A Perfectly Imperfect Union: Reflecting on America 250 with Laura Norton-Cruz

The Whole Again Podcast: Mindfulness and Resilience through Kinstugi Wisdom airs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday with Pause Breathe Reflect Microdose Meditations, Growth Mindset and Mindfulness Tips, to help us transform our scars into healing and resilience.

And between May and October, I'm sharing a new series I'm calling: A Perfectly Imperfect Union. It's about connecting with every day folks as they reflect on America at 250. Conversations will air every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

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What does it take to actually hear each other again?

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to the Last Frontier State to speak with Laura Norton-Cruz.

She's a licensed social worker, documentary filmmaker, and policy advocate based in Anchorage.

Laura believes the deepest fracture in this country right now is informational.

We're all working from different sets of facts, fed by algorithms and shrinking newsrooms, and she thinks the way through is simple to name and hard to do: get more stories from people with the least power in front of more people. Survivors, immigrants, disabled folks, foster kids, home health aides, the people whose lives rarely make the front page. Amen!

She holds two things at once: the fear that comes with raising brown, bilingual kids in this political climate, and a genuine belief that common ground is still findable, one relationship at a time.

To connect with Laura, please visit her website: https://www.lauranortoncruzconsulting.com/

And her question for you and our next guest is:

How are you helping advance the wellbeing of pregnant people and young children so we have a healthier future?

Share your thoughts in the comments and share this episode with someone you love.

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With Whole Again: Mindfulness and Resilience through Kintsugi Wisdom, listeners explore mindfulness and resilience through personal stories of trauma, scars, and injury while learning to overcome, imposter syndrome, self-doubt, and perfectionism with self-compassion, self-love, and self-worth. Through insightful discussions on building resilience, fitness, and stress management, as well as mindfulness practices and digital wellness, the show offers practical tools such as breathwork, micro-dose meditation, grounding techniques, visualization, and daily affirmations for anxiety relief and stress reduction. Inspired by the art of kintsugi, the podcast embodies healing as a transformative process, encouraging a shift in perspective from worry and overwhelm to gratitude and personal growth. By exploring the mind-body connection, micro-dosing strategies for emotional well-being, and