175 | Transcending Seasons (Season 4 Finale)
December 7, 2023
Welcome back!
Minute of Transparency: Put Up or Shut Up
Today's Topic: Transcending Seasons (Season 4 Finale)
A look back
A look around
A look ahead
// CHAPTER 1: A LOOK BACK
Can you believe we've been at this thing for 4 years?
Since January 2020. 175 episodes. That just blows my mind...
But I thought it might be fun to reminisce about the podcast - where it came from and where we've been.
Some of you have been around since the beginning - so this will be a recap.
But for those of you who have joined along the way - this might be your first time hearing it.
I'll start by saying - I never saw myself doing a podcast.
Mostly because I consider myself a writer. Not by trade - as I'm currently working in the tech industry. And not in the sense that you could go into a Barnes & Noble and purchase one of my books - because I'm not published.
But still - I fancy myself a writer - because I write.
There are things you forget about your past. Tammy and I were just talking about this last night.
How there were people you hung out with, things that you did, places you went.
Our brains take many of those memories and lock them away in a dusty old garage for safe keeping.
The problem is - the old phrase out of sight - out of mind come into play.
The memories are there - but we don't remember them. We can't think back and have them immediately come to mind.
In order to remember them you either have to think really hard - trying to focus on a specific time in your life using other reference points to unearth them.
Or someone, or something has to jog your memory in order for that memory to come flooding back.
At that point it just shows up - bright and clear. Like it was there the whole time.
I love the way memories are visualized in the Harry Potter series.
The movies make it very clear that memories can be forgotten.
People often removed memories with magic and placed them in vials for safe keeping. They could be catalogued and viewed later by that person - or even by other people using a device called a Pensieve.
Toward the end of the series - Professor Snape is injured and about to succumb to his wounds. But just before he does - he forces out a few tears - which Harry is able to capture in a vial. Later - he views Snape's memories by placing the tears into the Pensieve.
If you've never watched the Harry Potter series - this makes no sense.
But the visualization is so true to our life experience. How memories come and go and at times seemed locked behind a door we just can't open.
All that to say - that's the way writing was for me.
I knew it was something I loved to do - I felt it in my bones - but couldn't really explain why.
I didn't go to school for it. And I couldn't recall spending a great deal of time doing it.
But I still felt like it was part of me - something I was meant to do.
I did a fair amount of writing in college, then a whole lot more in grad school. But this was all academic stuff. Papers on sociological concepts, and clinical practice.
Then - in 2001 - while working in the mental health field - I wrote about my growing frustration with the field - and that became a complete manuscript called Controversy Theory. It was my way of working through two sides of myself. Christianity (or Spirituality) and Psychology or Clinical Practice. Two things I was taught to keep separated. And yet in my career as a clinician I couldn't help but see that one without the other always fell short.
And it was in the process of writing this book that I started recalling memories - memories of me writing in high school.
I was able to picture myself sitting in my dorm room visualizing characters and settings - then writing them down. I recalled short stories, simple scenes and even poetry.
So I started looking for tangible proof. I went through old boxes in storage - and sure enough - I found old notebooks and loose leaf paper with evidence that I had created those things. And in doing so - something clicked. Holding a physical piece of paper with my own writing on it made it real. Solidified it in some way for me.
I'm a writer. I don't care what other people say - I'm a writer.
And that's the way I was feeling in 2011 when I had my first Big Idea.
I'm assuming it's the way:
J.K Rowling felt when she saw Harry Potter in her mind's eye for the first time
Or the way J.R.R. Tolkien felt when he first visualized Middle Earth for The Lord of the Rings
Or the way Tom Clancy felt when he came up with the Jack Ryan character
Or Robert Ludlum's character Jason Bourne
Or Ian Fleming's character James Bond - 007
I had that moment in 2011. I remember it like it was yesterday... I had a little too much to drink that evening, passed out - and woke up with an entire story downloaded into my brain. Literally - an epic novel - or a trilogy - complete with characters, settings, plots and details it would take years to unpack.
How? Why? No clue. But I started down that path. Researching, and writing whenever I could find the spare time. I got 4-5 chapters in and stopped. Can't really remember why - but my guess is that life got in the way.
