Latest / Deeply Well with Devi Brown / Exploring Self-Care with Charli Penn
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Mm from grandmothers who whispered in their baby girl in
- 0:13Speaker 1: two fathers on dimly lit street corners, instructing young soldiers
- 0:16Speaker 1: to always keep their eyes open. You be queen, you
- 0:21Speaker 1: were fired. You will pass through centuries on the hands
- 0:24Speaker 1: of your daughters. They called you wisdom. Proverbs on the
- 0:28Speaker 1: backs of diamond eyed school children who growing into hymnals
- 0:32Speaker 1: recited by amethyst holding urban philosophers who recited neighborhood commandments
- 0:37Speaker 1: out of the windows of restored Alchemedo cheriots to keep
- 0:40Speaker 1: the warmth of their blood. Be wise, be smart, being black,
- 0:46Speaker 1: Opal Brown courts bloodstone and prayer. Be every form of
- 0:50Speaker 1: jim se King told, scribe, scribe, told son, son, told wife,
- 0:57Speaker 1: wife told her daughter, and daughter told the an this
- 1:00Speaker 1: is And the ancestors told me that you would come
- 1:04Speaker 1: to give wisdom thousands. They said you would come Dropping
- 1:09Speaker 1: Dropping gim Welcome to the Dropping Gym's podcast. I am
- 1:13Speaker 1: your host, DeBie Brown. Big thank you for spending time
- 1:16Speaker 1: with me. Every time I get to do this show
- 1:18Speaker 1: and spend time with you, I feel so grateful to
- 1:21Speaker 1: have a space to have conversations like this. You know,
- 1:25Speaker 1: Dropping Gems is all about self discovery, self investigation, observing
- 1:30Speaker 1: yourself without judgment, falling in love and indeed acceptance with yourself,
- 1:36Speaker 1: and getting some rituals and tools for the journey. So
- 1:41Speaker 1: it's my favor. Thanks for joining you know when we
- 1:44Speaker 1: were younger, especially if you are somewhere around my age.
- 1:48Speaker 1: I'm a millennial, probably older into the millennial spectrum, um,
- 1:52Speaker 1: but I'm somebody that remembers the past and the future, right,
- 1:55Speaker 1: So like print media really really really important to my childhood.
- 2:00Speaker 1: Music so important to my childhood. Technology not so much.
- 2:03Speaker 1: But now we can do both, um, But I used
- 2:07Speaker 1: to really when I was younger, falls so deeply in
- 2:10Speaker 1: love with going to the bookstore, grabbing a stack of magazines,
- 2:15Speaker 1: sitting down and daydreaming and getting schooled on so many things,
- 2:21Speaker 1: you know, really being able to see a bigger picture
- 2:23Speaker 1: of what the world looked like. And my magazine stack
- 2:27Speaker 1: was always very predictable. There was always a copy of
- 2:30Speaker 1: a lore in it because at that time, especially I
- 2:33Speaker 1: was a product budding product order couldn't really get products,
- 2:37Speaker 1: but I daydreamed about them and what they could do
- 2:40Speaker 1: and vibe in the source were big parts of my childhood. Uh.
- 2:46Speaker 1: Usually because of Tupac, I was searching for him in
- 2:49Speaker 1: all the pages. Uh. And then a magazine that was
- 2:53Speaker 1: always at the top of my stack was Essence Magazine.
- 2:58Speaker 1: I remember opening that magazine. Originally my Auntie would always
- 3:02Speaker 1: have copies and then I would speak it out for myself.
- 3:05Speaker 1: And I remember opening an Essence magazine and it really
- 3:09Speaker 1: giving me a deeper understanding of the kind of womanhood
- 3:14Speaker 1: I wanted to connect to, you know, being able to
- 3:17Speaker 1: see not just the women in the pages that were
- 3:19Speaker 1: sometimes the beautiful models, but the cover stories and the
- 3:23Speaker 1: writers of Essence, you know, the incredible women that were
- 3:27Speaker 1: behind the magazine. I was always so deeply inspired by
- 3:32Speaker 1: the way that they took up space and spoke the truth,
- 3:34Speaker 1: and then also by all the gorgeous photos in the magazine.
- 3:37Speaker 1: You know, it really spoke to an elegance that I
- 3:41Speaker 1: didn't always get to see up close, the poise that
- 3:43Speaker 1: I didn't always have access to, and also amazing products
- 3:47Speaker 1: and recommendations and interviews. And it was a magazine that
- 3:51Speaker 1: really lit a spark inside of me. And so when
- 3:55Speaker 1: I think about our guest today, I'm really excited to
- 3:59Speaker 1: share with you. Her name is Charlie Pin, and I'm
- 4:02Speaker 1: sure so many of You guys are already connected to
- 4:05Speaker 1: her beautiful work that she does not only within Essence
- 4:08Speaker 1: Magazine but also as the host of the two time
- 4:11Speaker 1: Webbing nominated Yes Girl podcast, a staple on Instagram. Love
- 4:16Speaker 1: her page, but I love Charlie's spirit of exploration. You know.
- 4:21Speaker 1: One of the things that she does so beautifully is
- 4:24Speaker 1: really share so many wellness and mindfulness tools and products
- 4:29Speaker 1: through Essence, not just digitally but also in print and
- 4:32Speaker 1: at all the events that they do. And it gives
- 4:35Speaker 1: women an opportunity to connect with what I connected with
- 4:38Speaker 1: when I was younger, this expansion, this ability to daydream
- 4:43Speaker 1: about a higher version of yourself what that would look
- 4:46Speaker 1: or feel like. So today's show, we are going to
- 4:49Speaker 1: be diving into how does one even connect with all
- 4:53Speaker 1: these things and predict trends in this way and know
- 4:56Speaker 1: how to show up powerfully for the community of women
- 5:00Speaker 1: that follow. So on today's show, we're gonna be talking
- 5:03Speaker 1: with journalist, editor, and writer Charlie Penn. She's the Lifestyle
- 5:07Speaker 1: Director at Essence Magazine. She oversees the brand's vision for
- 5:11Speaker 1: the vertical across all platforms. She's also the publication's resident
- 5:15Speaker 1: love and wellness guru. And she has never one to
- 5:18Speaker 1: wear just one cute hat. Pen also co host the
- 5:21Speaker 1: Essence two time Webbing nominated Yes Girl podcast, and she
- 5:25Speaker 1: has covered women's lifestyle content for over sixteen years and
- 5:28Speaker 1: devoted her public speaking appearances to promoting healthy relationships and
- 5:32Speaker 1: balance living. Pen is also a proud wife and dog
- 5:36Speaker 1: mom who resides in her home in New Jersey. And
- 5:39Speaker 1: we're going to dive into this a little bit more,
- 5:41Speaker 1: but she is also the amazing lifestyle editor that had
- 5:45Speaker 1: me featured this month in Essences gorgeous magazine with the
- 5:51Speaker 1: cover of Zindaia. It's so beautiful and I get to
- 5:54Speaker 1: speak to Black Joy in that issue. So we'll unwrap
- 5:57Speaker 1: that a little bit more a little bit later without
- 6:00Speaker 1: further ado. Welcome to the show, Charlie, Hey bru, thank
- 6:03Speaker 1: you so much for having me moment. I know, I mean,
- 6:09Speaker 1: first of all, let's just say I am gracing the
- 6:13Speaker 1: issue of Essence magazine this month. Oh my gosh, thank
- 6:19Speaker 1: you for that. That was such a gorgeous article on joy.
