Made for More: Creating a Life of Play, Purpose and Healing with Jessye Wilden

Meet Jessye Wilden – bestselling author of We Wrote Your Name in Color, host to the heartfelt podcast The Molden Cast, and experienced grief coach. Jessye’s journey through unthinkable loss, grief, trauma, joy, and healing has woven a life full of resilience and inspiration.

In this episode we discuss her upcoming retreats being held at the Oaks Retreat Center in Ramona, CA with Bob Goff. Her personal experience of surviving trauma, death and grief has made her an expert in connecting with anyone trying to navigate life in the midst of any kind of pain and suffering.  She inspires everyone she meets to see more joy and hope in our everyday lives., regardless of our individual circumstances.

Learn more about her retreats here and sign up for the next retreat April 26-28, 2024: https://www.jessyewilden.com/

As the mom of five kiddos, including those through adoption, she offers tangible encouragement for anyone navigating the intricate dance of a blended family. She continues to write and speak to groups using her unique perspective and exciting storytelling to help others hold onto goodness when life hurts most.

Jessye lives with her husband and partner-in-crime, Ryan, and their children in Mount Shasta, California, where bears rattle the garbage cans and deer occasionally pose dramatically in the backyard. When she finds spare time, you will find her skiing down hills, camping under the stars, playfully snapping towels, binging a Netflix series, or singing in her car with the music up and the windows down.

Join Jessye Wilden on a journey that goes beyond words on a page. Together, discover a life filled with love, audacious hope, and a profound strength found in sharing stories.

Connect more with Jessye:  jessye@jessyewilden.com
https://www.instagram.com/jessye_wilden

Order Stephanie's new book Imagine More: Do What You Love, Discover Your Potential

Learn more at StephanieNelson.com
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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:24

I'd like to welcome Jessie Wilden to the Pivotal People podcast. You're probably saying, hey, I remember when she was on last time. Of course you do, because when she was on before, I got a message from one of our regular listeners, who was also a dear friend, and she said Stephanie, she is the best guest you've ever had. I was like, well, yeah, she's a friend of mine, she's great. So she's back because she has some big news and lots of interesting stuff. If you missed her the first time, let me tell you about her.

Speaker 1: 0:57

Jessie is an author, she's a podcaster, she is a speaker, she is an experienced grief coach, and part of that is because she went through some real challenges in losing family members. She wrote a book called we Wrote your Name in Color, which tells the whole story, and it's super inspiring. I would encourage anyone to buy and read this book Today. What she's doing is she's continuing her encouragement of folks who are going through grief and her coaching and teaching by leading retreats, and she is leading retreats at my very favorite place, the Oaks, which is outside of San Diego. I'm wearing my Oaks sweatshirt one of my favorite pieces of clothing in honor of Jesse's big step in leading retreats and she's leading a retreat with Bob Goff, by the way, in case you ever heard of him. So thank you so much for being here. It's so great to see you. I'm so excited to talk about the new projects you're working on.

Speaker 2: 1:57

I don't even know if I can follow my own intro, let alone that I have been invited back. This is a monumental moment with one of my favorite people who totally gets me, so I am here for it all, stephanie, thank you for having me.

Speaker 1: 2:10

Well, thanks for being here. Bring us up to speed. So we talked before we started. It's interesting to me, as I've kind of watched you, is you have taken one step at a time. You're kind of gone up a steep hill and what I hope people hear is that you can pursue whatever your dream is, whatever your desire is to help other people, by doing it one step at a time, like Jesse and this is a woman who is today leading retreats with Bob Goff. I mean, that's a huge deal, and could you just take us through your story and kind of the steps that got you here and then let's talk about those retreats.