I did a bit more work on it in 2016. But to this day it sits - unfinished. An idea waiting to be realized.
Fast forward to 2019. I'm feeling pretty depressed by the fact that I still had nothing to show for my Big Idea.
And that's when another idea took root. I thought, "What if I went back to Controversy Theory and dusted it off?
Reworked it - and tried to get it published. But that seemed too boring.
Then, around that time another concept kept coming up. I was thinking a lot about the Human Condition - and ways to Transcend it.
I started to think along these lines and began to view the world through that filter. In fact, it was happening so often, in November 2019 I made the decision. I was going to start blogging again - writing short articles based on the idea that we can Transcend the Human Condition - or for short: Transcend Human.
So I began writing, but as I did I kept hearing this voice that said, "You know - this content is better suited for a podcast..."
I laughed - because I'm a pretty introverted guy as most writers are. And the thought of talking, or being on video wasn't a pleasant one. But the thought kept nagging me. So at some point I caved. And in January of 2020 I launched the Transcend Human Podcast.
The original idea was to do short weekly episodes on felt need topics like mental health, anger, stress, happiness. Basic human stuff that we all struggle with.
And that's what the first 10 episodes looked like.
But then I realized something - the episodes I was writing sounded a lot like content from Controversy Theory.
So I decided to walk through that old manuscript on the podcast.
Episodes 11-27 were dedicated to that - one episode for each chapter in the book.
From there I dove back into the one-off felt need episodes - but with a new strategy. From that point on - every episode started with some variation of the word Transcend. Transcending, Transcendent, etc.
And we did that for a while.
Then at some point Tammy chimed in saying, "The podcast would be so much more helpful if I was part of it."
Just kidding - that's not what she said. But she did recommend I do a series on parenting - and she agreed to do it with me.
So in the Fall of 2021 (Episodes 77-87) we did the Transcendent Parenting Series. I had a blast recording these with Tammy. And we even interviewed our kids at the end of the series.
Tammy and I collaborated a few more times in a series called Transcending Stories - a series documenting our journey becoming foster parents. But those are pretty sporadic.
Back to one-off episodes for a while.
Then came the Conscience Driven Therapy Series in 2022. Episodes 97-106. The follow up book to Controversy Theory. The series basically documents how you could practice therapy based on the ideas presented in Controversy Theory. It turned out to be a pretty niche thing - a series most people would find boring.
But at the end of the day - it is a self help strategy. People should be able to take the ideas and use them to level up in life. Avoiding some of the obvious pitfalls we face in life.
But I digress. Back to the one-offs again.
Then in the Fall of 2022 I explored the world of Deconstruction in the series Transcendent Deconstruction. Episodes 127-131. Partly because I came to understand that I was deconstructing - and partly because it had become a buzz word on social media - and I wanted to walk through it on the podcast.
Back to one-off episodes.
And then the unthinkable...I decided to do a series about the End of Time. Something I never saw myself doing. In part because of the energy people have about the topic and in part because I know my view on it is unique - and far from the popular interpretation.
So earlier this year we walked through Transcending Eschatology. Episodes 157-170.
And that basically catches us up. We've done a few one-off episodes since then - and now - here we are at the end of Season 4.
// CHAPTER 2: A LOOK AROUND
This chapter is meant to focus on what's happening right now. Not where we've been, and not where we're going. But what's happening right now at this point in time.
But when I look at my life right here and now - I can't help but tie it all back to the beginning of this podcast. And what happened literally days after it started.
Back in January of 2020. You guessed it - the first cases of COVID-19 were discovered - which led to more case - which led to a Global Pandemic in March of that year.
And it's those two things that influence how I'm experiencing life here and now:
The Podcast:
Because it is the outward reflection of something that changed inside me
A new world view
A new filter through which I was running everything that came at me
The concept of Transcending the Human Condition meant something to me in 2019
But it became something altogether different in 2020 when COVID took over
As if putting me to the test
"You said you wanted to Transcend Human right? Well hold on to your butts because here we go..."
