Let the Verse Flow: Personal Growth Thru a Creative Lens
Join writer and host, Jill Hodge, as she shares her creative self-care journey through a soulful mashup of storytelling, spoken word poetry, and music. Part self-help/part performing arts, this podcast explores personal growth through a creative lens.
Through an immersive backdrop of music and soundscapes, Jill explores a variety of practices and tools drawn from positive psychology like mindfulness, positive reframing, gratitude, and creative flow.
Dive into creative self-care techniques such as journal writing and affirmation meditations. You’ll find journal prompts at the end of every episode to guide your own self-reflection.
This podcast was born out of the struggle (and then insight) that Jill experienced as she dealt with her mother’s ailing health. She turned to creative expression for comfort and discovered the life-changing ways that it revealed a path toward a more purposeful life. In verse form: “I thought I’d lost myself along a road that was seldom straight or supple, but after the broken shards fell away, I glimpsed the undergrowth. From every tear that had fallen, nestled in life’s rich soil, there sprang a stalk, now entangled and evergreen. Exhausted, I rested under the lush canopy. This is my story.”
Let Jill inspire your creative self-care journey as she shares her “reflections from the bright side of the beat” and join this growing community by connecting with her at https://www.lettheverseflow.com/.
Want to ignite your creative self-care journey? Sign up for Jill’s free companion newsletter, the Me-Time Mixtape, which offers 3 essential, hand-curated creative self-care resources designed to put you back on your to-do list.
- Update frequency
- every 13 days
- Average duration
- 24 minutes
- Episodes
- 59
- Years Active
- 2023 - 2025
Hawaii: Quietly Stirring – Reflections on Nature, Wonder, and Presence
In this episode, I unpack my wonderful vacation to Oahu, Hawaii, with a deep dive into how the flowers, sea animals, scents, and people inspire and re-energize my energy and commitment to my mindfuln…
Calm Your Mind & Stop Overthinking with Creative Self-Care
Do you struggle to let go of negative and automatic thoughts of dread about potential upcoming events?
Do you second-guess yourself and replay past situations and decisions, wondering how you could ha…
The Art of Deep Rest: Recovering Energy and Purpose Through Stillness
In this episode, we’ll explore the restorative powers of deep rest -- a quiet, safe, still space that helps re-energize just about every part of your life. Through deep rest, you heal yourself all th…
Van Gogh on Great Things from Smallness: Why Little Steps Matter
Explore how Vincent Van Gogh’s insight into small, consistent actions can transform your personal growth journey. Learn why tiny steps toward your goals can lead to great success.
This episode, inspir…
Making Peace with Grief (the Shapeshifter)
In this episode, we explore mindful ways to cope with grief and loss, embracing the changing, shapeshifting nature of grief. If you or someone you know is navigating grief, this episode offers compas…
Stripping Down to Essentials: Exploring Minimalism in Midlife
In this episode, I explore how embracing minimalism in midlife can simplify your life, reduce clutter, and free your mind. Discover how letting go of possessions, but holding onto memories, can trans…
Revel in Wondrous You: Accepting Yourself in this Moment
When does self-improvement cross the line into self-flagellation? Are we using personal development and goal setting to undermine ourselves? How can self-improvement and self-acceptance co-exist in a…
Making Time for Art: a 10-Minute Creative Challenge to Recharge Your Day
Do you struggle to make time for artmaking, causing you not to get started?
Do you think your art isn't worth appreciating or sharing because it's not good enough, finished, or polished?
Sometimes t…
Art Appreciation for a Weary World
Feeling overwhelmed by life’s demands? Need a buffer to preserve your optimism and sense of purpose in an increasingly stressful world?
Then, this episode is for you! Discover how art appreciation ca…
Caregiver Burnout & Crisis: Care for the Carer
While writing this episode on caregiver burnout, my mom had a medical crisis that nearly killed her. I picked up my tired and weary bones and found the inner strength and energy I needed to be by her…
Mother Teresa on Doing Small Things with Great Love
Don’t let anyone tell you (and don’t tell yourself) that your small acts of kindness are not great! Each act of connection, charity, goodwill, mentorship, and civility adds up. In a world that can fe…
Believing in Yourself: How Self-Reliance Grows
Are you holding yourself back because of fear, feelings of imposter syndrome, and self-imposed ageism? There are plenty of obstacles to achieving our goals without us adding elaborate "stories" based…
Sylvia Plath on Wanting Everything (and Nothing)
When can we say that we have enough, and can we turn off our craving for more to find satisfaction with ourselves and the state of our lives right in this moment? I’m exploring these questions, spark…
Khalil Gibran and the Trap of Overthinking
Reducing overthinking, rumination, and worry can be a beast to tackle, but consistently reorienting our minds and bodies through some creative practices can help increase awareness as we work to repl…
Guided Meditation to Cultivate Belonging (to Others & Yourself)
This guided meditation (with visualization) accompanies episode #43 on cultivating a sense of belonging (to others and yourself). To explore the ways in which you belong to others and then to yoursel…
The Art of Belonging: Creating Space for Yourself
Self-acceptance is a prelude to belonging. It may not feel like a logical connection, but accepting yourself, flaws and all is the only way to stop the comparison and critical self-judgment that stan…
Personal Growth Is In the Process: How to Love Where You Are
We can get so caught up in our personal growth goals, and our plans for the future, that we lose sight of the here and now. But the journey toward our future self is made in the present moment, and c…
Finding Balance in Struggle: Exploring Yin and Yang in Daily Life
My mom's hospitalization (and the arrival of a beautiful bouquet of flowers) call attention to the way yin and yang play out in daily life. In today’s episode, we’ll explore the forces of sadness and…
Life Among the Tulips: Exploring New Worlds Without My Mom
As my mom’s Alzheimer’s progresses, and I’m faced with the loneliness of our visits, I’m reflecting on lessons she’s taught me about acceptance, and trying to stay present with her in these transform…
Forward Facing: Fight for Your Creative Passions
Have you lost your fight, left your creative passions behind, and tried to journey forward without them? We can let the outside noise and the stress of our daily lives interfere with our creativity. …