Speaker 2: 2:52

Oh, stephanie, thanks for pointing that out. I think really it's only come into the light as a maybe career moves, you know, as one step at a time, but really it's just been kind of the mode my whole life. I've never been great when someone asks what my 10-year plan is or my five-year plan and sometimes even my one-year plan, but a lot of times I have something burning in my heart and it's kind of like how do I take the next step towards that? Right, and what would that be? And what I have found is many times the things that trip me up in that are asking other people what they think. But I think often we have a dream planted in us or something that is burning in us and it's not burning even in the people who love us most. It's really special if you can pitch an idea that you're fragile and unsure about but it burns in you and then someone turns around and says let's do it. That is very, very rare and so often the ones that it took me a long time to take steps on were the ones where people are like really, and that is often so I just encourage anybody who has a dream and then starts kind of peddling it out there, and then people are, you know, like tilting their head at you, like okay, sure, and so I just have had to learn to let dreams incubate inside of me longer. And then I mean I know we're at different places in our faith with all the listeners here, but for me, because I try to follow Jesus and I try to follow God, he says he'll be a lamp to my feet. And I think about it whenever we go camping and you're trying to like get somewhere at night, how you really put the flashlight at your feet and how you really can't see the whole path like you can in the day. And I feel like a lot of my life has been that way.

Speaker 2: 4:37

So when I've been in grief or when we've tried to like, at one point I really before that I really wanted a big family and we had one daughter, but our dream had always been to have a big family, and so really it became that day-to-day like God, what do you want me to do with my life? I thought this was gonna be it, I thought this was gonna be the dream, and then to just take one step at a time there. Just look at what's at my feet, look at what's ahead, look at what's good that I could cling to, and then other times that's just in parenting, right, it's like what's the next right thing? What's the next thing? Even Sometimes I'm like I don't even know what the next right thing is. I'm just going to take it.

Speaker 2: 5:20

And I have had times where because I think God really is a lamp to our feet that when we tried to, after my best friend and her husband died tragically and we started taking care of their kids, we had traumatized children, which was just such a shock. I'm like I don't even know what we do, you know. So we tried to get some therapy appointments and as we did, they were like it took us a month and a half to get in. It's just the way it is in California right now. We went in there and he said how did you know to do all of these things? Like it was a map played before me. And I'm like, are you kidding? He goes you did all the right things, and so I think prayer and just doing the next thing has served me so well. And so now fast forward.

Speaker 2: 5:57

That's how it was writing a book. I'm like I have no idea how to write a book. I have no idea. I don't know anyone who's really written a book, like in my family, like we're not writers and I'm not even sure if I can do it, but if I just think of what's the next step, and so I would find out write the whole thing. That's what our friend Bob Goff said. He's like write the whole thing even if it's messy, but then you can see the whole thing. I'm like okay. So step one was just to write the whole thing, even if it was terrible. And then you just keep taking steps. You keep taking steps and after the book came out I really wanted to share our story of how we healed and the hope that we had, even in grief.

Speaker 2: 6:29

But I've had a lot of people reach out to me since then and I've gotten to speak to groups and connect with retreats and be keynote speaker for things like that. But I thought I have all this vision in my heart for what I think would make a retreat, to really encourage people to take that next step in their life, to kind of open up their mind and their heart and their dreams, to think like what if it could be more Like, not more materialistically, not more like you're not enough, but like more joy, more hope, more life. And so I just, in my car, just started praying about it and I'm like what's the next step? And I told a friend who happened to be a dream catcher Do you have any of those dream catchers, stephanie? And I just told her and she goes I think you should call the Oaks. And I'm like whoa, whoa, whoa, let's not get ahead of ourselves, because the Oaks really is our favorite place to retreat. It's such a beautiful landscape. So I just said you know what? I'm just going to start praying about that. And I had another friend who dream, caught me and said that.

Speaker 2: 7:32

And so I think, who we tell, we learn who to tell. And I, finally, we had a suicide in our town one week and I kind of just got over myself, to tell you the truth. I got over myself. I'm like this is not about me. People are forgetting who they are. And got over myself. I'm like this is not about me. People are forgetting who they are. And you and I, stephanie, have talked about this a lot and I think I know some of the reasons, how we forget who we are.