COVID-19:
This goes without saying - and we've walked through it numerous times on the program
All the changes we endured and the changes our society endured
The anger, the racism, the division and the polarization
Political craziness
A complete change in the way people work - many of us still working remote as a byproduct of the pandemic
And an increased group of people choosing to no longer identify with the church - deconstructing their faith or religion due to the changes at work in the world
When I say these two things have a direct impact on who I am and how I view the world right now - I mean it.
I wake up every day feeling differently than I did in 2019. It's a more restricted, negative, helpless and sarcastic life given the things we went through.
And part of the problem is that our country specifically (can't speak for the rest of the world) - but our country specifically did nothing to help us heal from the things we experienced during the pandemic years.
It wasn't like the post 9/11 years when the entire country rallied around each other. Feeling even stronger about being American. Showing our support of NYC by wearing NYPD and NYFD shirts and hats.
No - in recent years the country has deteriorated into something altogether different.
Instead of rallying people to work together and support each other - our differences have been exploited. The right making the left look like socialists and communists. The left making the right out to be Christian Nationalists interested in a totalitarian theocracy.
Not to mention the dysfunction that exists in Washington with the whole Speaker of the House fiasco. George Santos being charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, false statements, falsification of records, aggravated identity theft, and credit card fraud. Just an example of the types of behavior seen in congress right now.
And that's just within our country.
Looking outside we see China threatening Taiwan. Russia invading Ukraine and the war between Israel and Hamas.
Yes there have been skirmishes like this throughout time - but these are all being globally televised every night so we can see how devastating they really are.
Innocent people caught in the crossfire as governments and terrorist organizations jockey for power.
If you're like me - it feels like there is no letting up - no time outs. The world just keeps adding one crazy situation on top of the previous one.
At some point it's like, "I give up. Nothing surprises me at this point."
I believe it's called "compassion fatigue" - basically a loss of feeling due to being overwhelmed by numerous negative life events. Either in your own life, in the life of those around you, or in the world at large.
You get to a place where you throw up your hands and say, "I can't care about all of the things. There are just too many."
My wife often bring it back to media. Television, social media, mobile Apps, etc. And the fact the everything going on in the world right now is visible - and at our fingertips. Her assertion is that this stuff has probably been going on all along - we just didn't see it all.
And I agree. All we have to do is read through the history books and see that there were pandemics before COVID. There has always been war. People have always been ruthless. There have been genocides. There have been natural disasters bigger than anything we've seen in the last 5 years.
But we tend to forget this - because they are only documented as words on pages in dusty old books. For many of these events we don't even have video footage.
But not so today. We get it all at once in vivid 4K video. Play by play as reporters in Israel and Gaza record the war and keep us up to date on every little thing.
Good on the one hand because war crimes can be documented. But bad at the same time because the world is just becoming desensitized to the chaos and cruelty people can inflict on each other.
So back to the point...
This chapter was meant to be a summary of where we are right now - at this point in time.
And I spent a big chunk of it describing the world through my lens. Through my filter.
As all of this comes at me:
I'm trying to find ways to Transcend it
Not ignore it
Not block it out as if it's not happening
But asking myself, "If I am truly going to live the Transcend Human lifestyle - what is my role? What should my response be?
What is the transcendent quality I can bring to every situation so I'm rising above the societal average - or where society sets the bar
Taking the high road vs. taking the easy way out
That's where I find myself friends.
But what about you? Are you similar to me - where this is the world you see when you look out your window?
Or do you have a different experience? I'd love to hear from you if you do.
I know there isn't a lot of interaction on podcasts.
The only real way to have open dialogue is for people to send in comments or questions so I can address them on future episodes.
So if you feel strongly about this - and have something you want to share - please do. Send your feedback or questions to: info@transcendhuman.com
Or - if you forget the email address you can always go to the website transcendhuman.com and find ways to connect with me there.
I'd love to get a feel for where people are at right now. Because I know my view isn't necessarily the right view - or even the most popular.
I'm just one person - trying to proactively plan for the things the world keeps throwing at us.
// CHAPTER 3: A LOOK AHEAD
So we've been all over the place today.
We started with the Transcend Human back story. And we walked through the podcast from the first episode up to today's episode.
