Stories From Women Who Walk

Hello to you listening in Warsaw, Poland! Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Here on Whidbey Island and throughout all of the Great State of Washington we are ever-indebted to the First Nations peoples who lived on this land for thousands of years. Those of us who pay attention to their legacy are keenly aware of the wisdom of the First Nations people grounded in community, nature, reverence, and deep respect for all creatures of Creator. Their words resonate with power, collective action, and working for the greater good.Recently I came across a 25-year old Hopi prophecy which begs to be shared in the hope that this one ordinary person will summon other ordinary people - like filings to a magnet - and build an army of ordinary people actively taking charge, without fear, and committed to the responsibility we owe each other to unbalance the status quo so that we can co-create the dawn of a new world order rooted in kindness and compassion for all. “You have been telling people that this is the Eleventh Hour, now you must go back and tell the people that this is the Hour. And there are things to be considered…Where are you living?What are you doing?What are your relationships?Are you in right relation?Where is your water?Know your garden.It is time to speak your truth.Create your community.Be good to each other.And do not look outside yourself for your leader.Then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, “This could be a good time! Here is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are being torn apart and will suffer greatly. Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey come to a halt.The time of the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word ’struggle’ from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”NOTE: Prophesy shared by Maira Horta LMFT who in turn received it from Wendy Nickerson, Department Administrator for the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. You’re invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a nice shout out on your social media or podcast channel of choice, (including Android, Amazon Music, Audible & Pandora Radio) and join us next time! Remember to stop by the Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Services I offer, arrange a Discovery Call, and Opt In to stay current with Diane and Quarter Moon Story Arts as well as on LinkedIn and Substack as Wyzga on Words Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present: for credit & attribution Quarter Moon Story Arts

Hello to you listening all over the world, and especially Ukranians here and abroad. Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga. Feeling completely broken down after having witnessed the world-wide-televised brutality by our so-called leaders shamefully berating President Zelensky and, by extension Ukraine and its citizens, while the rest of them sat mute on the sidelines, I turned for a little comfort to a move I had been wanting to watch.The 2023 BBC movie, One Life, starring Anthony Hopkins, Helena-Bonham Carter and others brought me face-to-face with an ordinary person doing extraordinary things in a dark-as-hell time in 1938. Nicolas (Nicky) Winton, a British stockbroker orchestrated the escape of 669 Czeck Jewish children out of Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. But it wasn’t until 50 years later in 1988 when his wife discovered a scrapbook detailing the rescue of these children that his work came to light, and he was able to come to terms with the burden he carried of not being able to “do enough.”BONUS: You can read more about Sir Nicholas Winton and how rescuing 669 refugee children eventually gave 6,000 people their lives HEREBefore I leave you I want to read about Nicky’s legacy:“Nicky’s legacy is primarily the more than 6000 people now alive because of the Kindertransport rescue; however, his history demonstrates his conviction that living a good life involves more than just doing no harm. He believed strongly that a meaningful and ethical life involved reaching out to help others in need, whether in the local community or further afield. He felt that learning about history was only worthwhile if it led to positive action today and his legacy includes inspiring others to give their time to those in need.Encouraging the public to help save child refugees in 1939 in a letter to a newspaper, Nicky stated the following: “… there is a difference between passive goodness and active goodness which is, in my opinion, the giving of one’s time and energy in the alleviation of pain and suffering. It entails going out, finding and helping those in suffering and danger and not merely leading an exemplary life in the purely passive way of doing no wrong.”CTA: For those of you who are moved by his story, taking positive action to help others would be the finest way to honour him.You’re invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a nice shout out on your social media or podcast channel of choice, (including Android, Amazon Music, Audible & Pandora Radio) and join us next time! Remember to stop by the Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Services I offer, arrange a Discovery Call, and Opt In to stay current with Diane and Quarter Moon Story Arts as well as on LinkedIn and Substack as Wyzga on Words Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present: for credit & attribution Quarter Moon Story Arts

Hello to you listening in Perth, Australia!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga. Recently I read a blog post by my friend and colleague Leanne Gordon. Leanne's Drip by Drop blog posts are designed to be “A daily dose of thinking helping you to make change happen in your work and life.” Joy In The Making caught my ear. In brief the idea is that we often arrive at the end of something and wonder why it took us so long to get there. Or, we listen to others who chide us for taking so long. I remember a galpal who moved away a few years before I did. She said, “When you finally move you’ll wonder what took you so long.” Not!What we’re forgetting here is the process of our productivity. Making the journey gets us to the destination. As Leanne writes: “The meaning and joy is in the making.”Story Prompt: I imagine you are making something. What is the joy you are taking in the making? Write that story! Practical Tip: The magic of stories is also in the sharing. If you wish share your story with someone or something. All that matters is you have a story.You’re invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, follow, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time! Remember to stop by the website, check out the Services, arrange a Discovery Call, and Opt In to stay current with Diane and Quarter Moon Story Arts and on LinkedIn.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present: for credit & attribution Quarter Moon Story Arts

Hello to you listening in Union County, Ohio!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Oftentimes we’re stuck solving a problem because we just don’t know where to begin. I have an idea. 4 problem-solving words: Result + Reach + Resistance + Resources.Result: Start at the end of the story. What result do you want to get by solving this problem? What’s the goal here?Reach: What are you reaching for that solving this problem will get you? What’s beyond the problem?Resistance: How are you standing in your own way? What is holding you back from solving the problem? Resources: Start by being your own best resource. Then ask who and what other resources you can draw on to help you solve the problem. Practical Tip: When you start doubting yourself, remember how far you’ve come. Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won, and all the fears you have overcome. Now, put those 4 problem-solving words to use and solve what’s in front of you. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out What I Offer,✓ Arrange your free Story Start-up Session,✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Ukraine!