Speaker 2: 7:57

And it pushed me past all the things I thought about myself that I couldn't call them and so I called the Oaks coordinator, who I know, and I just said how do I pitch this? And I told her the whole thing. I tell her, tell me what to do. She goes, you already pitched it. And they said yes, and we talked to Bob and he said yes, and the rest is happening now, and so we actually have two retreats booked there. But it really wasn't. Sometimes some people come up to me and they're like, wow, your career is really taking off, you're doing a great job, and I laugh, I laugh, and I laugh because I'm like it's just one step at a time.

Speaker 1: 8:28

And you never said I'm trying to build a career. You said I want to help people who are hurting. Like as I read your book, what hit me was you're talking about pain and suffering and yet in the midst of it you're saying you can have joy in the midst of pain and suffering. In fact, catherine Wolfe says I'm trying to bust the myth that you have to have a pain-free life in order to have joy.

Speaker 1: 8:57

And so many times and let's talk about this because I'll tell you what she was talking about this on a recent phone call and I just sat and listened. I said, oh my gosh, I wish we recorded that call. And I just sat and listened. I said, oh my gosh, I wish we recorded that. Let's talk about how we all feel like we have to present a pain-free life to the rest of the world and how hard that can be as we're trying to cover up whatever pain we do have in our life. Because why? Why can we not show that? But until and I'm going to be quiet because you do such a better job of explaining this you talked about the gap.

Speaker 2: 9:31

Yeah, I found recently reading something that we are almost the only generation or the last couple of generations even now, like two generations that do not know what to do with suffering, and I think that is such an interesting tell and we start believing that only professionals really know what to do in suffering and that really it gives us a helplessness. But not only that, like so we start seeing pain as just bad. I mean, it's uncomfortable, it's unknown, it's unfamiliar, it causes a lot of damage. I mean it makes sense how it feels, right, but if you think about all the beautiful things in life, you think of having a baby or braces. I mean a lot of the beautiful things in life come. The best things in life come from vulnerability and pain. And so when we decide that we're just not going to look at pain, we're not going to see pain anymore, we're not going to let it be part of our lives and if it is, we're definitely going to not let other people know we really rob ourselves of all these opportunities for joy and we numb ourselves. And so I think what happens and what we were talking about on the phone was something I called the gap. I believe often who we think we are and who we think we should be starts separating. So who we think we are and who we think we should be, and that starts separating. Many times I tell a story of how this started in me was because I couldn't say the word crayon in kindergarten and all the kids made fun of me calling it crown, and so I thought, okay, I've got to not be like. I need to be really careful with my words, I need to be really careful not to look foolish and I think, even at that young, we can start performing in order to say, okay, because there was pain there, there was embarrassment for me, and so to self-protect, I'm now going to perform more. And you pull away from who you really are and the questions you really have and the things that you really feel.

Speaker 2: 11:23

And I think as time goes on, as we're rejected in life or we're not loved well, or, the more we self-protect or we numb or we try to avoid pain or we try to avoid rejection, the more we try to fit in not belong, but fit in and all of these things happen. It just that gap becomes a chasm and I think when that's really lived out, we forget who we even really are and the fears of like if someone really knew how much debt I was in, or that my marriage isn't doing well, or that me I don't know how to do this as a mom, or fill in the blank whatever our deepest, deepest fears are. If someone really knew that about me, they wouldn't love me, they wouldn't accept me, like I can't really present who I am to the world. And so I've got to keep this up, and so we lean in harder to this facade, because I think about the facade was something like in the old West when they were building these new Western communities. Picture the shootouts right, they would have a facade in front of a box building to make it look fancier, right, and I thought we often put facades out.

Speaker 2: 12:28

And then we wonder why we're so lonely? Because no one can truly connect. We're not drawing the people in who are like us truly, who think like us and feel like us and struggle like us. Instead, we draw people to this facade, right, and then we have to keep up the facade and it creates this chasm that grows and grows and I think what happens is we feel like we can't get home and I feel like we can't get back to ourselves we can't ever let this go.