Then I went on a tangent about the world today - and how the past few years have done a number on me - and possibly the world at large.
But what about the future? 1 year from now? 2 - 5 - 10 years from now?
Well - let me start be saying I'm not a prophet. And I don't know what the future holds:
We just did a series on eschatology - not because I think the end is right around the corner
But because with everything going in the world - more and more things are falling into place - thereby making the conditions right for the end to occur
Small difference - but a big one
Basically - reading the Bible to get an idea what it will be like at the end of time
Then, based on that image - looking at our world and saying:
No - it doesn't look like that
Or yes - it's really starting to look like that
And when things start to match the Biblical description of the end times
You start to take notice
Again - it doesn't mean it's happening tomorrow - but it also means we're closer to that day than we were 10 years ago
This is something I've always struggled with
I remember my mom and dad talking to us kids about prophecy - and the end of time
And they told us there were times when they really thought the end was near - so they studied and prayed and really thought it was coming
Only to have years go by with nothing happening - and eventually the tension that was there - the heat that had been turned up - dissipated
And for many years my parents didn't even talk about it
They got to the place where they just didn't have the energy - or see the need to live at that hightened sensitivity
It was like the story of the boy who cried wolf
After crying wolf too many times with no wolf present - the villagers eventually learned to tune out the boy
And when the wolf actually came - and the boy cried out - there was nobody listening
Same sort of thing for my parents - after the heat was turned up a few times - suggesting the end was near - and it didn't happen
They eventually stopped watching for it
Which isn't good - if you read the boy who cried wolf story all the way to the end - right?
But that's where I'm at as well
I felt the same heat being turned up when 9/11 happened - then everything went back to normal
And I'm feeling the same heat turned up thanks to COVID, our political climate and the wars in the world
But will everything just go back to normal this time as well?
Will things calm down - and the world become peaceful again - allowing another generation or two to be born and live life before the next big thing happens?
Before the heat goes up again?
And how long will the world cry wolf before the wolf actually shows up?
This is my dilemma
I feel the heat - and I want to take it seriously
But at the same time I don't want to be my parents
I don't want to live this bipolar lifestyle - where the ups and downs eventually just make me lose interest altogether
OK - so that answers the future question when it comes to the world around us. Obviously we have no control over it. All we can do is choose t ostay engaged and be ready for whatever happens.
But what about the things we can control?
In my life - there are decisions I can make that will influence my future, and the futures of people within my sphere of influence.
Tammy and I have moved to Corona, CA - that has changed a lot of things. We're both planning on working at our jobs in the foreseeable future. So nothing changing there. We're now licensed as foster parents in Riverside County - so will most likely open back up to take a kiddo or two. And we've actually started talking about getting a cat...something that wasn't possible due to our son's allergies - but for some reason he appears to be growing out of those. Making a cat a much more doable option than before. That - and the fact that he's rarely at home. He spends a lot of time in Orange County - so there's that as well.
But let's wrap things up with the future of the podcast.
As this is the last episode of Season 4.
We're going to take the month of December off - and then pick back up in January.
But that's where our conversation needs to start.
Season 5. What does that even look like?
There are so many directions I could go with the podcast:
Some based on the content we've addressed. For example:
I could move it more toward Controversy Theory and Conscience Driven Therapy. Really focusing on the clinical, spiritual self help stuff
Or we could head toward Transcendent Parenting and talk a lot more about raising kids
Or we could focus on fostering. Once we add new kiddos to our home, Tammy and I could spend a lot of time documenting that journey
Or - I could use the Transcending Eschatology Series as a jumping off point and continue talking about issues related to the End of Time
I could transition the show to be more social, religious or political commentary based on the Transcending Deconstruction Series - discussing, and calling out the things in our country that seem to be headed in the wrong direction
Or we could just continue as it started - with one-off episodes on random topics. Felt need topics that come up from time to time
See what I mean? So many options - and so little time
Or - we could go in a totally different direction:
This is something I've been thinking about for a really long time
Or maybe just putting off for a really long time
Procrastinating if you will - because I'm nervous or scared that I can't make it work
I've talked about it from time to time on the podcast - hinted at it
But to this day it's still this abstract thing - something that requires a lot of thought and planning to make happen
At the top of the episode I made the statement that I am a writer. And that I had a Big Idea that never saw the light of day.