- 6:22Speaker 1: You're so welcome, and thank you for blessing the audience
- 6:26Speaker 1: and our reader with your inner joy. Right because, like
- 6:28Speaker 1: we talked about, that's why I had to have you
- 6:31Speaker 1: in that piece because you you know, you radiate all
- 6:34Speaker 1: those things. And we had the club that the year right,
- 6:37Speaker 1: thank you. We had such a fun conversation that day two.
- 6:39Speaker 1: I was like, oh, that's how I knew. I was like,
- 6:41Speaker 1: I gotta get her on the podcast because we were
- 6:43Speaker 1: just everything that we said. It was like, yes, oh right, sister,
- 6:49Speaker 1: I feel that my soul I received it. We were
- 6:52Speaker 1: having it was Kendred spirit moment. Yeah, yeah really, And
- 6:56Speaker 1: I was thinking about, you know, the very first time
- 6:58Speaker 1: that we met. I think at this point it maybe
- 7:01Speaker 1: it was five years ago, which is insane. We were
- 7:05Speaker 1: in the DC area, I think we were actually closer
- 7:08Speaker 1: to Baltimore, and we're staying at this gorgeous hotel. Leslie
- 7:11Speaker 1: Cruz had put together this wonderful like like influencer campaign
- 7:16Speaker 1: around wellness with Radia Rhodes from Evoke Life, and we
- 7:20Speaker 1: all got to like drive cars to d C and
- 7:23Speaker 1: then we went to this huge hotel and we had
- 7:26Speaker 1: I mean, it was just really looking back, it's like,
- 7:30Speaker 1: you know, stuff like that wasn't happening then, and so
- 7:32Speaker 1: it was really this weekend of just black girl magic
- 7:37Speaker 1: of self care of Jess really like we did our
- 7:40Speaker 1: spa treatments, we talked, we had vision boarding sessions. It
- 7:45Speaker 1: was so exquisite. It was amazing, and I felt like
- 7:48Speaker 1: we were all sisters for a weekend at this little
- 7:52Speaker 1: amazing getaway corner of the world. And it was it
- 7:55Speaker 1: was like you said, it was like the first of
- 7:57Speaker 1: its kind in a way, because now a self care
- 7:59Speaker 1: weekend is like, hey girl, we need to got here.
- 8:01Speaker 1: We can't. But then we were like, wait, Leslie, you
- 8:04Speaker 1: want us to come here and just vibe out and
- 8:07Speaker 1: meet together and make vision boards and get pampered. What remember?
- 8:13Speaker 1: It was like, sure, yes, please. It was a beautiful
- 8:16Speaker 1: I remember I met you at breakfast and you walked
- 8:20Speaker 1: in and you just had the most beautiful spirit, Like
- 8:23Speaker 1: it's just like you emanated delight when you walked in
- 8:26Speaker 1: the room and we were at the same table when
- 8:28Speaker 1: we started talking, and we've just stayed connected sense. But
- 8:31Speaker 1: it was, Yeah, that was so special. That was a moment.
- 8:34Speaker 1: And thank you for feeling my energy through the way
- 8:36Speaker 1: I always feel yours. See what I'm saying, guys, Look
- 8:40Speaker 1: I felt that way at you, Yes, and look at
- 8:43Speaker 1: this platform and look at what you're sharing. I'm so
- 8:45Speaker 1: excited to be here and talk about all these things. Yeah,
- 8:49Speaker 1: so you know, I mean your life is really steeped
- 8:52Speaker 1: in all the things wellness, all the things how we're
- 8:56Speaker 1: not just connecting with our inner selves but connecting with
- 8:58Speaker 1: our partners, connecting our homes. I mean, you have just
- 9:02Speaker 1: had such a depth of expertise and really seeing the
- 9:06Speaker 1: trends of how women are showing up for themselves and
- 9:08Speaker 1: what they're craving. What have you noticed in the last
- 9:12Speaker 1: few years. Have there been any shifts or changes, especially
- 9:16Speaker 1: now with the pandemic, Like how are how are women
- 9:19Speaker 1: of color exploring themselves and exploring the gifts of wellness.
- 9:24Speaker 1: I love that you say exploration because it really has
- 9:28Speaker 1: been these personalized, many missions of deep self exploration, and
- 9:33Speaker 1: we're seeing that with the Essence Reader, which has been
- 9:35Speaker 1: really incredible to see. It's like, first it was like
- 9:38Speaker 1: that revelation that I don't really know myself, right. We
- 9:41Speaker 1: kind of saw that that first shift with everyone. It's
- 9:44Speaker 1: like I'm busy, I'm a mom, I'm a wife, I'm
- 9:46Speaker 1: a friend, i'm a daughter, I'm doing everything for everyone,
- 9:50Speaker 1: So I feel like dev The first thing I saw
- 9:52Speaker 1: was that awakening, you know, in black women like acknowledging
- 9:57Speaker 1: and saying out loud, I don't put myself first. And
- 10:01Speaker 1: I feel like that was happening right around the time
- 10:03Speaker 1: we were on that retreat, Like we were kind of
- 10:06Speaker 1: all saying, oh, I don't I don't do this, oh
- 10:08Speaker 1: vision board, pampering what like, we didn't do it, and
- 10:11Speaker 1: then you had to realize, Okay, step one, I don't
- 10:14Speaker 1: take care of myself, you know that was first. Step
- 10:17Speaker 1: two was really okay, I'm going to get a PhD.
- 10:21Speaker 1: And how to do this right? Because we don't do
- 10:23Speaker 1: anything happens. So then it was kind of like who
- 10:26Speaker 1: do I follow? Who do I you know? Like what
- 10:28Speaker 1: crystals do I need to buy? What book? You know? Who?
- 10:32Speaker 1: What podcast? And then it was kind of like this
- 10:34Speaker 1: advanced education. We got, like an advanced PhD in self
- 10:39Speaker 1: care and I love seeing black women died in consuming
- 10:41Speaker 1: all the books, all the brands, all the influences, all
- 10:44Speaker 1: the conversations, all the retreats, we were just all in.