Speaker 2: 12:57

And that starts causing us to feel despair Because it's not like I cannot. And then if stress and crisis comes into your life, that's not going to hold up. It's not going to hold up. It's not going to hold up. You cannot always perform, you cannot always be this thing that you have created, especially when stress and life is very heavy and very hard. And that's when things really start to crumble.

Speaker 2: 13:23

And I think where people that despair comes in and says I'll never get home. And if there's no way home, if there's no way back to who I really am and no way to be loved, if people really knew who I was, then they start thinking of an exit plan. And I do believe when that's lived out, that becomes what suicide is, because we just don't know who we are anymore and we don't feel that we could connect with who we are and we're not loved for who we are anymore and it's exhausting and I think so many of us are experiencing it and we're hearing record this last year was the record high of suicides ever and ever in the history of the United States. It's so high and so I just think a lot of our problems, whether you just have something you could jump across as a gap, or you have a huge chasm and you're like I don't even know if this is worth doing anymore. I think it really comes from that.

Speaker 1: 14:16

So deep breath. So what's going through my mind is you know, we talked about this statistic that has bothered me all year and I'm trying to be aware of is that 54% of people identify as being lonely in our country, and I think it's what you're talking about. You can have a lot of acquaintances, you can be working so hard at keeping up the facade and I've certainly done that in my life and then you start to wonder is this why they like me? Is this this label that I have? Is this why they like me?

Speaker 2: 14:44

And and is this all there is Like? Is this all there is? Is this all there is?

Speaker 1: 14:48

Actually, this isn't even really who I am. They really knew who I was and it's interesting because I'm only speaking from my experience. I'm older now, so I have girlfriends now and we're all past that and now it is. Our connection is that we've all let each other see behind the curtain and we have this trust thing, this total trust thing. Like you cannot even tell each other's husbands this stuff, you know you can't go and tell your husband this. This is like our trust thing and I love the expression that relationships move at the speed of trust and I'd much rather you know I do.

Speaker 1: 15:32

I have very special friendships now that have only developed over the past few years and I'm 60 years old Because, yeah, this is it. And guess what? They had something that they didn't feel comfortable sharing with anyone else and guess what? We had the same thing in common.

Speaker 1: 15:48

You know, over and over again, my husband and I had good friends over for dinner a couple nights ago and we talked about vacations and we talked about, you know, travel and we talked about the top line news and everyone's family and then, as we got into it, they revealed something really hard and sad about their family and they quickly said, oh, that's depressing, let's not talk about it. And I said, no, this is the real stuff. This is the real stuff. And I you know what I shared something then, too, that we wouldn't have, and we felt such a connection with those friends. It's like, come on, we don't have to fake it, Like when you said to me, this gap between who we think we should be and who we really are, when the truth is, everyone really just wants to see who you really are, so they can be who they really are.

Speaker 2: 16:36

Can we do that?

Speaker 1: 16:38

What do we have to lose? Maybe that person decides oh, now that I know that about Stephanie, I don't want to be your friend. Well, that's okay, because if our friendship was based on the facade, we weren't friends anyway right.

Speaker 2: 16:50

Yeah, I think it is good to talk about. It does have cost, especially at first, because now you may break those facade relationships in some way, because you're not serving them the way they you always had, or you're depressing to be around, perhaps for using your friend's language, I mean whatever it is and so I think sometimes there is a time of just grief in that and deciding you're gonna switch over and not pushing even anyone away, but just choosing to like, allow yourself to be yourself and to be real. And I think what happens, though, is it is very painful and it does have risk and it does hurt. And I think it has so much risk because now the facade you could change up right, it could fit, it could kind of move along and fit into whatever people are doing. If it's really you and people reject that, let's just like take a minute and say that is scary, it is scary. But once you move past that and you connect with people who really get you and love you just as you are, and you show that, and you connect with people who really get you and love you just as you are, and you show up, and you showing up makes them have a bright face. I mean, there's nothing in the world like that, and that's what you're talking about, and I think it's possible to close that gap.