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga. How do colds spread? They most often spread through droplets of fluid from an infected person sneezing or coughing. These droplets can enter your body through breathing them in or touching a contaminated surface then touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Colds are contagious.You know what else is contagious? Courage. The more we pay attention to those among us who resisting wrongful, unlawful actions at great personal cost and with great personal integrity, the more likely we and others will follow. It’s human nature to band together, to connect with others for protection, support, and belonging.Courage is contagious! We now are banding together in courage, becoming a force of resistence, opposition, hope, endurance, resilience, and persistence. Every time we choose courage and integrity over fear we make everyone around us a little better and the world a little braver, moment by moment. There are more of us than there are of them! We have more power than we know! Let’s continue to mobilize, get the facts, demand the truth, set an example, work together, and do it all over again in the morning! I’m with you!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Paris, France!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.As many of you know I’m engaged in a year-long course based on Stephen Levine’s well known book, A Year to Live. I think I have some 326 more days of discovering how to live this year as if it were my last. Ironically, it’s not a grim undertaking but one brimming over with life and gratitude. Much like Merrit Malloy shares in his poem entitled, Epitaph: Epitaph by Merrit Malloy (published 1985) “When I die Give what’s left of me away To children And old men that wait to die. And if you need to cry, Cry for your brother Walking the street beside you. And when you need me, Put your arms Around anyone And give them What you need to give to me. I want to leave you something, Something better Than words Or sounds. Look for me In the people I’ve known Or loved, And if you cannot give me away, At least let me live on in your eyes And not your mind. You can love me most By letting Hands touch hands, By letting bodies touch bodies, And by letting go Of children That need to be free. Love doesn’t die, People do. So, when all that’s left of me Is love, Give me away.”You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Hamburg, Germany!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga. We are living in a time of historic upheaval. But what if this currently confusing, chaotic, confounding, cultural churn is stumbling toward change that reveals the hidden roots of social injustice for what they are so that we can reconfigure for good?How easily the safeguards can be leaped. And they have been. We can clutch our pearls and bemoan the times we live in; or, we can invite our feelings of hopelessness to give way to action, to repair, restore, and renew out of the ashes of the old ways. We are responsible for making change because we’re the only “sentient force” that can.Question: What one small grand gesture are you committed to take on behalf of what you love and care for?These words from the Irish poet Seamus Heaney may motivate and sustain you wherever your feet touch the ground, whatever progress you are intent on making today. “History says, Don’t hopeOn this side of the grave...But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme.” [“The Cure at Troy” Seamus Heaney]BONUS: Seamus Heaney reads his poem, The Cure at TroyThe Cure at Troy (full text)"Human beings sufferThey torture one another,They get hurt and get hard.No poem or play or songCan fully right a wrongInflicted and endured. The innocent in gaolsBeat on their bars together.A hunger-striker’s fatherStands in the graveyard dumb.The police widow in veilsFaints at the funeral home. History says, Don’t hopeOn this side of the grave…But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise up,And hope and history rhyme. So hope for a great sea-changeOn the far side of revenge.Believe that a further shoreIs reachable from here.Believe in miraclesAnd cures and healing wells. Call miracle self-healing:The utter, self-revealingDouble-take of feeling.If there’s fire on the mountainOr lightning and stormAnd a god speaks from the sky That means someone is hearingThe outcry and the birth-cryOf new life at its term.It means once in a lifetimeThat justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme. [From "The Cure at Troy: A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes"] You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you Patrice (long-time follower and supporter) listening in Big Bear, California!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.“Happiness is pretty simple: someone to love, something to do, something to look forward to.” [Rita Mae Brown, Hiss of Death]Said another way, “The three grand essentials of happiness are: Something to do, someone to love, and something to hope for." [Alexander Chalmers, Scottish writer whose papers are held at the National Library of Scotland]Either way, it all comes down to the same thing, right? Do what WAKES you happy!You heard that right. If you WAKE happy with something to do, someone to love, and something just around the corner on its way to you, there will be relatively few problems, obstacles, and other situations that truly interfere with your growing sense of esteem and well-being.Story Prompt: Who are you and what WAKES you happy? Write that story! You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening all around the world!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga!The other day my dear friend Paul in Inver Grove, Minnesota asked me if I threw a dart at a map on the wall to come up with my listener location shout out. Absolutely not! My podcast is almost 5 years old. 4 years ago I started the practice of opening each daily 60 Seconds episode with a shout out: “Hello to you listening in ....” to recognize, acknowledge and thank my community of listeners. Each and every location represents listeners tuning in from where their feet touch the ground. How do I know? The Simplecast platform global map highlights the cities and towns; thousands of people around the world.Each shout out says “hello and thank you for listening!” even if we never meet. Also, each location also comes with its own hotlink in the Episode Notes so other curious listeners can explore the world. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Camano Island, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington, this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.Let’s be perfectly clear. Fascism is here.It feels like we are shoveling sand against an incoming tide. It feels like we have little plastic shovels while the other guys have earth movers.I get it.But this much I know about the tide: it does turn.We the people have to do the turning. Collectively, we have more control, power, community, voices, determination, resilience, and persistence than we think. Find one thing you can do and do it consistently. Commit to create, build, share, work, and help! “This is not the end.It is not even the beginning of the end.But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” [~ Winston Churchill]You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Lyons, Colorado!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Do these times feel dark? They should because they are.However, "In our darkest moments, we don't need solutions or advice. What we yearn for is simply human connection—a quiet presence, a gentle touch. These small gestures are the anchors that hold us steady when life feels like too much." [Ernest Hemingway]CTA: Don’t just stand there.... connect with somebody or maybe a bunch of somebodys! And then just be - together - until you have the strength to get back into the fray. But even then you won’t be alone.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Desert Hot Springs, California!