace and purpose in knowing where your soul goes after you die and how you can make that transition — or help others — with assurance and grace. New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Tuesday, March 2

BioDynamic Breathwork for Inner Safety, an Open Heart & Deeper Presence — With Giten Tonkov, founder of the BioDynamic Breathwork & Trauma Release System®. Explore ways to release negative emotions in your body’s seven energy centers using deep, connected breathing, gentle movement, conscious touch, and sound to overcome anxiety, depression, and helplessness. New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Thursday, March 4

Reboot Your Chakras to Ground, Invigorate & Expand Your Life — With Anodea Judith, PhD, the #1 bestselling author and expert on the chakra system. Heal the imbalances in your chakras created by your belief system, your emotions, and the collective — to boost your immunity and optimize your wellbeing. New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Tuesday, March 9

Andean Shamanic Journeys & Rituals to Align With the Divine Feminine for Strength & Purpose — With Andean medicine man Puma Fredy Quispe Singona. Explore the seven starlight rays and powerful healing essences of the Pleiades — through rituals, journeys, and ceremonies to awaken the Sacred Feminine here on Earth... and within your own soul. New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts Wednesday, March 10