- 10:48Speaker 1: And then we started figuring out, Okay, this is my playbook,
- 10:52Speaker 1: what page is for me? And that's where I feel
- 10:55Speaker 1: like we are now in kind of expedited that right
- 10:58Speaker 1: is figuring out Okay, I tried everything. Now I know
- 11:01Speaker 1: what I love and what speaks to my soul, mind, body,
- 11:04Speaker 1: which you always talk about, and now I'm gonna fit
- 11:07Speaker 1: this into my world. So I feel like right now
- 11:10Speaker 1: everybody's trying to say, Okay, I get it, I've done it,
- 11:12Speaker 1: I know how to do it. Now I gotta make
- 11:14Speaker 1: it stick. Yeah, it's And I love that you that
- 11:18Speaker 1: you really pointed out that the first step was noticing
- 11:21Speaker 1: that the way we've been doing life was wrong. It
- 11:26Speaker 1: was not the way that really the divine intended us
- 11:28Speaker 1: to live or feel about ourselves. And that has been
- 11:31Speaker 1: one of the greatest Like I I celebrate the fact
- 11:34Speaker 1: that I'm alive in this exact moment in time, and
- 11:37Speaker 1: that I'm a woman in this exact moment in time.
- 11:39Speaker 1: We are we are beings that have never been this
- 11:43Speaker 1: free in this way until now, you know, And and
- 11:47Speaker 1: that self investigation as the first step is so important,
- 11:51Speaker 1: just having that divine curiosity, being open to can I
- 11:55Speaker 1: have more? Can I feel better about myself than I
- 11:59Speaker 1: feel right out? Yes? And speaking of feelings, that mean
- 12:03Speaker 1: for me, it was the moment when I realized how
- 12:06Speaker 1: good it felt to tell someone that I'm unavailable for
- 12:10Speaker 1: them because I'm now available for me, you know, like
- 12:14Speaker 1: that moment for me which took me a while. It
- 12:17Speaker 1: took me a while, but to feel the joy and
- 12:21Speaker 1: saying I'm not able to come to your birthday dinner.
- 12:24Speaker 1: I love you, but I actually have made space for
- 12:27Speaker 1: myself and to not feel the guilt or the burden.
- 12:31Speaker 1: I used to always feel like I can't let anyone
- 12:34Speaker 1: else down, but I was letting myself down constantly. And
- 12:37Speaker 1: then when I started fighting for myself, the guilt didn't,
- 12:39Speaker 1: you know, like the guilt didn't leave. But I think
- 12:42Speaker 1: part of this movement at least for me, and I
- 12:44Speaker 1: can only speak for myself here, but I hope you're
- 12:46Speaker 1: with me, sisters. For me, it was releasing that guilt
- 12:49Speaker 1: and letting all that joy Russian. Yeah, God, that's so good.
- 12:54Speaker 1: That's so good, you know, because when we explore the
- 12:56Speaker 1: conversation of self care, we explore the conversation of wellness
- 13:00Speaker 1: for us as women, it's it's now all the ritual
- 13:03Speaker 1: we gotta have it. I live my life and ritual
- 13:06Speaker 1: my life is an offering, you know. But it's really
- 13:10Speaker 1: it's the moment where we learned to stop betraying ourselves
- 13:14Speaker 1: that our epic journey and our spiritual transformation begins. How
- 13:18Speaker 1: did you begin to start saying no? It took baby steps,
- 13:24Speaker 1: and you guys are gonna laugh, okay, But first I
- 13:28Speaker 1: my first step and my journey was getting other people
- 13:31Speaker 1: to say no for me. So like my first step
- 13:34Speaker 1: was like wanting to cancel, right, wanting to not participate,
- 13:38Speaker 1: or wanting to make time for me, but feeling too
- 13:40Speaker 1: guilty to own it. So like telling my husband or
- 13:42Speaker 1: my friend or you know, someone else to kind of
- 13:44Speaker 1: be the bearer of the bad news, being you know,
- 13:47Speaker 1: hiding behind my truth. That was weird for me. But
- 13:50Speaker 1: then you know, over time I got a little bit
- 13:52Speaker 1: better and you know, landing the news myself. And then
- 13:56Speaker 1: also it started to just really be, like I said,
- 13:59Speaker 1: fun and excite to make the time. So it was
- 14:01Speaker 1: like I never over committed anymore because I was too
- 14:04Speaker 1: busy doing me. That's the other thing. You can't really
- 14:07Speaker 1: be overcommitted to anyone else if you're over committed to yourself. Oh,
- 14:12Speaker 1: write that down, y'all, Please write that down. Please write
- 14:15Speaker 1: that down. That's like fill your calendar with baths and yeah,
- 14:20Speaker 1: moments and class and meditations and mindfulness and then you
- 14:24Speaker 1: won't even have time to be too busy with other
- 14:27Speaker 1: things because you're busy with yourself, right, I mean, we
- 14:30Speaker 1: gotta be. That's something that has been such a tremendous
- 14:33Speaker 1: gift for me in the era of the pandemic. I
- 14:37Speaker 1: feel like it's re taught me what my personal time was.
- 14:41Speaker 1: You know, I think, um, prior to this pandemic, obviously
- 14:44Speaker 1: because we all weren't at home all day, Um, it
- 14:48Speaker 1: was really like I was feeling myself constantly. So I'd
- 14:51Speaker 1: usually have like a morning self care practice, but then
- 14:54Speaker 1: my nights would be full and really every every free
- 14:56Speaker 1: second would be full. And this moment in time a
- 15:00Speaker 1: allowed me to learn how to savor myself, you know,
- 15:03Speaker 1: like my evenings seven to ten, I put my kid
- 15:06Speaker 1: down at seven, my little baby, and from seven pm
- 15:09Speaker 1: to ten pm, I am just in ritual in service
- 15:12Speaker 1: to myself. So some nights that looks like a long,
- 15:16Speaker 1: really hot bath with two full sized bags of epsom salt,
- 15:20Speaker 1: not a cup full size bags, you know, turning on
- 15:25Speaker 1: some music, dancing, lighting candles, praying, you know, writing, um,
- 15:30Speaker 1: running in my journal. And it's like from developing that
- 15:33Speaker 1: and cultivating that, it has completely changed the way I
- 15:36Speaker 1: experienced time, completely changed the way I experienced myself. And
- 15:39Speaker 1: to your point, it's like even when life starts to
- 15:42Speaker 1: get some levels of familiar normalcy, um, you know, in
- 15:48Speaker 1: the coming months and years, it's like now for me,
- 15:51Speaker 1: I know what my non negotiable is, like, my nights
- 15:53Speaker 1: are always for me there. I might maybe two days
- 15:56Speaker 1: a week i'll go out, but everything else I'm not available.
- 16:00Speaker 1: That's a complete answer. I love that. And you know,
- 16:03Speaker 1: I aspire levels, y'all. Devie's got the levels here. I'm
- 16:07Speaker 1: trying to get to where you are. But what I
- 16:09Speaker 1: will say is I'm thinking of self care lately and
- 16:12Speaker 1: snack able bites, which is working for me because you know,
- 16:16Speaker 1: for some of us, I think working from home we
- 16:18Speaker 1: work more right, more emails, longer nights and days and
- 16:22Speaker 1: mornings at the desk, and I hate that because that
- 16:24Speaker 1: block of time, like what you're talking about, it does
- 16:27Speaker 1: feel impossible. But Debbie, what I realized I was doing
- 16:30Speaker 1: is because I couldn't get my two hour window or
- 16:32Speaker 1: my one hour window. I thought I couldn't have a window.