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Recently a friend said that she was struggling because the job she had she didn’t want, the job she wanted she didn’t get, so she felt like a failure. Is there an alternative?What if we look objectively at the lost job opportunity as an experiment that didn’t produce the expected results. Does that mean it failed? Not if we look at it as a data point, information pointing you in a better direction. Jonas Salk (American virologist & inventor of the polio vaccine) once said, “There is no such thing as a failed experiment, because learning what doesn't work is a necessary step to learning what does.” Or, as the famous American jazz musician Louis Armstrong said, “It’s taken me all my life to learn what not to play.” Practical Tip: Think of a time when you believed you had failed but you figured out how to turn that experience into an opportunity and grow toward your better self. How did you do that? What will help you do it again and again? You will because you’ve got what it takes! You know how to experiment!You You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Torremolinos, Spain!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.It seems like only yesterday the holiday tune All I Want for Christmas was looping on play lists.Almost two months later I’ve decided what I want for Valentine’s Day. No, more than a day! This is how I want to live, to give my heart to the world, as in the compassionate words of the Nobel Prize winning Polish-American poet, Czeslaw Milosz: “Not that I want to be a god or a heroJust to change into a tree, grow for ages, not hurt anyone.”~ by Czeslaw Milosz Story Prompt: What about you? To what are you willing to give your heart this Valentine’s Day? Write that story!Bonus 1: who Milosz wasBonus 2: "Provinces" is one of the monumental splendors of poetry in our ageYou’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Fredricton, NB, Canada!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Maybe like me you have a robust imagination that works overtime to figure out all possible bridges that might be crossed in the future and how to cross them. The “what if” worries.And then I remember something mom used to say whenever I got to fretting about the not-yet-arrived tomorrow: “We will cross that bridge when we get to it.” Until tomorrow arrives there’s no way to know what we’ll be faced with and how to manage it.Meanwhile, our needless worrying sucks all the oxygen out of the joy, purpose, or wisdom of the present moment and piles on suffering like a bag of rocks on your back.Hear me when I say I recognize that these are mind-blowing times. We don’t know what’s what from one minute to the next.Practical Tip: Despite the current craziness we can practice loving kindness toward ourselves whenever our worries begin to run amuck. How? Repeat after me, “We will cross that bridge if and when we get to it.”You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Shrewsbury, UK!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.“It doesn’t matter how long you have forgotten, only how soon you remember.” (Buddha)We don’t often recall our memories with any reliable accuracy. But that’s okay. Sharing our stories is not about nailing down the facts of an event or the exact recall of circumstances. Rather, the point of stories is to take the splintered, fractioned, mismatched pieces of our lives and, by telling the stories we need to tell stitch together moments of wholeness.Over my storytelling decades I have to come to realize that I don’t need to translate or provide meaning for life events. When I speak my stories from the heart I begin to shift away from painful episodes to heal the suffering I’ve attached to what those episodes mean or meant. What happens next? By sharing my story maybe I help someone else heal. How do I know? I hear someone say: “What! You, too! I thought I was the only one.” C.S. LewisLike the Badger in Crow and Weasel by Barry Lopez reminds us: “The stories people tell have a way of taking care of them. If stories come to you, care for them. And learn to give them away where they are needed. Sometimes a person needs a story more than food to stay alive. That is why we put these stories in each other’s memory. This is how people care for themselves.”Question: What happens when you open the door to retelling a story that you’ve forgotten but now you remember? You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Berlin, Germany!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (& a bit more) for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.This lovely poem you’re about to hear was written in Portugese by Ricardo Gondim Rodrigues, a Brazilian theologian and progressive pastor. The English translation and title (“My Soul Has a Hat”) is often mis-attributed to Mário de Andrade (1893-1945), poet, novelist, essayist, and one of the founders of Brazilian modernism.Click HERE to read the backstory.Click HERE to read “My Soul Has a Hat” by Mário de Andrade Is Fake News for more information. Remember, not everything you find on the InterWeb is correct. Accuracy is everything!O Tempo que Foge (The Time That Runs Away)"I counted my years and realized that I have less time to live by, than I have lived so far. I feel like a child who won a pack of candies: at first, he ate them with pleasure but when he realized that there was little left, he began to taste them intensely.I have no time for endless meetings where the statutes, rules, procedures and internal regulations are discussed, knowing that nothing will be done.I no longer have the patience to stand absurd people who, despite their chronological age, have not grown up. My time is too short: I want the essence; my spirit is in a hurry. I do not have much candy in the package anymore.I want to live next to humans, very realistic people who know how to laugh at their mistakes and who are not inflated by their own triumphs and who take responsibility for their actions. In this way, human dignity is defended and we live in truth and honesty. It is the essentials that make life useful.I want to surround myself with people who know how to touch the hearts of those whom hard strokes of life have learned to grow with sweet touches of the soul.Yes, I’m in a hurry. I’m in a hurry to live with the intensity that only maturity can give. I do not intend to waste any of the remaining desserts. I am sure they will be exquisite, much more than those eaten so far.My goal is to reach the end satisfied and at peace with my loved ones and my conscience. We have two lives and the second begins when you realize you only have one."Question: Are you spending your time on the right things? Because time is all you have. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Helsinki, Finland!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.These days it takes more than the usual effort to stop trying to burst people into flames with my mind. What’s going on? What isn’t? The craziness is triggering our uncertainties, raising our blood pressure, interrupting our sleep, and worse.My dad used to say, Diane, Nie mój cyrk. Nie moje małpy. Not my circus - not my monkeys! Practical Tip: Do not sell your soul for peanuts to feed the monkeys at the circus. It’s not your circus. It’s not your monkeys. Instead, find a moment of beauty and shelter in that for now.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer ✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Curitiba, Brazil!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga. Here on our breathtakingly beautiful, semi-rural island accessible only by Deception Pass Bridge to the north or the ferry to the south we may tend to think we live in a Pacific Northwest bubble. But we don’t; ICE is here looking for people who “don’t belong.” I’m not talking criminals; I’m talking about people like us but who may be immigrants. It’s a tactic. If we can fear each other we will obey in advance. But I’m not about to obey out of fear.All people in the United States, regardless of immigration status, have certain rights and protections under the U.S. Constitution. For 45 years the Immigrant Legal Resource Center has worked to improve immigration law and policy, expand the capacity of legal service providers, and advance immigrant rights. Their mission is to work with and educate immigrants, community organizations, and the legal sector to continue to build a democratic society that values diversity and the rights of all people.The ILRC’s Red Cards help people of many nationalities know and assert their rights and defend themselves in situations, such as when ICE agents go to a home.Here on Whidbey Island and in communities across the country people are making Red Cards / Tarjetas Rojas available in their communities so that all of us, including immigrants know their rights.Click HERE to access information about ILRC, Red Cards available in 17 languages, and resources. And then do what you can to Spread the Red!Story Prompt: Each of us came from somewhere. How did it feel when someone included you? Write that story!