Allison M. Sullivan is a mom, wife, yoga teacher, author, podcaster, and spiritual companion. She is the author of Rock Paper Scissors: God's Mighty Power, Jesus's Covering Forgiveness, and the Snipping Refinement of the Holy Spirit. She is the host of the Sinner Saint Sister podcast. She and her family reside in Bryan, Texas, where she engages in ministry with college women. We first connected with Allison through the Sick Pilgrim writers' collective online, where we all grew admire her honesty, vulnerability, and faith. Allison and Cassidy made a pact to interview each other on their respective podcasts — so here the conversation begins! I have this evolving definition of what silence is... before, all silence meant to me was just an absence of noise, you know, just kind of this literal silence — but now, as I seek it out as a discipline, whether it's in an effort to know myself, or create, or get needed time as an introvert — it's more about a search — and that can happen within noise, of course, but it's a searching posture of my heart, that asks the question, "What do you have for me here?" so there's an asking and receiving, or a searching and a finding, of silence. — Allison M. Sullivan Allison shares her first discovery of silence (in the context of growing up with two "boisterous" parents) while encountering solitude in a swimming pool. She muses on the challenge of cultivating silence in the midst of a large family (routine and a prayer closet have been lifesavers), and silence has been integral to her experience as a Christian yoga instructor. Allison shares how she has experienced silence both as a safe space and as a shield for avoidance, and shares how a bizarre moment while getting a root canal inspired her to self-care — and to explore her vocation as a writer. She approaches silence in terms like lingering and sabbath — and laments how such ways of being in time are so absent in so much of our culture. I think it's important to distinguish when silence can become avoidance — whether that's avoiding a certain type of person, or that's avoiding a certain type of emotion, silence can be avoidance. — Allison M. Sullivan Some of the resources and authors mentioned in this episode: Allison M. Sullivan, Rock Paper Scissors: God's Mighty Power, Jesus's Covering Forgiveness, and the Snipping Refinement of the Holy Spirit Julia Cameron, The Right to Write Cassidy Hall and Patrick Shen, Notes on Silence Gregorian Chant, Lost in Meditation Allison M. Sullivan, The Sinner Saint Sister Podcast Thomas Merton, Day of a Stranger At the end of the podcast Carl speaks briefly about the trailer for Cassidy's forthcoming movie, Day of a Stranger. Here it is: https://youtu.be/pGbEGzy4P2M I think about the word "linger" — our culture doesn't allow for that, does it? We are constantly trying to achieve more, process more information, cross more things off the to-do list; but I think that linger is so connected to love. We cannot linger over that which we do not love, we cannot love that which we do not linger over. And when it comes to our bodies and maybe this is sensitive with women in particular, but I don't know that we love our bodies and so there's that desire to dissasociate. My desire with yoga and this full-bodied experience of life is to bring it all back into one being in a loving way, in a way that lingers and loves. — Allison M. Sullivan Episode 37: Silence, Yoga and Faith: A Conversation with Allison M. Sullivan Hosted by: Carl McColman With: Cassidy Hall, Kevin Johnson Guest: Allison M. Sullivan Date Recorded: September 24, 2018