Morgan Bolender and I first met at Grace Cathedral, after Danielle LaPorte’s book tour for White Hot Truth. Morgan had opened for Danielle, and I was blown away by her song, Mary Oliver. I stopped by where she was selling CDs and asked if she did podcast interviews (something I never do) and she said yes. After a couple of emails back and forth while Morgan was on a nation wide house concert tour, we found a time to speak. She joins me today to share about discovering the sound of your soul.
Morgan is pretty amazing, and that’s putting it lightly. After graduating college, she moved to Kona to be a 3rd grade special education teacher. But that didn’t light her up, and she found herself, as many of us find ourselves, stuck in that place where you know you can “keep going in social prestige with something that ‘sounds good’ while doing something on the side that felt like a devotion to my heart’s truth” but she quickly realized that she couldn’t do that, because it would never feel fully in integrity. As she tells me, she “can’t be anything BUT my heart’s truth.”
She shares the story of how she left teaching, and you need to listen because it is truly filled with magic and discovery. Wayne Dyer often talks about how when you are living in intention, you will find the right people, the right things, fall into place and that is exactly what happened for Morgan when she began her journey to find her heart’s truth.
What I love so much about our discussion is that Morgan is someone who is deeply curious. She follows her gut to things, even when they are scary or painful, and she does so in the earnest name of growth. She started out her journey being truly afraid to sing, but realized that singing was her gift and her calling, and followed it. It takes a lot of strength to do the things that scare us, and those fears often stop us before we can get to the heart of our own truths. Morgan pushed beyond that.
I love that she shares about her song, Mary Oliver, as well. It’s a song about her own journey, and it’s a journey so many of us can relate to. We get started out on a path that we are praised for, one that might feel like the right thing to do. And then somewhere along the way we wake up and realize that it feels constricting and wrong and there’s something else that calls our name.
The sound of our soul is near to the heart of joy. I’m so grateful that Morgan has followed her heart and put her voice out there for all of us to hear.
In this episode, Morgan and I talk about:
– How she was introspective and oddly serious as a child, with solitude bringing her joy
– Her song writing process with partner Scott
– Her journey from being a teacher to becoming a singer and song writer that started with her saying “Take me where I need to go”
– Living on an organic farm and hearing her own voice singing for the very first time
– Following your fears and growing
– Discovering the sound of your soul with Morgan Bolender
– How she pitched Danielle LaPorte and all about her singing in Grace Cathedral
– Her blog, The Unraveling
– What resistance has looked like for her: trying her very hardest in her creative pursuits, and breaking down the BS that comes with being self taught (and feeling like that is a badge of honor)
– What brings her joy: little joys, hugs, and setting intentional time
Resources for this episode:
Morgan Bolender’s Website
Morgan Bolender’s music
Morgan on Facebook
Morgan on Instagram
Mary Oliver on YouTube
Other episodes you might enjoy:
Danny Wood of New Kids on the Block on Jump Start Your Joy
Rachael Maddox on the Block on Jump Start Your Joy
Earl J. Rivard on the Block on Jump Start Your Joy
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