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ Arrange your no-sales, Complimentary Coaching Consult ✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Ooltewah, Tennessee!Ooltewah Pronunciation GuideComing to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Maybe like me you look at the analytics, downloads, and likes; they’re not measuring up to what you would like. You ask yourself: What am I doing wrong? What am I missing? Why am I even bothering? What is the point of all this effort? Who really cares? I can tell you this about that. The other day at a very low moment I received a message from a woman I didn’t know who had listened to a 60 Seconds episode and wrote to thank me being a divine messenger who somehow knew what she needed to hear in that moment. She received a much-needed spiritual reflection. And I received a reason to persevere.My stories may not hold all the answers; nor are they intended to. This much I can say: we all struggle. Our struggles are strikingly similar even though we might think we are so very different. I’ve been down with struggles before and I’ll be there again. But I know the way out. Meanwhile, I’m here to offer what I can so that one way or another we will continue to find our way out.Practical Tip: Keep on! because someone is waiting for you and your good words. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer ✓ Arrange your no-sales, Complimentary Coaching Consult ✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening around the world!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey with your host Diane Wyzga.About a block from my library or a block from the post office sits a house on a corner. Propped against this house I saw a very large sheet of plywood. Spray-painted in large black letters were these words: Kill Lawyers - Not Cops. Putting aside any 1st Amendment right of free speech arguments or the notion that many folks don’t like lawyers until they need one, I have a question: When and how did we arrive at this place? When and how did we depart from human kindness, civility, and manners? I’ve often spoken to the man who lives in this house as I passed by on my walk, admired his sunflowers, commented on the weather. I plan to walk up to his door and say, “I am a lawyer. Are you going to kill me? Or do you wish someone would?” I want to hear how he arrived at his position. And then perhaps get him to put away his larger-than-life sign before some yahoo takes him up on the dare.Practical Tip: Be of speech a little more careful than anything else today, tomorrow, and forever. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ Arrange your no-sales, Complimentary Coaching Consult ✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.Music: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present: for credit & attribution Quarter Moon Story Arts

Hello to you listening in Istanbul, Turkey!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.In the last moments of his life the Buddha was lying on his deathbed surrounded by his closest monastics awaiting his final words. The Buddha opens his eyes and says, “Life is a river.” His words are passed from one monk to the next until they arrive at the most junior monk who asks, “Yes, but what does the Buddha mean, “life is a river”? The question makes its way back to the most senior monk who leans over the Buddha and asks, “But what do you mean, “life is a river”? The Buddha draws a final deep breath, shrugs his shoulders and says, “Alright already. So life is not a river.” What was the Buddha telling us about Life? What difference does it make? It doesn’t. What matters is you, how you are figuring out your life as you are living it.Question: What if you will never get Life completely figured out? How might you live your precious life - today - knowing it is inherently unknowable?You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ Arrange your no-sales, Complimentary Coaching Consult ✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Torrox, Spain!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.In 2022 my long time friend and colleague, Kate Griffiths (and 3 co-founders) launched Foundation of Colours, a trail-blazing organization exploring the profound impact of colour on human consciousness, health, and well-being. Having discovered her calling to colour Kate established the Foundation to give more people in the world access to the power of colour. In her words, “We are an innovative organisation exploring the transformative power of colour on human consciousness through cutting-edge research, consultancy, and experiential learning.The Foundation’s mission is to expand colour consciousness to create a more connected society. We’re pioneering ways to harness colour’s unique ability to enhance emotional, spiritual, and social intelligence – from individual growth to organisational transformation. We have seen how working with colour has shifted the energy of individuals, teams, and organisations to effect positive change. We want others to benefit from this little-understood solution. ” [Attribution: Interview by Dennis Pitocco, CEO/ReImaginator for 360° Nation; published on 01-22-25]Click HERE to read the interview in full, access Contact Links and watch 1-minute videos on YouTube (What is the Foundation of Colours) (Why the FoC and Why Now)But wait! There’s more! Kate is offering a Power of Colour Summit on March 21-23, 2025, 12:00 GMT / 7AM EST. March 21st coincides with International Colour Day. Click HERE to learn more about this free 3-day live virtual event and Register. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ Arrange your no-sales, Complimentary Coaching Consult ✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Dhaka, Bangladesh!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.As both lawyer and litigation consultant I’ve been faced with discerning the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. Welcome back for the Conclusion of our story [The Fire on the Mountain] about a rich man, a servant and a bet which came to mind after reading this line by Henrik Ibsen: “A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.” Story Prompt: When in your life have you struggled with the difference between the spirit of the law and the letter of the law? How did you resolve the struggle? Write that story! Practical Tip: The magic of stories is also in the sharing. If you wish share your story with someone or something. All that matters is you have a story.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer ✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Jaipur, India!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.As both lawyer and litigation consultant I’ve been faced with discerning the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. Welcome to Part 1 of a story [The Fire on the Mountain] I’ve often told about a rich man, a servant and a bet, a story which came to mind after reading this line by Henrik Ibsen: “A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.” We’ve come to the end of Part 1. Please join us tomorrow for the conclusion of the story and your very own Story Prompt!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer ✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Nairobi, Kenya!