Speaker 2: 17:59

I think we could be who we really are. We have to find out who we are. Sometimes we don't even know. I'm still finding out sometimes who I am. I'm like, oh yeah, that's me. But I think what happens then is we can completely lean into how we're made and why we're made, and that purpose starts igniting, because we can't live into our purpose. We cannot serve others with the things that truly fuel us unless if we're living from how we're made, unless if we're living from how we're made, and so everything magical comes from that place of closing that gap, being loved for yourself, letting people really into your life, leading from vulnerability, I mean all of these things start creating what we really long for anyways, and that's where happiness and hope and joy and all those things just actually start flooding our daily lives, and that can happen in the midst of pain and suffering.

Speaker 1: 18:52

Right, it happens better, actually I was going to say, sometimes it doesn't happen until you experience pain and suffering.

Speaker 2: 19:00

Yes, so many of us too won't let people serve us or see us weak. And if we really take that position, if we really say, oh no, I could bring you dinner, but you can't bring me dinner, or I want to see you sick, but you can't see me without makeup and in my bed, then is one better than the other? Are we saying then, the server is better than the served? Are we really just saying there is a higher ground, so when I bring you dinner, I'm on higher ground, so therefore I could do it? I'm like I don't want to be that way.

Speaker 2: 19:28

I want to be a person who says, oh no, this is a turntable thing. We continually do this for each other. But I have had to let go and one of the things through grief and just not being able to do it by myself raising five kids suddenly, one of whom was born under tragedy. You know I had to say, okay, this is embarrassing, but to open myself up and accept this love. It was painful and it was beautiful and all the joy rushed in and it taught me a lot.

Speaker 1: 19:59

And you're teaching people a lot. You've taught me a lot and I have to say this. So I've talked before. I have a book called Imagine More, part of. When it came out, I said we want to use the proceeds from the book to give grants to people. I call it a small. We give small grants to people with big dreams and I'm going to cry. But Jessie is the first grant you know. I mean, you want to, you want to see this woman.

Speaker 1: 20:22

I had a Zoom call with her when we were first talking about it and I was listening and as she was talking just as she was just now in my head I was thinking she is not famous, but she needs to be, because this could help so many people. And she is not trying to be famous, that's the thing. She is just trying to love people better. And I listened to her and I thought, god, she is a person who we want to see succeed. Succeed at what she's trying to do, which is to help people go through grief and to show people that, in the midst of suffering, you can have joy and you can be who God made you to be. And we could save a whole lot of energy if we weren't trying so hard to be someone we're not. So anyway, having said that, I'd love to talk specifically about your retreat. Now I have to do a big sales pitch. If you've never been to the Oaks Retreat Center, I've been there five times. That's all I'm going to say.

Speaker 1: 21:21

I have limited myself to once a year because I may have a problem, but it is just a happy place and it's not just okay. Bob Goff is great. First time I went to an Oaks retreat was because I wanted to meet Bob Goff. I'll be honest about that. But who I really met were the other 25 attendees, and they're up to 40 people. It's a small group of people and you get to know people. I have had dozens of people who I have met at Oaks retreats.

Speaker 1: 21:49

On this podcast, my husband said to me the other day I had a podcast with one of the Oaks people and I came down. I'm all excited, I'm telling him all about it, and he said, honey, you have found your people. So if you go to an Oaks retreat, it's not just that you're going to get great teaching, you're going to meet some people who you really want to be friends with. So that's my sales pitch there. Now let's talk about your retreat. You can learn all about it, by the way, at Jesse's website, which is jessiewildencom. The retreat is called Made for More Creating a Life Full of Play, purpose and Healing. She has two of them. One is coming up at the end of April and one is in October. So I'm going to be quiet and I'd love for you to talk to us about what people could expect and who's doing it with you.