- 16:36Speaker 1: But I threw that out, you know, and I kind
- 16:38Speaker 1: of said, well, what can I do in these ten minutes?
- 16:41Speaker 1: For me, what can I do in these four minutes
- 16:44Speaker 1: or thirty minutes or forty five And it's turned into
- 16:47Speaker 1: dance breaks in the kitchen, extra long walk with my dog,
- 16:51Speaker 1: a twenty minute catchup call with an old friend, right,
- 16:55Speaker 1: a disco nap, remember those, A power nap, you know,
- 16:58Speaker 1: like in the middle of the day. And they're not
- 17:00Speaker 1: long moments, but they sustained me and they fulfill me.
- 17:03Speaker 1: And I want to say, it's all my busy sisters
- 17:05Speaker 1: out there and brothers. If you don't have a lot
- 17:08Speaker 1: of time, you still have a little and it's still
- 17:10Speaker 1: for you. It's still for you. Yeah, and it's enough
- 17:13Speaker 1: whatever that time is. If it is thirty seconds that
- 17:16Speaker 1: you tell yourself, I have loved that is enough. Hold
- 17:21Speaker 1: that thought. We are coming right back. So you have
- 17:35Speaker 1: you have a really high pressure career like you are
- 17:38Speaker 1: very much in a in a career of deadlines and
- 17:42Speaker 1: constant like access to your visionary power, which mentally and
- 17:46Speaker 1: emotionally can be quite taxing. You know, when you're creative,
- 17:49Speaker 1: when you are really envisioning what an entire vast demographic
- 17:54Speaker 1: of people, you're predicting the trends, you're coming up with
- 17:57Speaker 1: the content you're really servicing and being of service to
- 18:01Speaker 1: so many women. How do you really remember um to
- 18:07Speaker 1: savor that time with yourself? How do you not allow
- 18:10Speaker 1: the stress of what you do to become the stress
- 18:13Speaker 1: of how you feel about yourself? Betty? That's a word,
- 18:16Speaker 1: and you know, says I think that's why I've always
- 18:18Speaker 1: been drawn to you and your story, because you very
- 18:22Speaker 1: much know the world that I am in and what
- 18:25Speaker 1: it means to be a journalist and a personality and
- 18:27Speaker 1: a host. And you know, you really, you know, broke
- 18:31Speaker 1: free from that and that burnout, and you talk about
- 18:34Speaker 1: that a lot, but it speaks to my heart right
- 18:36Speaker 1: because it is very real. I know for me, I
- 18:39Speaker 1: had to first realize that that wasn't okay, because you know,
- 18:43Speaker 1: you do. I feel of service every day to black
- 18:45Speaker 1: women because I'm getting to tell them about how to
- 18:48Speaker 1: take care of themselves, how to live better, how to
- 18:51Speaker 1: be well, and you know, and encouraging them to think
- 18:53Speaker 1: about things differently. And so you feel so good about
- 18:55Speaker 1: helping other people live their best life that it's easy
- 18:58Speaker 1: to forget that maybe in doing at work, you're not
- 19:01Speaker 1: doing it. And for me it was it was this
- 19:03Speaker 1: moment where I hosted an essence event and a local market.
- 19:06Speaker 1: It was themed around wellness. You know, the day was
- 19:08Speaker 1: incredible and we were talking about all the exciting things
- 19:11Speaker 1: and you know, journaling and doing all these things, and
- 19:13Speaker 1: I felt I was ill, like I was sick all day.
- 19:16Speaker 1: I was tired, I was beat. And then I got
- 19:18Speaker 1: home and I said, how could I have just filled
- 19:20Speaker 1: all these women up? And I'm so depleted? You know,
- 19:24Speaker 1: So for me, I had to go back, going back
- 19:26Speaker 1: to the snack a thing. I was telling you about
- 19:28Speaker 1: little reminders, little moments. So I have alarm set in
- 19:31Speaker 1: my phone throughout the day to remember to breathe, to
- 19:35Speaker 1: remember to compliment myself, to remember to drink water, to
- 19:38Speaker 1: remember to pray, and to remember to call my husband
- 19:41Speaker 1: or someone that I love, and to remember to get
- 19:43Speaker 1: up and move. And those little alerts are I have
- 19:47Speaker 1: them set Monday through Friday or Saturday Sunday, whatever, you know,
- 19:50Speaker 1: my schedule allows. So when it comes up and I'm
- 19:53Speaker 1: in a meeting and I've just dropped my head, it
- 19:54Speaker 1: was a great drount, like it's my prayer break. But
- 19:56Speaker 1: it's helped me to find those little nuggets of moments.
- 20:00Speaker 1: To remind myself to just be in the moment with myself.
- 20:05Speaker 1: So how did you fall into this path that you're
- 20:07Speaker 1: in because I feel like, you know, obviously you are
- 20:10Speaker 1: a journalist and you're very esteemed and celebrated, but to
- 20:14Speaker 1: come into this space like with wellness and relationships, it
- 20:18Speaker 1: takes a different kind of inquiry, like a different kind
- 20:23Speaker 1: of curiosity and investigation to show up in those spaces
- 20:27Speaker 1: and really share this work with women. How did you
- 20:30Speaker 1: find yourself on that path and in this role. It's
- 20:33Speaker 1: so great that you asked that, because the truth is,
- 20:35Speaker 1: it really found me. Like I knew I wanted to
- 20:38Speaker 1: be a journalist. I trained to be, and I wanted
- 20:40Speaker 1: to be a writer and an editor, but focusing on
- 20:43Speaker 1: love and relationships and healthy relationships and wellness it was
- 20:47Speaker 1: just what my heart was drawn to. You know. I
- 20:49Speaker 1: started my career and entertainment magazines and websites and things
- 20:53Speaker 1: like that, and then I took a break from that
- 20:55Speaker 1: and ended up But then not, you guys know, the
- 20:57Speaker 1: not the wedding site and everybody we were like twenty
- 21:00Speaker 1: five and everybody was like, you're at a wedding site. What?
- 21:02Speaker 1: And I'm like, but I love telling these love stories,
- 21:05Speaker 1: and so at my time at the NOTT was very
- 21:07Speaker 1: much about telling love stories and newly web stories and
- 21:10Speaker 1: deep diving into relationships. But wait for it. The evolution
- 21:14Speaker 1: right when you cover love and your passion, which mine is,
- 21:18Speaker 1: is to focus on healthy, happy relationships. You realize you
- 21:21Speaker 1: need to whole people to come together to be in
- 21:25Speaker 1: a healthy relationship. So if I don't work on if
- 21:28Speaker 1: I don't help you work on you, then how can
- 21:31Speaker 1: I tell you how to be a great partner if
- 21:33Speaker 1: you're not being great to yourself. So it was really
- 21:36Speaker 1: such a natural evolution to be covering love and relationships
- 21:39Speaker 1: and essence for all these years and then to transition
- 21:41Speaker 1: into wellness because everything was related. If you want to
- 21:44Speaker 1: be mindful, how are you mindful with your partner? You know?
