525. Vicki Woodyard

Vicki Woodyard is a spiritual writer living in Atlanta, Georgia. Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, she graduated from The University of Memphis, magna cum laude, with a B.S. in English and Psychology. She is a meditator, a webmaster and has a lifelong interest in the spiritual path. Her late husband, Bob, died of multiple myeloma in 2004 and they lost their only daughter to cancer when she was seven. This equips Vicki to write about her path in an honest and humble way, opening the reader’s own heart to what is worth living for. The light of her path is tinged with humor as she lays down the bottom line and invites you to consider what YOU are living for. Awakening is but a dream until you sink into the heart. When you are caught in the dream, it just means you have temporarily forgotten. Vicki’s writing, as Elsa Joy Bailey says, "serves as a bookmark to help you find your place again. The website is a way into what is. Vicki’s writing catches one off-guard, waking people up to their mortality and infinite being at the same time..." She is the author of: Paperbacks: LIFE WITH A HOLE IN IT: That's How the Light Gets In - The Wisdom of an Awakened Heart BIGGER THAN THE SKY: A Radical Awakening eBooks - All of Vicki's books are available in eBook form on her website: You can find out more about Vicki at her website or friend her on Facebook. Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Summary and transcript of this interview Interview recorded November 16, 2019. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump with Vicki Woodward 00:05:26 - Suffering and Spiritual Awakening 00:11:04 - My Introduction to His Teachings 00:15:03 - The Short-Term vs. Long-Term Perspective 00:18:45 - The Bus Stop and Digging Deep Wells 00:22:38 - Finding Balance Between Extremes 00:25:56 - Capturing Wisdom in Short Sutras 00:29:35 - Gathering Energy 00:32:59 - The Journey to Wholeness and Simplicity 00:36:28 - True Resting and Putting to Rest 00:39:35 - The Gentleman Teacher 00:42:47 - Cracking Open the Ego and Humility 00:46:15 - Dreams and Destiny 00:49:43 - Meeting the Hawaiian Guru 00:52:59 - Synchronicities with John Ramsey 00:55:47 - Synchronicities and Spiritual Coherence 00:59:05 - The Experience of Self 01:02:18 - Finding Humor in Tragic Times 01:05:49 - Being Conscious in Daily Tasks 01:09:28 - Suffering and Consciousness 01:13:16 - Overcoming Agoraphobia and Social Anxiety 01:16:47 - A "What Me Worry" Approach 01:19:48 - Manifesting Grace through Leaps of Faith 01:23:09 - The Grace of Christmas Dinner 01:26:53 - The Phoenix Rises from the Ashes 01:30:35 - The Intensity of Spiritual Practice 01:34:26 - The Power of Consciousness and Grace 01:37:42 - The Journey of an Ordinary Spiritually Awakening Person 01:41:27 - Finding Wholeness in Life 01:44:56 - The Art of Going Deep 01:47:39 - Closing Remarks