Speaker 2: 22:38

Thanks, stephanie. Just to circle back to the grant, I just want to speak on that for one second. I think that your idea with Imagine More and the verse that that's taken from in the Bible how God's able to give us imaginably more right, and I think that really goes with kind of the theme of this episode of taking the next step, and I have talked to a lot of people who would love to go to the Oaks or retreat at the Oaks, and maybe this is like tugging on your heart and I'll tell you a little bit more about it. But I just encourage you to just start praying. If you feel like this is something that you should do and somewhere you should be, don't give it a no yet. Just decide that You're going to try to work towards this with the next step. And that's how this was for me, and your grant was part of that. I've had someone told me, before you do these huge retreats, you really need an LLC, and I started praying. I'm like I don't know how to do an LLC, I don't have the money for an LLC, and then I asked you for one of your grants and it was just a yes from God. And I think when we feel helpless we can hear God the most, because either the money comes through or it doesn't, or the person comes through or it doesn't, and that's how this retreat has been built. So I know it is a gift from heaven because of how it's been built and Stephanie's been a big part of that.

Speaker 2: 23:53

For me, the Made for More retreat really is that idea of like we're made for more. I think many times faith and hope and joy and even healing kind of all become I don't know freedom. They kind of become wallpaper, especially if you're in a faith community. You can go to church and be like yeah, yeah, yeah, of course I have the joy of the Lord, of course I have an abundant life, whatever that means. But really you're like I feel listless. I feel like life is hard. I just I'm not. I'm looking only forward to the one vacation I get a year. You know, I'm not, I'm really not, and I think we just get used to that. We just get used to being apathetic and doing the day's big to-do list and I just think I my prayer for this was like in the car, with you know, the snot, ugly, tears, was like what if we just got? We decided we were uncomfortable, in agony, like we've just say that's it. Like what if we could be happy, like really happy, are we even allowed to say that? I mean, like, of course we're supposed to be like deeply joyful, but could I just be happy, could, like, my kids see a happy mom, could my husband see a happy wife, could people at church actually think that I have a happy life? And I'm like, how do we do that? How do we actually live that and not just say we're happy or say that we should be thankful for our life and all of these things that we should do. And I thought these were made for more. And many people don't feel like healing can really happen. And let me tell you, I'm going to tell you a secret that I've not told. This is because it's the Stephanie special and she listens so well, so I tell her all kinds of things that I don't think I'll say I love it. This is one of the most beautiful pieces, so take it as this gift that I am giving you as a listener.

Speaker 2: 25:27

Kieran was watching. Kieran is my second daughter, but she is adopted because her parents died tragically from a suicide, homicide. Listen to the other episode read the book. But now it's been six years since then. And other episode read the book. But now it's been six years since then. And she tells me we're like in a little prayer Bible study thing and she goes you want to know the weirdest thing?

Speaker 2: 25:45

I was watching the live action Cinderella and she loses her mother and I just thought, man, that must be so hard to lose a mother. And then she started laughing because she has lost a mother Tragically. We talk about it all the time. It's something that's very present in our household. But that forgetfulness that you can have so much healing that for a minute you go, I forgot I was adopted, I forgot all this happened. And it's not because it doesn't have weight, it doesn't mean like you've moved on, it doesn't mean that it doesn't still work in your life, but just to have these moments where you truly are so happy that you can watch a Disney movie about losing your mom and be like, huh, that must be hard, that is healing and many of us in our family have experienced that.

Speaker 2: 26:28

But I've talked to other people and they're like I'll never get over it, I will never heal from this, I will never not get up and cry? I will never. And I thought we almost plant ourselves in these prisons and, believe me, we still cry. We almost plant ourselves in these prisons and, believe me, we still cry. We have days that are hard, but to have days that are forgetful, that is healing, because you're like I, have so much freedom to be joyful and happy and feel what I need to feel and do what I need to do, and that's what I want for people.

