Born of Wonder

Very exciting announcement for 2024!!!  This year I’m partnering with Select International to lead a truly phenomenal, unforgettable tour through the saint scattered hills of Ireland. I will have an incredible co-leader partner in the podcaster and writer Christy Isinger. Tune in for all the details, the backstory of how this came about, how you can support me in this endeavor (prayers, spreading...

Thank you everyone for listening and making season 6 of the podcast such a success! We're wrapping up this season with some beautiful music, end of year reflections (2 kids, no social media, more writing! A lot happening, a lot more to come), Advent listening recommendations, St. Nick's Traditions, and some encouragement to 'begin anew' always. Remember, Christmas is all about second chances. We a...

Animals understand that winter is a time for retreat and rest. They know that surviving the harshness of winter means living differently - sometimes even entering a liminal state of being: hibernation. And while human beings don't hibernate per say, there's a lot we can learn from the rhythms of the natural world. Whether it's ignoring 'clock time,' embracing 'denning,' or 'The Watch,' there are m...

Today on the podcast we're celebrating - JOY! Beethoven composed his iconic 9th Symphony after he had gone completely deaf, a beautiful miracle in and of itself. We'll hear the original poem by Friederich Schiller - 'Do you feel the Creator's Presence? / Seek Him beyond the Stars! / He must live beyond the Stars.' This is an episode to put headphones on and turn the volume way up. An invitation to...

Medieval Christians talked about Jesus in ways that can shock us today - Jesus as Mother, as Lover. These evocative ways of viewing Christ can open us up to a surprisingly rich and imaginative spirituality. Today on the podcast Katie is joined by Dr. Grace Hamman, author of the excellent new book, "Jesus through Medieval Eyes: Beholding Christ with the Artists, Mystics, and Theologians of the Midd...

For many people in the US Daylight Savings Time means short days and long nights. How do we find joy and thrive during seasons of waning light and early darkness? On this podcast we'll talk about finding Light in the Darkness - Cozy traditions to embrace 'hygge' - and how it's important to not live in denial of (both spiritual and physical) seasons. Learning to embrace the darkness can mean embrac...

Happy All Hallow's Eve - a chance to meditate on those things we usually keep 'in the dark.' We'll learn a bit about the tradition of Souling and Soul Cakes and then revisit an episode all about Praying for the Dead. We'll do a deep dive into the eerie melancholy and beauty of graveyards and why we should go pray, read poetry, and spend time in churchyards among the Dead.  Why graveyards can be pe...

Today on the podcast Katie is joined by Rachel Sherlock to discuss the joy of the written word, particularly in the form of letters. A lost art form? A hipster throwback? Or something deeper than that... a physical memorial of a life well lived, a profound opportunity for friendship? We'll discuss the eminently charming 84 Charring Cross Road, our own letter writing experiences, and what we think...

Elflore and the stories of 'the hidden folk' are so infused in Icelandic culture, even today, that most Icelanders see elves as simply part of their landscape. If they don't outright believe in them, they at least can't say for sure that they don't exist. And in fact so many people DO believe in elves that advocates have blocked new construction and successfully lobbied parliament on behalf of Elv...

Today on the podcast we're discussing how we find our authentic selves amidst the ever changing facts of our lives. Katie discusses the limitations of personality quizzes and how to move past a passive acceptance of our temperament towards the development of Character. So much of life is about clarifying and defining - our values, our obligations, our priorities. Hopefully this episode helps you t...

Today on the podcast Katie talks with Seth Lewis, a technical support specialist here to explain how we can find the wonder, beauty, and awe in technology, and specifically in Artificial Intelligence. Katie and Seth discuss how to find balance in our tech use and how we should be skeptical of any existential claims regarding AI. Seth's great advice - "when in doubt, drop the phone!" They also deba...

Why does suffering exist? Why does a good God allow suffering? It's the age-old question - and while we may not have any neat answers, we do have an arresting image: Our Lady of Tenderness - the stunning vision of a mother's love for her child. Today on the podcast Katie meditates on the tenderness, sorrow, suffering, and softness of God. Tune in for some beautiful chant and to learn more about a...