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.The old ones in China tell a story about an equally old painter who invited friends to his home to see his latest work.His friends gathered around to admire the artist’s painting which he had hung on a wall. The painting was a scene of a little park and a tiny footbridge crossing a stream that meandered through a forest that opened onto a meadow where stood a small cottage with an equally small door painted blue. Those gathered together turned around to tell the painter how much they admired his work but he was nowhere to be found. One of his friends said, "Look! There he is! In the painting!" He walked up the path that led to the door of the cottage, stopped, turned, smiled, and disappeared inside.Question: Imagine becoming so engrossed in your work that you end up disappearing into it in the same way. What do you imagine happens next? Become that!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello, to you listening in Post Falls, Idaho!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.What does it mean to be radical? Radical. It’s an ominous word, conveying danger, counter-culture, or even extreme behavior. But being radical can also mean speaking truth quietly with conviction, intention, and courage.Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde (another Jersey Girl!) fearlessly spoke truth to power in clear, concise, and compassionate words calling for mercy at an interfaith national prayer service at our National Cathedral. What was so important that the bishop would dare to directly address the president during her sermon, pleading for him to have “mercy on the people in the country who are scared,” notably, immigrants and members of the LGBTQ community. Hope! Hope was so important. Hope was the radical choice. Click HERE to listen to Bishop Budde’s radical choice of hope.“To be truly radical is to make hope possible, rather than despair convincing.” [Raymond Williams ~ Keywords] CTA: How might you join us in the Ranks of the Radicals to make hope possible? YouTube BONUS: Finding Courage in the Face of Injustice: A Call to ActYou’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Fairhope, Alabama!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.I’m delighted to share with you an invitation to join us livestream on Thriving Women Network TV for an episode of Uncomfortable Conversations. Now before you set your hair on fire and run screaming from the room, what if you could learn one thing about how to have an uncomfortable conversation with yourself. It might feel raw, real, or scary. Or, it could be the chance you’ve been looking for to understand something about who you are and what you want.We go live on Wednesday 29th January at 9:00AM PST / 12noon EST on www.e360tv.com OR tune in via Apple TV, YouTube, Roku, Amazon Fire, and Android TV.Excited to see you there and learn together! Click Thriving Women NetworkYou’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer ✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Hatboro, Pennsylvania!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.As my mom told it I refused to transition from toddler diapers to toddler big girl pull ups the traditional way. No matter how they enticed me I was not going to sit on the Little Human pot. I wanted up on the Big Human’s porcelain throne. Maybe my mother saw genius in my independence or maybe she was just harried with more babies coming along behind me every 18 months or so. She gave in. I did potty training my way.But sad to say “my way” was not as often as you would think. That little girl’s voice got shut down and at times, forsaken in the din of the other voices, voices of authority, duty, obligation, and responsibility.But here’s the thing. Her voice always was and still is her very own! Do you realize there is no other voice like yours? And never will be. Choose to use it.Story Prompt: Somewhere in the long ago is a story about how you decided to do it your way, with your voice. Write that story! Practical Tip: The magic of stories is also in the sharing. If you wish share your story with someone or something. All that matters is you have a story.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Forres, Scotland!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.The Scots word “smooring” is an old practice of subduing a fire with ash or peat to keep the embers warm overnight so they could be rekindled in the morning. Maybe like me something or someone has smoored your self-expression. Perhaps you were told that you were a handful, a free spirit, loudly curious, or just plain too much.After a time you conformed to what they wanted. You smoored your self-expression. You stopped sharing your feelings, ideas, curiosity, and thoughts. You became damped down, subdued, maybe even smothered. Does this sound familiar?In a nutshell, self-expression is freely sharing your feelings, thoughts, and ideas. There’s no limit on how to express yourself to better learn who you are, genuinely connect with others, feel free to live and love and work the way you want. The good news is that the embers of your self-expression are still there waiting to be rekindled into flame. Practical Tips:1. Start small by bringing something of yourself back into existence; it will grow.2. Ask yourself: How are you? How do you feel? How would you like to express yourself today?3. Use what you’re good at to begin to reignite the fire of your self-expression. 4. Remember that you are more than pain or fear or doubt. 5. Choose to say what you mean and mean what you say as the courageous act of a warrior. Starting now the question is not: who will let me; the question is who is going to stop me? Know that you can do this because you are smart, you are kind, and you are important. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Kilcock, County Kildare, Ireland!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.Recently I collaborated with the good folks at CanvasRebel Magazine to create an Inspiring Conversations feature article. If you’re curious about the Shit Creek Survivor Canoe Club, this article is for you!Highlights1. Our Voice Is Our Power2. Life Challenges and Lessons3. Let’s Talk Business4. Having a Competitive SpiritClick HERE to read the feature article live on CanvasRebel. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Puente de la Reina, Spain!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.The cover art for this podcast is my photo of my shadow in the early days of walking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. That’s me in the morning sun on the road to climbing up and over the Pyrenees Mountains from France into Spain. A pilgrim on the Camino de Santiago walks from East to West, sun behind, your shadow in front. No matter how you hard you try you cannot get ahead of your shadow. But still we try. We bring with us all the haste of the lives we say we left behind. In time we learn that until we harmonize our head, heart and feet we will keep trying the impossible, to outrun our shadow.What did I finally learn? Pilgrim, let go. You’re standing in your own way. Invite your shadow to lead you. Give yourself over to that singular purpose of walking and becoming that which you do.These days I’ve been so caught up in all of the distractions, doom-scrolling, and busyness of making a living that I’ve forgotten what it means to live. I’m startled to wake up to a deep sense of longing for my Pilgrim self. I’ve neglected giving myself over to being a walker - every single day - as far as I want to go. But, my Camino shadow remembers and it beckons me to follow, to become.Question: Who is your shadow beckoning you to be? You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening all around the world!