Speaker 2: 26:54

And so this retreat was built with people, for people who have gone through pain and yet have such good, rich, beautiful lives that inspire me. And we are going to basically spill the tea. Everyone gets to hear our inside scoop in a really beautiful setting, with play and special surprises, with whimsy, with meaningful conversations, with lots of time to kind of digest it, to get away to breathe, and we get to dream bigger and breathe, refresh, flourish with each other, while connecting with people who come in with that same goal. It's going to be magical and I am so excited to see what comes from this group, because it's an intimate group, like you said, stephanie, and this place is such like. They do such a great job of serving and making everything so comfortable and you just feel so spoiled and so I'm like, who doesn't need to not make meals for like a weekend and have all these experiences? Yeah.

Speaker 1: 27:55

So I'll just throw in, because you know I guess I'm shallow. This way they have the best towels, really comfortable beds, but great food, great food, great healthy food.

Speaker 2: 28:12

Well, you know, there's all kinds of good things but really, you know, it's a short timeframe too, but they just do a really good job. Time bends, time bends there, time bends, that's what they say.

Speaker 1: 28:19

It's so amazing. It's only two nights, right? Yeah, it's only two nights, two nights, and it's beautiful End of April has to be beautiful.

Speaker 2: 28:28

There it's, in this beautiful valley outside San Diego. I think, too, it's really hard to invest in yourself, especially if you have a lot going on in your home or you're caretaking of anybody. But I think this is that investment in them, Because if you come home peaceful and joyful and with a new perspective like that is going to feed into every part of your life and your family is going to be like thank you so much for going. You know your husband's going to be like who are you?

Speaker 1: 28:51

But good job, yeah, my family likes to give me oh, I don't know three or four days to let the motivational workshop wear off, but that's because I'm a talker. They're like, oh no, mom's, come back from another one of those retreats. I'm busy, mom, I'll be back in a couple days. That's funny, it's beautiful, and what I love is that you created something. And so, yes, bob is there and Bob is speaking, but Jessie has something. And so, yes, bob is there and Bob is speaking, but Jesse has pulled together. Tell us about your other two speakers, brandon.

Speaker 2: 29:23

Janis, who is about my age and he is a widower. He has three kids but he's a serial entrepreneur, he has a publishing businesses, so he has his hand in all these busy worlds and yet he really talks about being present. He knows what it's like to suffer with someone who's had cancer and to find good and to talk about all of those things in it. And then we have Beth Marshall, who is so great because she brings the faith and the generosity and she has such a humble spirit. But she lost her mom tragically and she just talks about like how grief can just integrate into our days and she has a lot of practical advice about how we need to laugh, how we need to get mad, all of those things. She wrote a book on Crushed and Brandon Janis wrote a book called Just Do.

Speaker 2: 30:11

And then you know Bob Goff. He's written many books like Love Does, undistracted, and I think this combo, because some of them are so funny and their stories are just going to have you rolling. And then there's me. I'll probably make everyone cry, hopefully laugh too, because I'm just all over the place. But I mean this combo together and the way that we're working together, and then we have some musicians coming in that are just going to blow your mind, and then we have some really really fun surprises. So I mean like the whole thing has just been curated so beautifully. So many people have said yes to this with me.

Speaker 1: 30:46

So fabulous. Well, I just want to thank you so much. The great thing about this Imagine More grant thing is it gives me a front row seat to see people's dreams unfold. It's the best at my age. She's 20 years younger than me. She has all this energy. I so agree with everything she's doing. It just personally exhausts me, but I get to see the joy on her face in that she is not trying to build a career, she is trying to help people and I just know the retreat's going to be wonderful and it's probably the beginning of many of them. So the book again is we Wrote your Name in Color. You can get it on Amazon, of course. You can find more of her information about her retreat at jessiwildencom and I'll have it in the show notes too. But thank you so much. It's great to see you and we're looking forward to your next appearance on the Pivotal People podcast.

Speaker 2: 31:37

Thank you and Stephanie, thank you for being such a dream builder in my life. You remind me how important and fueling it is to tell these deep, beautiful dreams to someone and have them go. I want to be a part of that, by prayer or by a grant or by just say go you, so you are that for me, thank you.

Speaker 1: 31:55

Oh, thank you, I appreciate it and I love it. Talk to you soon.