And that reality has haunted me to this day. In fact, it could be one of the things that keeps me from experiencing real joy - or happiness in life.
Not the only thing - but one of the things...
The knowledge that you have something within you - dying to get out - but you haven't put forth the effort to make it happen.
I believe it impacts me (and other creatives) in a profound way.
Sure - I write quite a bit in order to produce this podcast. Unlike other podcasters who can just fire up their mics and riff on topics, or interview other people without any prep work. I have to research and write out each episode.
Even the episodes I called The Transcendent Rant - where I tried not to write out the episode and just talk through things off the top of my head turned out to be scripted. I had to list the topic and a bullet list of prompts in order to not miss some of things I wanted to say.
But even with all of this writing I'm doing - there is still an emptiness. Like it helps a bit - but can't completely fill the creative hole that exists within me.
Apparently the only way to fill that hole is to write a book - and most likely a novel - or a work of fiction.
Every now and then I get coffee with Mike. He's a creative like me - and an aspiring writer. Both of us have ideas and both of us get stuck. But we both feel it. That pull to get our ideas out into the light. We discuss our stories, talk through options and brainstorm scenes. All the while encouraging each other to take the next step in the process.
And that's where I fin myself. As Season 4 comes to a close - I'm again confronted with the question, "Do I just spin up Season 5 and keep things moving? Or do I stop that for a season and devote myself to writing that novel inside me?"
I've had a front row seat to others who made it happen.
I worked with Lisa DeSelm. She is a graphic designer who always wanted to write a fairy tale inspired story. And at some point she just decided it was going to happen. She worked, had two kids and yet she found the time to bang out pieces of the book each day when her kids were napping. Those little bits became scenes, the scenes became chapters eventually those chapters became a book.
It's called The Puppetmaster's Apprentice - and you can buy it today on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Puppetmasters-Apprentice-Lisa-DeSelm/dp/1645670805
At the same organization I met Meagan Church. We weren't very close but we knew of each other and I knew she loved to write. At some point Meagan moved to North Carolina. And one day I saw that she had realized her dream. She published her first book called The Last Carolina Girl and recently published her second book entitled The Girls We Sent Away.
https://www.amazon.com/Last-Carolina-Girl-Novel/dp/172827804X
https://www.amazon.com/Girls-We-Sent-Away-Novel/dp/1728283094
So there you go - proof that if you just put in the time and effort - you can realize your dreams.
All I have to do is look to Lisa and Meagan for inspiration. And take the next step.
So what does that mean for Season 5 of the Transcend Human Podcast.
At this point - you know as much as I do...
In the month of December I'm going to hold a Come to Jesus Meeting with me, myself and I.
And together - the three of us will figure it out.
We need some alone time to reflect on what we've accomplished, and where we're headed.
And...if we choose to dive into writing that great American novel. We will have to make a decision about the podcast:
Does it stop for a season?
Do the episodes drop to once a month or less?
Or do the episodes change - and become part of the writing process?
All good questions - but without answers at this point
Let's Land the Plane:
Friends - first order of business is to thank you so much for listening over the years.
For allowing me to get all of this content off my chest. It's been cathartic, and energizing for me. And I hope you've found pieces that you resonate with along the way as well.
I'm sad that there isn't more audience participation with podcasts. At times it just feels like a one way street - me shooting content out into the Interwebs and never really knowing where it lands - if at all.
But like I said - there is a reason I started Transcend Human - and even if I don't fully understand that reason - I don't regret a bit of it. I love that I got to record each and every episode.
Who knows - maybe someone out there found the podcast and it served as encouragement to them during a difficult season of life. Or maybe, years from now when I'm long gone - my kids and grandkids will be able to go back and listen to old episodes of grandpa's podcast.
Whatever the case - thank you again for your support and for joining me on the journey.
Have a great Holiday Season friends. We'll reconvene in January and hopefully I'll have made some big decisions by them.
I love you - and as always keep Transcending Human!