Deb Owen on Parenting a Spiritual Traveler and Developing a Practice Later in Life Artwork

May You Live Well

Welcome to May You Live Well, where we share insights into the contemplative lives of inspiring individuals. May You Live Well features personal stories of real people from various backgrounds who share how they’ve been influenced by contemplative practices or ways of being, and how this has impacted their work, relationships, lifestyle, and worldview. Our guests are meditators, travelers, movers, creatives, homesteaders, and thought leaders. They lead by how they live and answer questions through their stories: How does the contemplative process change us? What are the benefits, and what challenges do we face along the way? What happens to our partnerships? When resistance arises, how do we work through it? What does it mean tap into our true potential? Listen well, leave inspired.

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May You Live Well

Deb Owen on Parenting a Spiritual Traveler and Developing a Practice Later in Life

August 11, 2021 • Alexa Owen • Season 1 • Episode 7

In this episode we have mother, meditator, and creative Deb Owen on the podcast. Deb is a retired school counselor who also happens to be my mom and I’m thrilled to be able to share this conversation with listeners because it’s really been over a decade in the making. Deb shares her story of what it was like to witness my journey as I stepped off a conventional path in my mid-twenties to pursue spiritual studies through slow-traveling some of Asia, and how this brought challenges to our relationship but eventually benefits as well. She also discusses her personal yoga and meditation practice that evolved more recently and how starting to meditate later in life impacted her health, well-being, and relationships. In the show notes you’ll find links to her current creative projects as well as the guided meditation she practices daily.

In this episode we discuss:

Deb's upbringing and cultural background
The differences she felt between religion and spirituality
Introducing her family to yoga in the early 2000s
Deb's career as a middle school guidance counselor and empathy for others
The challenges of parenting Alexa when she moved across the world
The role of prayer and trust during that time
Why Alexa felt closed off to family whenever she would return home, and how Deb responded to that
Staying authentic as a parent when an adult child gets judgmental
Deb's advice to parents whose kids are going through an identity shift or living life differently than they'd like
Mentorship and bringing meaningful work into the world
Deb's daily meditation practice and how it's impacted her life
Compassion, self-care, and caregiving aging parents
Experiencing life through the heart

Resources:

Deb on Instagram: @debowendesigns
Deb's Cookie Cupboard
Deb's guided meditation
May You Live Well on Instagram: @mayyoulivewell