- 21:47Speaker 1: If you want to be confident when you're going on
- 21:49Speaker 1: a date, you've got to love yourself more than the
- 21:52Speaker 1: person you think you're about to fall in love with
- 21:53Speaker 1: at that restaurant. Right, Like, there's it's all connected, y'all.
- 21:57Speaker 1: And it hit me right like a truck. I was like, Okay,
- 22:01Speaker 1: I can't preach and help and engage people and help
- 22:04Speaker 1: be happy. Friendships, parenting, romantic relationships if they're not right
- 22:08Speaker 1: with themselves. So it's all connected. So it really just
- 22:12Speaker 1: all sort of came together in my mission to deeply
- 22:15Speaker 1: serve black women in essence, like it was like, I
- 22:17Speaker 1: gotta do it all. It's got to be holistic. And
- 22:20Speaker 1: what does that look like in your home? You know,
- 22:22Speaker 1: when you think of your wholeness and you're all of
- 22:25Speaker 1: the snack able joy that you gift yourself with. What
- 22:28Speaker 1: does that look like for the man of your life?
- 22:30Speaker 1: And then what does that look like for a couple.
- 22:32Speaker 1: How do you guys practice your wellness together? Well, for me,
- 22:36Speaker 1: I realized, well, for us, I should say first and foremost,
- 22:39Speaker 1: you have to make it a priority. Like I think
- 22:41Speaker 1: with a lot of couples, they're like, okay, well we're
- 22:43Speaker 1: not fighting, then we're vibing. But I realized that that's
- 22:48Speaker 1: not mindfulness, that's not being in the moment and in
- 22:51Speaker 1: that relationship with your partner. You're just not fighting. It
- 22:54Speaker 1: doesn't mean that you're really jelling. So for us, we're
- 22:58Speaker 1: very intentional about times it together. That's device free, about
- 23:02Speaker 1: times been together that allows us to talk and feel
- 23:05Speaker 1: open and feel good. We do a lot of drives
- 23:07Speaker 1: romantic car rides. And it's funny because it was quarantin before.
- 23:10Speaker 1: But y'all are really into these car days now. Right now,
- 23:15Speaker 1: everybody's at a road trip. That's great, come on along, no,
- 23:18Speaker 1: but also in all seriousness, the little things, you know,
- 23:23Speaker 1: like just we have date nights in our living room.
- 23:25Speaker 1: It's always been really important to us since the beginning,
- 23:28Speaker 1: when we first started dating sixteen years ago, to just
- 23:30Speaker 1: make time to be together. That was that didn't involve technology.
- 23:34Speaker 1: But I think that's important because those are the moments
- 23:36Speaker 1: of when we take the trip and we go to
- 23:38Speaker 1: the resort where we have to unplugly brod phones in
- 23:40Speaker 1: the car, that's when I hear him, That's when he
- 23:43Speaker 1: hears me. And that's when you get to the bottom
- 23:45Speaker 1: of maybe what you're not getting right, or maybe what
- 23:48Speaker 1: you need to do better, or maybe a way you
- 23:50Speaker 1: haven't been serving each other or yourselves. But you kind
- 23:53Speaker 1: of gotta. You have to get all the noise out.
- 23:55Speaker 1: And I think, you know, I kudos to any couple
- 23:57Speaker 1: who hasn't. You know, I bought through the pandemic. I
- 24:00Speaker 1: get it. It's how it's been hard. But even if
- 24:02Speaker 1: you haven't, there's probably still more work to be done,
- 24:05Speaker 1: because this is time you could be connecting and getting
- 24:08Speaker 1: closer and not just your romantic relationships. I've been getting
- 24:11Speaker 1: closer to my friends, which has been really beautiful. Like
- 24:15Speaker 1: I realized at the beginning of the pandemic deav that
- 24:17Speaker 1: I had text in my phone where I left someone
- 24:21Speaker 1: unread for weeks and I thought it was days or
- 24:24Speaker 1: even months, you know, like an old friends like hey,
- 24:26Speaker 1: how have you been thinking of you? And I was like, oh,
- 24:28Speaker 1: I'm gonna get right back to them, and then life happened,
- 24:31Speaker 1: and then like three months later, I was like, oh
- 24:33Speaker 1: my god. So for me, it was about rebuilding those
- 24:36Speaker 1: bonds and picking up the phone, calling face time, let
- 24:41Speaker 1: me see you, let me see the new shoe, let
- 24:43Speaker 1: me see your kids right, let me look out the
- 24:46Speaker 1: window with you, let me connect with you, and just
- 24:49Speaker 1: being more intentional about all connections in my life. And
- 24:52Speaker 1: so it's been beautiful. And honestly, I've learned to say
- 24:55Speaker 1: to people not how are you doing, but how are
- 24:57Speaker 1: you feeling? Yeah? I really like to ask that because
- 25:02Speaker 1: if you say how you're doing, the quick answer, right
- 25:04Speaker 1: is good good? How are you good? Good? Yeah? It
- 25:08Speaker 1: is just for me, like I hate that question. Well,
- 25:12Speaker 1: I don't hate anything, but you know what I mean,
- 25:14Speaker 1: Like I dislike, um, yeah, how are you? I Oh
- 25:17Speaker 1: my god. When people ask me that question, especially people
- 25:19Speaker 1: that don't know you, I get that question a lot,
- 25:22Speaker 1: like randomly in a d M. How are you? Like?
- 25:24Speaker 1: What is what is your point of context? Like? How
- 25:27Speaker 1: how would I answer that question other than just being
- 25:30Speaker 1: like good? You know? So it's like, yeah, it's so
- 25:33Speaker 1: important to deepen the way we're even in shorter moments
- 25:37Speaker 1: conversing with our friends and the people, because the whole
- 25:39Speaker 1: point what I'm hearing and what you're saying is like,
- 25:42Speaker 1: especially in relationship to your husband, you know, the whole
- 25:45Speaker 1: point of relationship, the whole point of knowing people is
- 25:49Speaker 1: to be mirrors for one another. Is so that we
- 25:51Speaker 1: can be the sharpeners of each other and the chiselers
- 25:55Speaker 1: of one another and ourselves, you know. And I love
- 25:58Speaker 1: the grace that you're affording yourself with those friendships, right
- 26:02Speaker 1: because life happens, you know, And I think it's so
- 26:07Speaker 1: you're gonna do yourself a disservice if the way you're
- 26:10Speaker 1: experiencing this pandemic is from the lens of lack of
- 26:14Speaker 1: who isn't showing up for you or who isn't checking
- 26:16Speaker 1: on you? I've seen that. I've seen that circulate around
- 26:19Speaker 1: Instagram quite a bit, right, like, pay attention to who's
- 26:22Speaker 1: not checking on you? This is a global pandemic, Like
- 26:25Speaker 1: we are all doing the best that we can, you know,
- 26:28Speaker 1: and being able to have grace for our friends and
- 26:30Speaker 1: and ask supporting questions without assumption. You know, something I
- 26:34Speaker 1: love to do with my friends, With all of my friends,
- 26:37Speaker 1: if I have something I know I need to talk
- 26:39Speaker 1: about and it might have some gravity to it, I'll say, hey,
- 26:42Speaker 1: do you have bandwidth for this? I have something I
- 26:44Speaker 1: want to share? Do you have the emotional or the
- 26:47Speaker 1: mental space right now to take that on? You know?