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (and quite a bit more) for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.My choice for today’s episode is to use my voice as a political choice by bringing to you The Hill We Climb, a poem by Amanda Gorman, the nation's first-ever youth poet laureate, read during the inauguration of President Joe Biden on January 20, 2021.Read full text of The Hill We Climb HEREWatch Amanda Gorman read her poem at the 2021 Inauguration HEREWatch Amanda Gorman’s 2018 TED Talk "Using Your Voice Is a Political Choice" HERE In this fierce talk and performance from TED-Ed Weekend, she explains why poetry is inherently political, pays homage to her honorary ancestors and stresses the value of speaking out despite your fears. "Poetry has never been the language of barriers," Gorman says. "It's always been the language of bridges."Access Poetry in America - Student Lesson and Teacher Materials HERE Watch James Corden's interview with Amanda Gorman on Jan 21, 2021 HERE Check out Amanda Gorman's book "Something, Someday" HERE You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Asheboro, North Carolina!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Maybe like me you’ve dreamt of your life changing. You want this or that or the other thing to be different. Maybe even a clean slate. Start all over again. New place, new job, new partner.But what if nothing changes. Nothing except the way you act. What if you looked at all the miracles and mistakes of your life and decided that - for right now - you would begin to practice living as if what you wanted to change had changed.Story Prompt: Imagine this: nothing in your Life changed as you wished it to, but you acted as if it had changed. What happened next? Write that story!Practical Tip: The magic of stories is also in the sharing. If you wish share your story with someone or something. All that matters is you have a story.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now on Pandora Radio!Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Seal Beach, California!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga. I remember hearing about a woman who sat down at the bar in a pub, placed her order, turned to the person sitting next to her and said, “Hello.” When he turned to her she asked: "What is something you are really satisfied about?" Why does that story stand out in my mind? Because everything in our personal and professional lives rests on our willingness to connect and engage as well as our ability to communicate.Nothing communicates better than your heartfelt story artfully told in your own voice designed to connect, engage and influence your audience. When you have your origin/personal brand story well in hand you can:Declare what you do, how you do it, for whom, and the benefit of your product or service;Give your elevator pitch in a clear, concise, and confident manner;Invite your clients to feel the way you do about your business;Clarify your ideas and amplify your message to the audience who needs to hear it; and Simplify the process so you stand out from the noise.This calls for a Story Architect. Let’s have a 20-minute, no pressure, no sales, no obligation Discovery Chat. Email me at [email protected] OR DM me on LinkedIn and let me know how I can help.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as Wyzga on Words on Substack, and now on Pandora Radio!Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening on Orcas Island, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.I volunteer as a story docent at Admiralty Head Lighthouse. Sailing in from the Pacific Ocean through the treacherous Strait of San Juan de Fuca ship captains would look for the blazing lighthouse beacon 127 feet above Admiralty Inlet warning them to steer a hard right to starboard, avoid the cliffs, and continue safely south to Puget Sound and on into Seattle, Washington. How did the captain know he was seeing Admiralty Head Lighthouse? Each lighthouse - no matter where in the world - has its very own distinctive light pattern, or signature. Like your fingerprints. Lighthouses mark points of navigation, warn about dangerous coastlines, and guide boats into safe harbor.But no one harbor serves all boats. Different boats - different harbors. Lighthouses don’t chase boats; why do you chase clients?Ask yourself: What is it only you have to offer? Who needs it and wants it? How will you attract your particular client with your own distinctive beacon of light? And, how will they know you are signaling them? Once you have your answers, you will be well on your way to business success. Guaranteed!CTA: If you’re looking for someone to help navigate you and your message, contact me on LinkedIn or Quarter Moon Story Arts for a no-sales, complimentary consult. You’re invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, follow, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time! Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now on Pandora Radio! Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present: for credit & attribution Quarter Moon Story Arts

Hello to you listening in Glossop, Derbyshire, England!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga. Tuesdays are a respite for me. A chance to contemplate for a moment the beauty of a world that might seem to have turned its back on all things beauty-full. I seek out poetry - some I understand - some I ponder as a wander, as with this poem by Czeslaw Milosz entitled “Love”: Love“Love means to learn to look at yourselfThe way one looks at distant thingsFor you are only one thing among many.And whoever sees that way heals his heart,Without knowing it, from various ills—A bird and a tree say to him: Friend.Then he wants to use himself and thingsSo that they stand in the glow of ripeness.It doesn’t matter whether he knows what he serves:Who serves best doesn’t always understand.” It is no wonder this Nobel Prize-winning poet also wrote these lines:“Not that I want to be a god or a heroJust to change into a tree,Grow for ages, not hurt anyone.” [Czeslaw Milosz] Question: Who are you aspiring to be, to change into? You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out What I Offer,✓ Arrange your free Story Start-up Session,✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as Wyzga on Words on Substack, and now on Pandora Radio!Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Hercules, California!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Recently I had the opportunity to share the mic with my friend and colleague Dr. Keith McNally on his popular podcast, The Question Guy! One Story at a Time. During our value-packed 30 minutes Keith and I shared stories about: Resilience,Falling down 7 - Getting up 8,Faith, Family, Friends, and Surviving to Thrive; andForging a New Path.Click HERE to Access the YouTube link. CTA: Tune in when you can. You'll enjoy the listening. And while you’re there make sure to like, comment with nice words and subscribe!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out What I Offer,✓ Arrange your free Story Start-up Session,✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as Wyzga on Words on Substack AND now on Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Post Falls, Idaho!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (and a bit more) for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Maybe it’s true and maybe it isn’t but once there was a soldier walking home from the war. He had been walking many days, sleeping rough, eating little, and was very hungry. He stumbled into a small village that looked worse than he felt but surely, he thought, someone could spare a bite to eat. He knocked at the first door he came to but the woman who answered his knock said ......How we treat each other, help each other, brings people together, makes food taste better, makes life better. Going into the coming days we will need each other like never before. We will need to feed each other with stone soups and nourishing stories.Story Prompt: Think of a time when you were nourished by someone or something that felt as magical as ..... stone soup! Write that story! You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Verbier, Switzerland!