It's September and this time of year means 'back to school' - whether you're a student or not, we can all benefit from the fresh start a new academic year can offer. Bring on the hot coffee, boots, books, course lists, blank notebooks, new pens... On this episode Katie looks to Oxford student life for a model on how to live like a student no matter your age or stage in life. We'll also discuss som...

Today on the podcast Katie is joined by Christy Isinger - writer, podcaster, mom of 5, and all around fun, fascinating person! Christy was online during the golden age of blogging and is here to tell us that yes, the internet has changed, and yes, it used to be a lot better. We'll talk about what's changed while also emphasizing the continued importance of online communities, especially for parent...

This month, August 2023, has two full moons - which means we get to experience the rare "Blue Moon." We're using this opportunity to wax philosophic on the Moon and all it inspires - from Margaret Wise Brown's "Goodnight Moon" to the poetry of Shelley, Stevenson, and Plath. We'll go through the evocative, poetic names for each month's full moon and their origins ("the cold moon," "the harvest moon...

Today on the podcast, Katie is joined by Gina Dadaglo, writer and mom of three, currently living in Paris, France to talk about creating an authentic family culture. When you become a parent you're barraged with conflicting information - when it comes to sleep, birth, faith, discipline, you name it, everyone has an opinion. It can be overwhelming and guilt-inducing - how can you know you're doing...

Unicorns have captured our imaginations for centuries. Their horns were sought after for medicinal and spiritual purposes all the way up through the late 1800s. Christ has been referred to as a unicorn and the unicorn's ability to purify water has been compared to Moses cleansing the waters of Marah. Scotland's National Animal is the Unicorn (can this country get any more magical?) and America's 1...

A bonus episode before we launch into Season 6! Mary Oliver loved to go on long solitary walks around the Cape in New England. She watched the tide for hours on end. In and out, in and out. She listened to the geese flying south and she prayed earnestly while counting sparrows and watching the clouds. She is a poet of deep attention and quiet. In her poem “When Death Comes” Oliver celebrates the e...

Frasier was a hit sitcom that ran for 11 seasons from the early 1990s through the early 2000s. It was also the backdrop to much of Katie and her sister Chrissy's childhood. Today on the show Katie is joined by Chrissy to chat about what makes Frasier such a great show - how it's an excellent introduction to theatre, encourages a love of learning, celebrates families connecting despite big differen...

Katie pulled the plug and deleted all her social media. She updates us how it's going, how she's surviving the existential despair brought on by midsummer heat, and what she hopes the podcast is contributing to the world.  ----- Subscribe to Born of Wonder on Substack https://bornofwonder.substack.com      Support Born of Wonder on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/bornofwonder    www.bornofwonder.c...

Every night our mind enters another world, a strange place of images, memories, ideas, often a place filled with anxiety or unease, but also sometimes a place of artistic inspiration, love, and hope. Today on the podcast we'll be discussing that strange in-between state of dreaming - and how we use the word 'dream' in the waking world - MLK Jr's "I have a dream" and Fantine's "I dreamed a dream".....

On this episode Katie is joined by her husband Chris to discuss their shared love of owls. We'll learn about the time Katie and Chris found an injured screech owl on one of their walks... An experience that greatly impacted them both. We'll discuss the symbolism of owls... Harbingers of death, symbols of wisdom, good luck... Athena's familiar and companion... And why the animal world and these 'to...

On today's episode, Katie shares a radio piece she produced for PRX/The Goethe Institut called "The Night." This is a chance to meditate on our charged perceptions of the Night - its darkness, its hopes, dreams, promises, myths, and legends. A particularly poignant topic for Mother's Day as we focus in on how sleepless nights with a new baby can have us asking all those 'big questions' that seem t...

We're being overwhelmed with stories of artificial intelligence - AI's ability to mimic human emotion, write faster than any person, create beautiful art, play music, find any fact in less than a second. We're also being told of AI's less desirable effects - the prevalence of fraud, plagiarism, hacking, even targeted threats. So what do we make of this pandora's box? And where does that leave us h...

It's Eastertide! The world is waking up and the natural world is reflecting the resurrected joy of the liturgical year. We'll hear a seasonal poem from Mary Oliver, an enchanting fairy tale from Hans Christian Anderson, and Katie shares some of 'life right now' - two exhausting, cute kids, creative work, and the beauty of the natural world.  ------ Subscribe to Born of Wonder on Substack https://b...