- 26:50Speaker 1: And sometimes I'll even say I need about fifteen minutes
- 26:53Speaker 1: to unpack this is that possible for you right now?
- 26:56Speaker 1: And then I don't have judgment if it's a no.
- 26:58Speaker 1: You know, but it's so important that we just expand
- 27:02Speaker 1: the ways that we can show for people. WHI also
- 27:04Speaker 1: honoring ourselves. So true, and I love the way you
- 27:08Speaker 1: phrased it. I know with my friends, we like to
- 27:10Speaker 1: say trigger warning, like Hey, I'm in my feelings, I'm
- 27:14Speaker 1: swimming in them right now, would you like to jump
- 27:17Speaker 1: in with me? If not, okay, love you by trigger warning.
- 27:19Speaker 1: But it's been very helpful because you're right. Part of
- 27:22Speaker 1: being a good friend and partner is knowing when to
- 27:25Speaker 1: not unload on everyone or to not judge, and to
- 27:27Speaker 1: give each other that grace. I love what you're saying.
- 27:29Speaker 1: It's so true and grace For me, grace and gratitude
- 27:32Speaker 1: have been the theme of grace because we got to
- 27:36Speaker 1: feel what we feel and it's weird and uncomfortable and
- 27:38Speaker 1: we're all in it together. And grace because me judging
- 27:42Speaker 1: you is just one more thing you or I don't need.
- 27:45Speaker 1: So let's just we don't need anything else right in
- 27:49Speaker 1: So let's just skip that part and love on each other.
- 27:53Speaker 1: Please please leave. I love the card dates too. I
- 27:55Speaker 1: want to I want to pop in and say one
- 27:57Speaker 1: of my favorite things to do is to be in
- 28:00Speaker 1: the car and play music for each other, like like
- 28:03Speaker 1: share the share the ox cord, share the Bluetooth, and
- 28:06Speaker 1: then just trying to outdo each other. Oh my god,
- 28:08Speaker 1: I am one of those people that is like an
- 28:10Speaker 1: eternal fourteen year old that's like, please make me a mixtape,
- 28:16Speaker 1: sit with my headphones and nineties and I will be like,
- 28:21Speaker 1: this one goes out to you, and now thanks to
- 28:23Speaker 1: Google and Alexa, I'm like dedicating songs from the kitchen
- 28:26Speaker 1: like you have to make it fine, you do. And
- 28:29Speaker 1: I think that is that we're in the season of
- 28:32Speaker 1: small moments becoming bigger moments. So let's let's fuel those
- 28:36Speaker 1: little moments with love and connect. So as someone who
- 28:41Speaker 1: has they're they're really their hands their fingers on the
- 28:45Speaker 1: pulse of the wellness culture and the way that people
- 28:47Speaker 1: are loving themselves and healing themselves. What are some things
- 28:51Speaker 1: that have come up for you that maybe you were like,
- 28:53Speaker 1: I don't know, people did this, or something that surprised
- 28:56Speaker 1: you that you tried and felt really good. Oh that's
- 28:59Speaker 1: a good question. Let me think, because we have to
- 29:02Speaker 1: try so much something that surprised me. Listen, I gotta
- 29:06Speaker 1: come with it, because when you are interviewing a journalist
- 29:10Speaker 1: and an editor, you know, I can't just be like,
- 29:12Speaker 1: how's your heart, queen, how you feeling? Like that's I
- 29:16Speaker 1: love it? You stop me. I'm like, wait, okay, what's
- 29:19Speaker 1: something I didn't know? That's a great question. Let me think,
- 29:22Speaker 1: Let me think. I aspair with me um. Oh. Well.
- 29:27Speaker 1: One thing that I will say is that my personal
- 29:31Speaker 1: approach to wellness at essence has been very much about
- 29:35Speaker 1: wellness for every woman and everybody, not just for the
- 29:39Speaker 1: wellness enthusiasts and the fitness grew So let's talk about okay,
- 29:44Speaker 1: because I think that for me, I felt like I
- 29:47Speaker 1: was the perfect person to do this, because for so
- 29:50Speaker 1: long I felt like it didn't speak to me, like
- 29:53Speaker 1: I'm not the girl with the yoga mat. Anyone who
- 29:55Speaker 1: knows me knows I'm about to give a word. I'm
- 29:58Speaker 1: not the yoga mat girl. I'm not the workout class girl.
- 30:00Speaker 1: I'm not that person who wakes up thinking about when
- 30:03Speaker 1: I can make it to the gym or you know,
- 30:06Speaker 1: jumping on a smoothie. I've never been that girl. But
- 30:08Speaker 1: I am someone who wants each and every day of
- 30:11Speaker 1: my life to be just a little healthier and a
- 30:13Speaker 1: little happier, and to make decisions in the short term
- 30:15Speaker 1: that affect the long term and that give me more
- 30:18Speaker 1: years on this earth right and a better quality of
- 30:21Speaker 1: life on this earth. But I need it to be
- 30:23Speaker 1: approachable and real and relatable. And I think that what
- 30:27Speaker 1: I've learned on this journey is that anything that is
- 30:30Speaker 1: like drastic, like you're gonna change your whole life and
- 30:33Speaker 1: you're gonna lose a hundred pounds and you're gonna feel
- 30:36Speaker 1: like anything that that is a hard sell to just
- 30:39Speaker 1: make everything better overnight. I don't think it works for
- 30:42Speaker 1: most women, Like if that's just not what you're super into,
- 30:46Speaker 1: it's almost like a deterrent. And I also what I
- 30:48Speaker 1: did learn is it's okay to say what you don't love.
- 30:50Speaker 1: Like I love yoga, but I don't like bloodies, Like
- 30:54Speaker 1: it's just not I think it doesn't make me feel good.
- 30:56Speaker 1: I never get into it. I feel uncomfortable. It's not
- 30:59Speaker 1: my jam. Um, that's okay. I realized I hate cycling,
- 31:03Speaker 1: but soul Cycle changed my life because it's the music
- 31:05Speaker 1: and the inspiration and the vibe. And I realized I
- 31:09Speaker 1: had to figure out a way to make it make sense.
- 31:11Speaker 1: And like we were talking about, I'm a music lover.