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga. Maybe like me you keep pursuing your angels for a guide to important work. I want to do important work; but what is important work?A story by Kai Skye of Flying Edna shows me important work is more than what I thought it is. I’d like to share an Everyday Angels words with you."I want to do important work, I said ...... Tap this LINK to purchase a copy of the Everyday Angels art and story created by Kai Skye of Flying Edna. You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Ferndale, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.Earlier in life I had tendencies toward behaving like a spring-butt. You know the type. The over-eager know-it-all with her hand in the air. Teacher! Teacher! I know! I know! Think Hermione Granger in the early years of Harry Potter. Over time I learned to take to heart what my mother always said: “Just because you thought of something, Diane, doesn’t mean you have to say it.” I can still hear her voice as mom continues to pull me back from “I know! I know!” Practical Tip: Prompted by Jim Burke in a recent BizCatalyst 360 Friendship Bench discussion, I offer 3 questions that might have the same effect on you that mom’s voice has on me:Does it need to be said?Does it need to be said now?Does it need to be said by me? To be continued because ..... I still have learning and practice to do.....You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in St. Paul, Minnesota!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories from Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (and a bit more) for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.While I don’t go for Begin Anew resolutions I’ve found that I can do pretty well with a factory reset. Those who have been following me for some years now have heard me seeking the genuine in life, women having a voice in the world, letting go of the unnecessary, and making room for what nourishes in these finite days of a human life.What’s my factory re-set for 2025? Advice to Myself by Louise Erdrich whose writing and wisdom I have coveted since reading Love Medicine in 1984. Perhaps her poem will reset something wild and unexpected in you. Advice to MyselfLeave the dishes. Let the celery rot in the bottom drawer of the refrigeratorand an earthen scum harden on the kitchen floor.Leave the black crumbs in the bottom of the toaster.Throw the cracked bowl out and don't patch the cup.Don't patch anything. Don't mend. Buy safety pins.Don't even sew on a button.Let the wind have its way, then the earththat invades as dust and then the deadfoaming up in gray rolls underneath the couch.Talk to them. Tell them they are welcome.Don't keep all the pieces of the puzzlesor the doll's tiny shoes in pairs, don't worrywho uses whose toothbrush or if anythingmatches, at all.Except one word to another. Or a thought.Pursue the authentic—decide firstwhat is authentic,then go after it with all your heart.Your heart, that placeyou don't even think of cleaning out.That closet stuffed with savage mementos.Don't sort the paper clips from screws from saved baby teethor worry if we're all eating cereal for dinneragain. Don't answer the telephone, ever,or weep over anything at all that breaks.Pink molds will grow within those sealed cartonsin the refrigerator. Accept new forms of lifeand talk to the deadwho drift in through the screened windows, who collectpatiently on the tops of food jars and books.Recycle the mail, don't read it, don't read anythingexcept what destroysthe insulation between yourself and your experienceor what pulls down or what strikes at or what shattersthis ruse you call necessity.""Advice to Myself" by Louise Erdrich from Original Fire. © Harper Collins Publishers, 2003. PDF in Library of CongressYou’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Lutz, Florida! (City tour on YouTube)Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Today we’re celebrating Epiphany - a time of revelations - and what I’d like to reveal to you is the launch of a wonderful new book by my friends and fellow Camino travelers, Dennis and Ali Pitocco. Their book “Rites of Passage: Through the Landscape of Our Souls” is NOW ON AMAZON.For those who are curious about walking a Camino you will learn that while you can prepare for a pilgrimage it is only by walking one that you let go of what no longer works for you and become who you were sent here to be.The detailed essay posted by Dennis J. Pitocco on January 1, 2025 reveals what you can expect from their Camino journey of 40 days, 500 miles and 1,300,000 steps: walking, talking, laughing, crying, praying, and witnessing. You can read his essay in its entirety in the Episode Notes where you will also find a link to purchase your own copy of Rites of Passage on Amazon, with proceeds going to American Pilgrims on the Camino. ESSAY Forty days. Five hundred miles. One million, three hundred thousand footsteps echoing across ancient stones. We emerged transformed, our spirits awakened to life’s true purpose. The path became a mirror, reflecting our authentic selves and our place in the vast tapestry of existence. In the end, we realized that the Camino wasn’t just a journey across Spain, but a pilgrimage through the landscapes of our souls.We walked through dawn mists that cloaked the Pyrenees in ethereal light, through sun-drenched Spanish mesetas where shadows stretched like memories across endless golden fields, and through ancient forests where pilgrims’ footsteps had worn smooth paths in the earth for a thousand years before us.We talked with strangers who became family, sharing stories in broken Spanish and perfect smiles, with ourselves in those long stretches of solitude where the mind finally quiets enough to hear the whispers of the heart, with the ghosts of pilgrims past, their presence palpable in the worn stones of medieval bridges and the cool shadows of Romanesque churches.We laughed at blisters that mapped our journey across tender feet, at the absurdity of carrying our lives in backpacks, at the joy of simple pleasures – a cold fountain on a hot day, a warm bed after miles of rain, the taste of rustic bread shared with fellow travelers in the fading light of day.We cried for the weight of burdens finally laid down, for lost companions who never made it to Santiago, and for all those whose journeys ended too soon, leaving behind empty beds in albergues and half-finished stories in our hearts.We prayed not always with words, but with footsteps, with breath, with the rhythm of walking poles against ancient stone. Prayer became as natural as breathing – in the silence of pre-dawn departures, in the golden light of cathedral windows, in the simple act of placing one foot before another, again and again and again.We witnessed nature’s symphony – the wind through wheat fields conducting an orchestra of rustling leaves, the percussion of raindrops on stone walls, the soprano calls of unseen birds, and yes, that rare and precious gift: the absolute silence that exists only in places where the modern world hasn’t yet laid claim.Our story is not merely a travelogue of our journey from the French Pyrenees to the fields of Galicia, but of a transformation. Our memories, like the path itself, wind and weave, double back and leap forward, and we honor this fluidity by allowing our story to seamlessly flow between what happened and what might have happened, between what we saw with our eyes and what we knew with our hearts."The true Camino de Santiago begins when you finish it."We invite you now to shoulder your own pack, to step onto this ancient path with us. Come walk the Camino de Santiago through our eyes, our hearts, our transforming souls. Let us be your companions as you discover, as we did, that every pilgrimage is both universal and uniquely personal, that every step takes you both forward and inward, and that the real distance covered is not measured in miles but in epiphanies.CLICK HERE TO GRAB YOUR COPY OF “RITES OF PASSAGE” ON AMAZONThis is our story, but it could be yours. The path awaits.Author’s note: All proceeds from Book sales (net of actual publishing costs) will be donated to American Pilgrims on the Camino, a Charity Navigator 4-star-rated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster the enduring tradition of the Camino by supporting its infrastructure, by gathering pilgrims together, and by providing information and encouragement to past and future pilgrims.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Mea

