RootStories of the Soul: Soulful Talks with Ximena

Bradley Denis McDevitt: A Story Waiting to Flourish

In this week’s episode, Ximena talks with theater artist and depth psychology scholar, Bradley Denis McDevitt about his creative consulting firm Carolina Commons Creative. We discuss the “Theater of Self” program, where he helps not just actors but businesses and individuals discover their sense of Self utilizing acting techniques as well neuroscience and depth psychology to enhance metacognition, and somatic and emotional intelligence. Bradley is also a ICF-accredited development coach, dedicated to fostering personal and professional growth, especially for young people. He lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with his wife and two daughters. Resources for this episode: For more information about Bradley McDevitt and his coaching practice, please visit https://carolinacommons.org/ John Vervaeke https://johnvervaeke.com/ [https://johnvervaeke.com/] Iain McGilchrist https://channelmcgilchrist.com/ [https://channelmcgilchrist.com/] Thank you for listening to this episode. I am so thrilled and honored to be sharing stories about the Soul of Place and what we can each do to reconnect to our roots. I would love to get your feedback and opinions. Please share this episode with anyone who may need to hear this message. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts. My name is Ximena Dussan-Aya Pearson. Until next time! Keep inviting the soul of the world into your lives!

Sofia Talvik: The American Archetype of Roaming the Endless Highway

In this week’s episode, Ximena hosts singer-songwriter Sofia Talvik. We discuss her Swedish roots, her American sound, and her many journeys and experiences roaming the endless highway in her 1989 Winnebago Warrior. Her roots are deeply embedded in her relationship with her husband. Home is where her husband lives. A musical nomad, moving from place to place, slowly but steadily building her audience through her heartfelt and personal performances she got to know experience the USA in a way a few people do. Resources for this episode: For more information about Sofia Talvik, please visit https://sofiatalvik.com/ Thank you for listening to this episode. I am so thrilled and honored to be sharing stories about the Soul of Place and what we can each do to reconnect to our roots. I would love to get your feedback and opinions. Please share this episode with anyone who may need to hear this message. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts. My name is Ximena Dussan-Aya Pearson. Until next time! Keep inviting the soul of the world into your lives!

Raíces: Mother Nature Gifts to You

In this week’s episode, Ximena talks to Maribel Valadez, single mother, Entreprenuer, and native of Aguascalientes, Mexico about how her small business, Raíces: Mother Nature Gifts to You. Raíces captures and brings the true aromas and essences of her home town of Aguascalientes, Mexico through beautiful hand-crafted soaps, shampoo and conditioner bars. Nature gifts us so many natural resources that come from the ground up. The creation of Raices comes from the natural resources that come from the roots of the earth by the Grace of God.   All the products are made with love and personally handcrafted in the beautiful state of Aguascalientes, Mexico.   The delicate elaboration process of our soap takes several days, and each soap is made with several different essential oils that release a beautiful and relaxing aroma. In addition, our soaps are specially made to heal, enhance and stimulate a natural flow of energy throughout the body. Resources for this episode: Stay tuned for the website: For more information about Raíces, please visit https://www.raícesbeauty.com/ Thank you for listening to this episode. I am so thrilled and honored to be sharing stories about the Soul of Place and what we can each do to reconnect to our roots. I would love to get your feedback and opinions. Please share this episode with anyone who may need to hear this message. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts. My name is Ximena Dussan-Aya Pearson. Until next time! Keep inviting the soul of the world into your lives!

Dr. Chalquist on Terrapsychological Inquiry: Restorying our Relationship with Nature, Place, Planet

In this week’s episode, Ximena talks with author, professor, Dr Craig Chalquist about his research method of Terrapsychology. A method by which we can begin to restore and restory our relationship between our psyche, nature, place and planet. How can we each find our own personal myth or story? How are the stories of our culture impacted by the place we inhabit? Craig Chalquist, PhD chairs the Consciousness, Psychology, and Transformation master’s program at National University. He writes and lectures at the intersection of story, psyche, place, and lore. His most recent book is the second edition of Terrapsychological Inquiry: Restorying Our Relationship with Nature, Place, and Planet. Resources for this episode: For more information about Dr Chalquist, please visit https://www.chalquist.com/ Thank you for listening to this episode. I am so thrilled and honored to be sharing stories about the Soul of Place and what we can each do to reconnect to our roots. I would love to get your feedback and opinions. Please share this episode with anyone who may need to hear this message. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts. My name is Ximena Dussan-Aya Pearson. Until next time! Keep inviting the soul of the world into your lives!

Roland Palencia: UNIDAD, Gay & Lesbian Latinos Unidos

In this week’s episode, Ximena hosts professor, activist, and filmmaker Roland Palencia. We talk about Roland’s most recent documentary UNIDAD: Gay & Lesbian Latinos Unidos (GLLU), a film which chronicles the early 1980s queer Latino activism in Los Angeles. It is a conversation about the need to belong, about being uprooted from your homeland, only to find roots in a foreign land. It is a conversation of how we can find ways to share our stories that unite and glue us together and keep us together. How can future generations of gay and lesbian Latinos continue to spread their roots? Roland Palencia, MA, is a Professor at California State University Northridge’s (CSUN) -Tseng College in the Diverse Community Development Leadership MA program, and an award-winning filmmaker. He is the former Community Benefits Director and corporate trainer at L.A. Care Health Plan, the largest public health plan in the nation. He is also the former Executive Director of Clinica Monseñor Oscar A. Romero and Equality California, and former multi-County Regional Director at The California Endowment and Chief of Operations and Vice-President at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation.  In 2001, he was honored as a “Local Hero” by KCET (PBS affiliate) and Union Bank of California. In the early 1980s, he became one of the founders and a pioneer of the blossoming LGBTQ Latine movement in the greater Los Angeles area, including co-founding Gay and Lesbian Latinos Unidos (GLLU) and VIVA!, a Queer Latine artist collective. Palencia has been featured in a number of books and publications such as “Gay L.A.: A History of Sexual Outlaws, Power Politics, and Lipstick Lesbians” by Stuart Timmons and Lilian Faderman (2006). “Central Americans in Los Angeles” by Rosamaria Segura (2010); and “The Gay Revolution: The Story of the Struggle” by Lilian Faderman (2015).  The 165-page Master thesis by David Guzman, M.A., (CSUN 2014) records Palencia’s life journey as a Guatemalan political refugee and community activist. His Executive film Producer credits include “TransVisible: Bamby Salcedo’s Story,” a documentary depicting the life and activism of the nationally renowned Trans Latina activist Bamby Salcedo,“UNIDAD: Gay & Lesbian Latinos Unidos,” which chronicles the early 1980s queer Latino activism in Los Angeles, and “Art as Activism,” which depicts the history of Self-Help Graphics & Arts, the seminal East L.A. based arts organization founded in 1970. Palencia received a B.A. in History from UCLA and a Masters in Depth Psychology & Creativity from Pacifica Graduate Institute based in Montecito, CA. Thank you for listening to this episode. I am so thrilled and honored to be sharing stories about the Soul of Place and what we can each do to reconnect to our roots. I would love to get your feedback and opinions. Please share this episode with anyone who may need to hear this message. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts. My name is Ximena Dussan-Aya Pearson. Until next time! Keep inviting the soul of the world into your lives! You can find me at www.ximenapearson.com