A Musician + Poet's Path to Building Bravery

Moorea Seal is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.I’ve only heard of one person in the world who doesn’t like music. It’s a 2010’s happiness guru who I can’t relate to one bit. Music moves me. Poetry and music hold so much power in their ability to speak to the soul within each of us, rousing strong emotions, whether it is the feeling of joy and excitement or fear and sorrow. The somatic experience of feeling music and words flowing through our inner worlds is an incredible tool for helping us build bravery and vulnerability. And today, it’s an honor to introduce you to one of my very talented musical and poetic pals, a conjurer of feeling and a soulful story-teller, Kate Van Petten (they/them). Expect to be moved.Listen to the podcast on Spotify / Apple / SubstackIn today’s episode of 52 Lists, Kate and I explore what it means to be brave, how that term is relative to each person’s position in society, our influences, traumas, history and more. What does it mean to be brave for you? Music and poetry are helpers in our pursuit of not only bravery, but vulnerability, self-soothing, self exploration and personal growth. Listening to uplifting music can motivate us to take risks and push ourselves beyond comfort zones that may be holding back. Mournful music meets us where we are at when in grief. Poetry can be used to express challenging emotions that may be too difficult to speak or explain in traditional sentence structure. Sometimes the abstract, the metaphorical and allegorical has. away of explaining our experiences better than the literal. By expressing ourselves through music and poetry, we gain a greater understanding of our strengths and weaknesses, seeing, hearing and feeling our truths in ways that can’t be explained otherwise. a poem by Kate Van Petten inspired by List #7 from 52 Lists for BraveryTo receive a free printable download of the poetry art above, sign up for a paid subscription to the newsletter + podcast. In this episode, take a journey with us in navigating what arises when we ask ourselves the question, “What are the things you once dreamt of having in your life that you do have now?” To explore this prompt, List # 7 from 52 Lists for Bravery, it requires us to look back on the many selves we have been and the highs and lows that shape our existence. On one hand, the blow of being laid off can feel like a dream ending. But on second thought, it can also be the prompting you need to reassess what truly defines your value and direction your life is taking. Even with some of life’s most painful blows, cracks formed can reveal a greater truth. And likewise, what once felt like a dream come true can lose its value over time. We explore these idea within this episode as well, and we have a feeling, you’ll relate.Get to know Kate Van PettenWebsite / Instagram / Listen to their latest music + poetry release “For Someone”Fill out List #7 from 52 Lists for Bravery with UsGet your copy of my guided list making journal 52 Lists for Bravery wherever books are sold. Shop on: Penguin Random House / Amazon / Books A MillionThis podcast series is a deeply important labor of love for me. Consider sharing this episode with your community, or support with a paid $5 a month membership. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mooreaseal.substack.com/subscribe

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