Hello to you listening in Port Talbot, Wales!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.The old year has turned and the new one is barely awake. We’re standing on the portal of Begin Anew balanced between what was and what will be. To give yourself a bit of direction for the unwritten future use this 3-part template to celebrate the challenges you have overcome, the doubts you have erased, and the fears you have undone. Three phrases and you fill in the blanks, like so: If you had told me 20 years ago that I would [fill in the blank]I might have [fill in the blank]but instead if you could see me now I’m [fill in the blank].Here’s mine: If you had told me 20 years ago that I would walk 500 miles across Spain estoy solo on pilgrimage I might have shaken my head in disbelief at such a ridiculous notion but instead if you could see me now I’m set free deserving of what I have loved all along. Story Prompt: Now you. Write that story!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Doha, Qatar!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Imagine this: you have an image of an idea but don't know how to translate that into words or action.With over 40 years of public speaking as a storyteller, educator, attorney, and keynoter I’ve learned how to listen the story out of you so that you develop your story message in your own voice, in your own words, in your own way.Truth whispers; everything else shouts. Your voice may sound like a whisper; but it is our truth we are often struggling to express. It’s time to get out from under the burden of not being heard, understood or listened to.My clients have discovered how to share their values, purpose and vision confidently, decisively, standing in the power of their own words.I can help you craft the stories for the future you want to create so that you empower those around you to unbalance the status quo, shift attitudes, behaviors, cultures on a deeply human, engaged level.CTA: Curious? Let’s have a no-obligation conversation. E-mail me to get your 2025 off to a storied start!You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening on this first day of the future 2025! What will come will come; let’s prepare to greet it “heads high and hearts open.” [PlutoLiving] Perhaps you are feeling apprehensive, open, poised for the race ahead, curious, or, even a little stranded as 2025 makes its way toward you. I have a suggestion because what you’re looking for is looking for you:Lost"Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside youAre not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,Must ask permission to know it and be known.The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,I have made this place around you.If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.No two trees are the same to Raven.No two branches are the same to Wren.If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knowsWhere you are. You must let it find you." [David Wagoner]From Traveling Light: Collected and New Poems. Copyright 1999 by David Wagoner. Used with permission of the University of Illinois Press.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Svendborg, Sweden!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Time Out Tuesday and your host, Diane Wyzga.After almost 5 years and over 1,250 podcast episodes on the airwaves what have I learned in another year’s worth of podcasting? This much I know: I write to be heard. I believe in the music of the spoken word and the power of the human voice to connect. For those of you around the world in our global community you know I’ve been living my life out loud. I’ve been working out the deeper parts of my life story in public to become the best voice of myself I can be. I believe I’m called to use my voice to inform, heal, delight, illuminate, provoke, and push back on injustice, and ignorance. Why? Because if I live on a superficial level I live shallow and out of reach of the gold coins in the deep well of my life. My podcast episodes call me to write myself into being a better person; but I don’t do it alone. I rely on you. I rely on faith, family, friends, and books. To me books are the bread of life. They help fill in the gaps of what I don’t know or have yet to imagine. Someone said that writers are beggars who tell other beggars where we found bread. My episodes are a means of breaking bread with you, sharing it in the hope that you will wave to me and say, “What! You, too! I thought I was the only one.” [C.S.Lewis]Question: What have you learned in another year’s worth of the work you offer to the world?You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Cairo, Eqypt!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.“What if we could accept periods of rest? “Being” is as essential as “doing”. Enjoy life in its different phases, in its changing colours and moods. Watch the perfect pattern unfold and develop.It is not what you say that matters. It is what you are and how you live. Accept these periods of rest. Your inner guidance will make it clear when it is necessary for you to go into action.” [Findhorn Foundation]Question: What one small gift might you give to your own good self to accept a period of rest for now?Tune in to hear our Chorus Tree Frogs, the state frog of the Great State of Washington: You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn and now Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Mobile, Alabama!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga Once in a land far away there was a farmer. His most treasured possession was a fine stallion. Oh, said the neighbors: what good fortune! Perhaps, said the farmer.One night the stallion ran off in a storm. Oh no, said the neighbors, what a disaster. Perhaps, said the farmer........For more, tune in to listen - this could happen to you. Story Prompt: When have disaster and good fortune met up to turn your world around and how did you choose which would win out? Write that story! You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now on Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Casablanca, Morocco!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Thoughts on Thursday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Recently, one of my global listeners wrote say “Thank You” for continuing to produce this podcast. I’m sharing this unexpected delight with you to say “Thank you!” from down here on the knees of my heart for our community going and growing around the world! This is what she wrote:“Thank You! for so consistently generating healing, illuminating, provocative, meaningful, and inspiring content. Thank You! for creating a global community of listeners who are encouraged to actively share hopeful, life-affirming stories, puzzling stories, difficult stories, all the while believing in the possibility of life going on with grace and humor despite these times of chaos and discord. Thank You! for your words and voice to soothe our souls, like a lighthouse that beckons us to safe harbor.”Practical Tip: Take a moment to share a Thank You! today with someone on your life who steadfastly listens, supports, encourages, delights, inspires and gives you very good reason to keep on going.You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now on Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening where your feet touch the ground! Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey Christmas Day and your host, Diane Wyzga. Years ago I learned to tell this story by heart because it became extra special to me when I was dating a fellow named Alan who took me on a cross-country skiing weekend at the Garnet Hill Lodge in upstate New York. Since then not a Christmas goes by that I don’t get to tell it in domestic abuse shelters, libraries, family gatherings, anywhere that story is welcome. So settle in all comfy and listen.From my home here on Whidbey Island to you where your feet touch the ground I wish you and yours a time to celebrate our hearts growing three sizes this day! Let us be of Love a little more careful than anything else this Season! You’re always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, LinkedIn, and now on Pandora RadioStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.