Finding Unity in the Spiritual Dance of Life

Ever wondered how a journey through the valleys of sorrow and peaks of joy can profoundly transform a person's spirit? Embark with me, Sherisse  Alexander, as I unveil the intricate tapestry of my own pilgrimage towards spiritual fulfillment in the inaugural episode of 'Your Collective.' As your host, I extend an open invitation to forge a resonant spiritual relationship that aligns with your unique life story. Through my candid sharing, explore the inspiration behind our new gathering space, designed to harmonize mind, body, and spirit, and ease our collective navigation through the complexities of life.

In this soul-stirring narrative, I reflect on pivotal moments that shifted my world from a predictable routine to an uncharted quest for deeper meaning and faith. My experiences range from the dissolution of a two-decade-long marriage to embracing diverse spiritual paths that have both challenged and enriched my beliefs. 'Your Collective' isn't just another podcast; it's a sanctuary for connection, an expression of gratitude for every step of our shared dance—whether in moments of joy or in times of sorrow. Join us as we build a community that seeks to understand and love something greater, together.

Transcript

Sherisse Alexander: 0:09

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you might be, welcome to your collective. I'm your host, Sherisse Alexander, of your collective, where we are looking to create balance between the trifecta of mind, body and spirit, so that we can find an easier way to navigate this journey called life. Welcome to your collective, good day and welcome to your collective. I'm your host and my name is Sherisse Alexander and I'd love to introduce you, or welcome you, to the first episode of your collective. What exactly is your collective, you might be wondering? Well, the thought process and the inspiration around your collective was meant to be a podcast that brings together people that are looking for fulfillment in a spiritual sense. And how is it that we can use spirituality on a moment-to-moment and daily basis in our lives to navigate the challenges and experiences that we encounter? The focus will be ultimately in terms of mind, body, spirit, and how do we really connect this trifecta?

Sherisse Alexander: 1:26

My personal journey with this started, oh gosh, about seven or eight years ago. It was actually unbeknownst to me at that point in time. It was leading up to, ultimately, the breakdown and dissolution of a 20-year marriage, but it started to happen before that. I started to actually, I remember saying to a girlfriend, I'm like, hey, this can't be all there is to life. I said, you know, she's like, yep, she's like there, that's all it is. You're born, you go to school, you find a career, you get married, you have babies and then you die. And that answer was just not enough for me and I've always had a very curious mind. I've always asked questions. So I decided to go on the search for what spirituality and faith meant to me and ultimately I remember when I was starting out on this journey, I grew up in a household where my dad was baptized, we'll say, in the Catholic faith, and my mom in Anglican, and they spoke about God, but we didn't really foster a relationship with God. My extent of relationship with God at that point in time was really around going to church for Easter and Christmas and that was about it. There was nothing, much more. So I really had no connection through my family and there were some real sticking points for me in that journey.

Sherisse Alexander: 3:17

For me, in a lot of ways it felt very constraining and constricting and so on and so forth, and I give lots of grace to my parents that they taught what they had learned to themselves and if that particular type of relationship with God resonates with you, or anyone else for that matter. I'm genuinely happy for you. I was watching all of these people around me my grandmothers, like they had this real love for God that I did not understand. I had friends that had this real love for God that I did not understand, and I think in some ways I was kind of jealous. I think in some ways I was kind of like, well, how do I get that? And the other part of it is did I want it? Did I want it the way that they had it?

Sherisse Alexander: 4:08

So, needless to say, I went out on this journey and trying to do it in a very traditional fashion and it wasn't landing, it wasn't sticking, it wasn't landing. You know, I was going to church, I was trying to read the Bible, I was doing Jesus' devotionals and none of it felt right, none of it. So then I started to look in, just kind of a little bit being random, and now I see that it maybe wasn't so random. Maybe sometimes you've got to figure out what you don't like in order to figure out what you do like. And anyways, needless to say, it sent me on more of a spiritual journey and exploring all kinds of ways to really deepen this connection with my faith, and that has been a long, arduous journey. It's had lots of ups and I would probably dare say it's had its fair share of low moments. But the one thing that I am certain and grounded in is that I don't regret any of it, not the moments that brought me joy, nor the moments that brought me sorrow. I am grateful for it all and I can say that with a real strong sense of calm. So the reason for starting this podcast is just the sense that you know there's this, we're all on the same journey. It might not look the same, but I think ultimately that we're searching for the same thing a sense of fulfillment, a sense of calm and a sense of peace. And so how do we use faith and spirituality in our day to day life? And that's really kind of what this podcast is all about bringing together a collection of people that have had some real interesting journeys themselves, people that I know love and trust and people who I just find fascinating, and hopefully they can give some color and context to their own journey and ultimately maybe help even one or two people out there, and I would be really, really happy with that.

Sherisse Alexander: 6:29

So when we talk about the mind, body, trifecta, you know how do we learn to calm and settle the mind? For me it's meditation. I love tuning into myself, but meditation doesn't have to look like that for everybody. It looks like different things for everybody. It could be very meditative doing something repetitive like washing a floor Body. How do we bring balance and harmony into our body? I mean, these are all things that I've played with over the years.

Sherisse Alexander: 7:02

I've got some kind of ailment and I am genuinely grounded in the belief that all physical manifestation of disease or disease in the body starts in the mind. First, mental disturbance and emotional disturbance and I don't mean that in the way of implying that somebody has mental health issues, but, as I always say to my people, we all have a degree of mental health issues. It's just how much we show to other people, and I think it stands to reason is having some resonance of truth within that. And then, of course, the last piece being spirituality, and how do we connect our faith in with that. So how do we find balance in mind and body and ultimately, spirit, and how do we connect the three so that they're talking to each other, and that we can use this tools really tools and resources to make life a little easier. And when I say easier, I don't mean that there won't be challenges, but wouldn't it be nice to be in the middle of a hurricane or a storm and literally you're super calm, you're not in angst over it. You can start to read what you feel in your body and understand what your spirit, your soul, is trying to say to you, and then ask yourself some better guided questions so that you can maybe change the outcome of what you're experiencing, or change what you're experiencing. So that's what this podcast is meant to explore. That's a little bit of you know why I'm starting it.

Sherisse Alexander: 8:43

I've given you a little bit about who I am, a little bit more about who I am. I hold many roles. I'm a mother, I'm a sister, I'm a daughter, I'm a lover, I'm a friend, I'm a confidant, I'm a teacher. You know I've got four kids, four beautiful human beings, and I'll probably talk about ad nauseam, because truly they are the greatest gift that I have received in my life and they have been more of a mentor to me than I think that I have been to them, and I feel blessed every single day to have them in my experience. So welcome to your collective. I'm excited about getting into this with all of you and I hope that you enjoy some of the content that I bring on a bi-weekly basis and that there is some value that you can receive from this conversation. Thank you, take care and enjoy your day.