The Intersection of Zen, Motherhood, and Self-Discovery with Elena Brower

03/10/24 • 60 min

Derik Mills interviews longtime friend and colleague Elena Brower about writing poetry, teaching yoga, friendship, and podcasting. They discuss Elena’s debut collection of poetry, Softening Time: Collected Poems.

Elena shares an inspiring encounter she had a Glo student who had taken classes with her online. Derik and Elena also turn the conversation inward, discussing the therapeutic journey from poetry to prose as Elena shares about her book of poems and her upcoming book.

In a previous episode of The Glo Podcast, Elena took over the microphone to guest host. Her guest was Jeff Rosenthal, co-author of Make No Small Plans: Lessons on Thinking Big, Chasing Dreams, and Building Community. Listen to her episode, Community is a Powerful Human Technology, featuring Elena Brower and Jeff Rosenthal.

Closing the chapter on this heartfelt conversation, Derik and Elena speak about dreams, the practice of Buddhism, and how to persist in creative endeavors. Both share about their insights drawn from the lectures of professor Douglas Brooks. (A number of Dr. Brooks’s are available on The Glo Podcast as episodes.)

Elena recommends a few books as well. Find them on her Bookshop.org page, where she offers reading recommendations on poetry, Zen Buddhism, perceptive parenting, on death and dying, art and writing, inspiration for daily living, leadership, yoga, mental health, and essential oils.

Key Takeaways for this Episode

(0:00:01) - a journey of friendship and business

(0:06:32) - the impact of curiosity

(0:16:36) - exploring personal growth and healing

(0:34:38) - exploring dreams and Buddhism

(0:46:41) - the art of practice and compassion

(1:00:58) - book recommendations from Elena