Synchronicity & Flow

Ever have an idea for something you want to do, something you really want to do… but the timing just isn’t right? Maybe it’s a trip you want to take, a new business endeavor, a fitness regime… that’s the story of Sage Against the Machine podcast. Sandy and I had been talking about doing this for four or five years. The pandemic and the tumultuous state of American politics, along with the ominous advance of the climate crisis left both of us feeling like we needed to do some hope-hunting. And as women who have reached grandmother status, the word sage has gained an ever deeper, more authentic meaning: a wise elder. Our intention had met the moment. We had reached the season of our lives to launch!

 

Surveying the field, we began to assemble the collaborative team of creatives, friends and family members we needed to conceive, produce and release Sage. We reached out to soul brother and soul artist Jon Marro to help with our podcast cover art and spirit-animal-surf-goddess graphic designer Marisol Godinez to design our logo and merch. Our friend and mermaid for life Mariah Stockman had just launched her podcast Made for Mothers and recommended  badass working mama podcast manager Emily Gonzalez whose guidance and editing we would be utterly lost without.  My husband Rob and daughter Kassandra jumped in on equipment recommendations and physical production. Kass has a film degree and invaluable production experience and Rob is a pretty cute sound guy. And when we needed a website, my partner in all things Tedx, UCSC lecturer and artist Nada Miljkovich, suggested working with Get Virtual, a wonderful collaboration between United Services Agency and UC Santa Cruz’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development. GetVirtual enables college students to give back to their communities by supporting small businesses all while they gain valuable experience. We worked with an incredible team of astonishingly capable and talented students including Iman Yael Schaefer, Kaya Nagasaki Schubert, Aidan Callahan, Susan Hong and Emily Baer from the Get Virtual UCSC and Santa Clara University Chapters. A funny thing happened on the way to a website: I got an infusion of hope for the future rooted in their youth, enthusiasm, expertise and joy– and they got a mentor for life. And all along, friends and family members weighed in and supported the crazy hours we worked with this extended band of merry, hopeful, creative pranksters to move this project from intention to fruition. There is a synchronicity to projects that are aligned with our values and intentions… In retrospect, all of the decisions we make and people we meet suddenly seem far less coincidental when it all comes together in flow. One thing is certain: we couldn’t do it alone. And we didn’t. So here’s to all of you glorious people who said yes and helped us drive this passion project on a nearly impossible timeline- thank you all so very much!

 

~Irene