- 31:13Speaker 1: So I I've learned that it's okay to be the
- 31:16Speaker 1: person looking around in the class saying this is super
- 31:19Speaker 1: uncomfortable and super weird and I don't like it because
- 31:22Speaker 1: there's something out there that you may like. I did it.
- 31:25Speaker 1: Infrared Sauna recently, and I was I thought it was
- 31:29Speaker 1: gonna be like I was like, okay, I'm gonna go.
- 31:31Speaker 1: And the sweat, like you can't possibly give me all
- 31:33Speaker 1: these endorphins and all these things and all the skin.
- 31:37Speaker 1: It was addictive, you know, like I didn't expect You've
- 31:40Speaker 1: got it, You've done it, that done. You know, Yes,
- 31:45Speaker 1: I love it. I put your put your playlists in
- 31:48Speaker 1: there and just let me sweat wet it out in
- 31:53Speaker 1: your cushy, comfy robe. But that was unexpected in a
- 31:56Speaker 1: good way, you know. I did the wellness I V
- 31:59Speaker 1: drifts that really freaked out, that really freak Yeah, yeah
- 32:02Speaker 1: I didn't. I don't. I don't love that personally. Yeah,
- 32:06Speaker 1: it was great in the moment, but then it was
- 32:09Speaker 1: kind of like feeling like a really natural high. But
- 32:12Speaker 1: I don't know it was I don't know. It wasn't
- 32:14Speaker 1: for me. It was for me for like a second,
- 32:16Speaker 1: and then I was like, no, this is really a lot.
- 32:18Speaker 1: I felt like I was at the hospital. But I
- 32:19Speaker 1: say that to say to answer your question, it's it's
- 32:22Speaker 1: funny because I think the things I've loved the most
- 32:24Speaker 1: that have been unexpected are the things that weren't high
- 32:26Speaker 1: pressure and I think when it comes to wellness, we
- 32:29Speaker 1: gotta get in where we fit in, you know, like yeah,
- 32:32Speaker 1: you know and that and that's like the that's the
- 32:34Speaker 1: that's really the meat of it. It's like wellness does
- 32:39Speaker 1: wellness and healing does not have to look instagrammatable instagrammable,
- 32:43Speaker 1: and it doesn't have to be comparable. You know. That
- 32:45Speaker 1: was a big part for me too when I first,
- 32:47Speaker 1: you know, really deep dove into my path of meditation.
- 32:51Speaker 1: After I went to a meditation retreat, I felt like,
- 32:56Speaker 1: where do you like, what do I do? Where do
- 32:58Speaker 1: I go from here? Because I'm not need to leave
- 33:00Speaker 1: my life behind and join an ashram right like I
- 33:03Speaker 1: don't do yoga every day at this moment in time
- 33:06Speaker 1: or then, so I was like, where do where does
- 33:08Speaker 1: my wellness and my spirituality fit into within this? And
- 33:12Speaker 1: now we're in that moment where there's not those harsh
- 33:15Speaker 1: boundaries anymore, those walls, like we're clear, I think, I hope,
- 33:19Speaker 1: or if you're listening, then you're not know you are
- 33:21Speaker 1: allowed permission to make your own little bespoke recipe, like
- 33:26Speaker 1: your wellness is catered to what you like, what brings
- 33:31Speaker 1: you joy, what makes you feel good and your body
- 33:33Speaker 1: feel nourished, and you have to be willing to just say,
- 33:37Speaker 1: let's see what happens. So I was at a wellness
- 33:41Speaker 1: UM event last year. I think it was last year.
- 33:43Speaker 1: I don't even know months or days and years and
- 33:45Speaker 1: where are we? What is um? But they had the
- 33:50Speaker 1: woman came from Thailand with the giant gone like the
- 33:54Speaker 1: giant sound healing, which she just rang it and rang it,
- 33:59Speaker 1: and we stood and we could it is sound healing, right,
- 34:02Speaker 1: So we sat there, but it was the gong was
- 34:05Speaker 1: like the size of like the room. It was humongous.
- 34:08Speaker 1: And I said, let me just close my eyes and
- 34:10Speaker 1: see what happens. I fully relaxed. I closed my eyes
- 34:13Speaker 1: and one of the things she said is that you're
- 34:15Speaker 1: going to feel the energy leaving, the stress leaving from
- 34:19Speaker 1: where it is in your body. And it blew me
- 34:22Speaker 1: away because when I opened my eyes, it was like
- 34:25Speaker 1: I was asleep, that's how relaxing it was. And I
- 34:27Speaker 1: didn't even realize I had kind of gone into the trance.
- 34:30Speaker 1: And when I came out, my heart was fluttering. But
- 34:34Speaker 1: I was dealing with a lot emotionally, and it was
- 34:38Speaker 1: the coolest experience to feel the stress physically leaving my heart,
- 34:43Speaker 1: you know what I mean, because things were heavy on
- 34:45Speaker 1: it and something. The lady next to me was like,
- 34:47Speaker 1: oh my knees. Someone else was like, oh my shoulder.
- 34:50Speaker 1: Like we the stress was just leaving and breaking up
- 34:54Speaker 1: the matter. It was just dissolving and leaving our bodies.
- 34:58Speaker 1: And you have to be open into everything to have
- 35:01Speaker 1: these experiences and to find that thing that moves you.
- 35:05Speaker 1: I ran over to her and I'm like, do you
- 35:06Speaker 1: touch the class? What do you? And she's like, I
- 35:08Speaker 1: do not, but find one because you're happy, you feel good.
- 35:13Speaker 1: And I felt the results of that and I felt
- 35:15Speaker 1: that long term effects of that for days. So you
- 35:18Speaker 1: have to be open, guys. That's what I say. Be
- 35:20Speaker 1: open to whatever cool and amazing thing. Try it all,
- 35:23Speaker 1: some of your love, some of you hate. If you've
- 35:24Speaker 1: got to try, yeah, yeah, just try because what do
- 35:27Speaker 1: you really have to lose? And I am grateful that
- 35:30Speaker 1: you brought this point up because you know something I think,
- 35:33Speaker 1: especially especially women of color, need to really um gift themselves.
- 35:41Speaker 1: It is these kind of experiences that go against maybe
- 35:44Speaker 1: cultural and societal norms or things that your family structure
- 35:47Speaker 1: was used to. Because what you spoke to with the
- 35:50Speaker 1: sound of that gong. And when you do like sound
- 35:52Speaker 1: healing or use um singing bowls or sound therapy, it
- 35:57Speaker 1: helps to on a cellular level, it helps to break
- 36:00Speaker 1: up the trauma, it helps to move the energy. So
- 36:03Speaker 1: in my own home, I have several singing bowls that
- 36:06Speaker 1: I do every day, usually to start it in my day.
- 36:08Speaker 1: But I got a simple bell. I have a I
- 36:11Speaker 1: have a bell that's like you know, it's kind of
- 36:12Speaker 1: like the size of those bells that you'd see on
- 36:15Speaker 1: you know, those shows when you're ringing for a mate
- 36:16Speaker 1: or something, right, And one of those bells that's of
- 36:20Speaker 1: the frequency for the sacred chakra area. And whenever I'm
- 36:24Speaker 1: having a bad day, whenever I need to clear some
- 36:26Speaker 1: energy or after my meditation, I literally just get that bell,
- 36:31Speaker 1: as simple as it sounds, and I ring it in
- 36:33Speaker 1: front of all my chuckra points so crown, um, third eye, throat, heart, solar, plexus,
- 36:41Speaker 1: sacred root, and shake the bell everywhere. Then shake the
- 36:44Speaker 1: bell on the sides of my ears. I did an
- 36:46Speaker 1: i g TV on this that should be on my
- 36:48Speaker 1: page if anyone's interested somewhere, it's there. But and that
- 36:52Speaker 1: movement of energy sometimes that's all you need, you know,
- 36:55Speaker 1: And so we even overthink our wellness sometimes because we
- 36:58Speaker 1: haven't done enough exploration and haven't been curious enough to
- 37:02Speaker 1: cultivate more tools. But sometimes it's not as hard as
- 37:05Speaker 1: it feels. Yeah. Absolutely, And we black women hold onto
- 37:10Speaker 1: trauma physically. We don't even realize it, but we're carrying it.
- 37:14Speaker 1: You guys were carrying it in our backs and our
- 37:16Speaker 1: shoulders and our knees and our feet and our bones.
- 37:20Speaker 1: It just is. And every different people carry stress differently.
- 37:24Speaker 1: And of course you know our superhero syndrome, this idea
- 37:27Speaker 1: that we have so much, so much on us that
- 37:31Speaker 1: stays with us. So I say, finding ways to release
- 37:34Speaker 1: trauma should be at the like you said, at the
- 37:37Speaker 1: top of your wellness priority lives. Yes, getting shape, yes,
- 37:41Speaker 1: get snatched, Yes, drink more water, all the things. I
- 37:44Speaker 1: love it. But also how are you releasing stress and
- 37:47Speaker 1: trauma and reading it from your body or not letting
- 37:50Speaker 1: the effects of its stay there? Yeah? Yeah, and you
- 37:53Speaker 1: gotta you gotta do all of it. It's not just
- 37:55Speaker 1: one thing. It's not just reading a book, and it's
- 37:58Speaker 1: not just working out, or it's not us doing even
- 38:00Speaker 1: singing therapy. It's it's really the cultivation of all of
- 38:04Speaker 1: those tools for your mind, body, spirit, and so like
- 38:07Speaker 1: for self care practices. Everyone you really want to think of,
- 38:10Speaker 1: like the four pillars to wholeness mental, physical, emotional, spiritual.
- 38:15Speaker 1: Drop something into each of those buckets every day. Doesn't
- 38:18Speaker 1: have to be grand, doesn't have to be big or expensive.
- 38:21Speaker 1: But if you're filling those four buckets every day, you're
- 38:24Speaker 1: gonna see radical transformation. And we're here for all these transformations,
- 38:28Speaker 1: you guys. I want to see everybody transform. I want
- 38:32Speaker 1: us all to step into our new year, our new life,
- 38:35Speaker 1: and our new piece together, you know. And going back
- 38:38Speaker 1: to you know, the most recent project we worked on Devy,
- 38:41Speaker 1: which is the art of black Joy story. I picked
- 38:44Speaker 1: that topic because it was transforming together that got me
- 38:49Speaker 1: through and if you guys haven't had chance to read it,
- 38:52Speaker 1: please go check it out. I talked to each of
- 38:54Speaker 1: these the day. It's fantastic, but we I talked each
- 39:00Speaker 1: woman about sharing her joy with others and joy as
- 39:04Speaker 1: a form of almost like a bridge to help us
- 39:07Speaker 1: get through this year. And I interviewed every woman that
- 39:10Speaker 1: did that for me. Debbie was one of them. It's
- 39:13Speaker 1: also Tabatha brand Brown Danielle Brooks and Kelsey Guy the Skater.
- 39:18Speaker 1: But I'm telling you, guys, it's important to share that
- 39:22Speaker 1: joy and to be open with people who are changing
- 39:25Speaker 1: your life because your you alls transformations helped further mind
- 39:29Speaker 1: along and I think that's sometimes we forget the power
- 39:33Speaker 1: of inspiration, Like maybe I just was having the worst
- 39:37Speaker 1: day and Debbie you popped up on my feet or
- 39:39Speaker 1: Tabatha and just being along your journey with you helped
- 39:44Speaker 1: me stick to mind even if that day wasn't perfect.
- 39:47Speaker 1: It was a reminder that I'm not alone and we're
- 39:49Speaker 1: all transforming together. M hm oh so beautiful. Thank you,
- 39:54Speaker 1: thank you, thank you. How can everybody connect to you?
- 39:58Speaker 1: Find me on Instagram at Charlie Penn on Twitter at
- 40:03Speaker 1: man Wife Dog We have a fur baby at home?
- 40:06Speaker 1: Did I give that away? Um? And you can email
- 40:09Speaker 1: me Charlie Penn at Gmail or c pen at essence
- 40:13Speaker 1: dot com. Get at me, Let's share love, joy, insite,
- 40:17Speaker 1: pitch me anything. Oh I love that? Okay, that's the
- 40:22Speaker 1: homework for the week, guys, that's the soul work. What
- 40:25Speaker 1: are you pitching? And of course your podcast, the Yes
- 40:28Speaker 1: Girl Podcast critically claim everywhere you are so kind. Thank
- 40:35Speaker 1: you so much for your time. It's such a joy
- 40:37Speaker 1: to talk to you. And I'm just so grateful for
- 40:39Speaker 1: your existence and the way that you occupy space and
- 40:43Speaker 1: give the tools to all of us so that we
- 40:46Speaker 1: can feel good from the inside out. Fay, the love
- 40:50Speaker 1: est is so mutual. Thank you so much for having me. Oh,
- 40:53Speaker 1: I feel so refreshed, revived and loved and fulfilled. Stop y'all,
- 40:57Speaker 1: this is like the best experience on this show. And
- 41:00Speaker 1: thank you for having me. I love you. G Hey
- 41:07Speaker 1: find me on social Let's connect at Deviie Brown. That's
- 41:11Speaker 1: Twitter and Instagram, or go to my website Debbie Brown
- 41:14Speaker 1: dot com. And if you're listening to the show on
- 41:17Speaker 1: Apple podcasts, please please please don't forget to rate, review,
- 41:23Speaker 1: and subscribe and send this episode to a friend. Dropping
- 41:28Speaker 1: Jams is the production of I Heart Radio and The
- 41:30Speaker 1: Black Effect Network. It's produced by Triple and Me Debbie Brown.
- 41:35Speaker 1: For more podcasts from My Heart Radio, visit the I
- 41:37Speaker 1: heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to
- 41:41Speaker 1: your favorite shows.