525. Vicki Woodyard - a podcast by Rick Archer

Vicki Woodyard is a spiritual writer living in Atlanta, Georgia. Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, she graduated from The University of Memphis, magna cum laude, with a B.S. in English and Psychology. She is a meditator, a webmaster and has a lifelong interest in the spiritual path. Her late husband, Bob, died of multiple myeloma in 2004 and they lost their only daughter to cancer when she was seven.

This equips Vicki to write about her path in an honest and humble way, opening the reader’s own heart to what is worth living for. The light of her path is tinged with humor as she lays down the bottom line and invites you to consider what YOU are living for. Awakening is but a dream until you sink into the heart. When you are caught in the dream, it just means you have temporarily forgotten. Vicki’s writing, as Elsa Joy Bailey says,"serves as a bookmark to help you find your place again. The website is a way into what is. Vicki’s writing catches one off-guard, waking people up to their mortality and infinite being at the same time..."She is the author of:

Paperbacks:LIFE WITH A HOLE IN IT: That's How the Light Gets In - The Wisdom of an Awakened Heart
BIGGER THAN THE SKY: A Radical AwakeningeBooks - All of Vicki's books are available in eBook form on her website:

LIFE WITH A HOLE IN IT: That's How the Light Gets In - The Wisdom of an Awakened Heart
Bigger Than the Sky: A Radical AwakeningThe Edge of Enlightenment: Steps on the Mystic Path of Cosmic Consciousness
Bare Being: The One SelfOnly God Remains: Or Why You Should Stop Trying to Get Enlightened



You can find out more about Vicki at her website or friend her on Facebook.Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Transcript of this interviewInterview recorded November 16, 2019.

Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.Chapters:


00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump with Vicki Woodward00:05:26 - Suffering and Spiritual Awakening
00:11:04 - My Introduction to His Teachings00:15:03 - The Short-Term vs. Long-Term Perspective
00:18:45 - The Bus Stop and Digging Deep Wells00:22:38 - Finding Balance Between Extremes
00:25:56 - Capturing Wisdom in Short Sutras00:29:35 - Gathering Energy
00:32:59 - The Journey to Wholeness and Simplicity00:36:28 - True Resting and Putting to Rest
00:39:35 - The Gentleman Teacher00:42:47 - Cracking Open the Ego and Humility
00:46:15 - Dreams and Destiny00:49:43 - Meeting the Hawaiian Guru
00:52:59 - Synchronicities with John Ramsey00:55:47 - Synchronicities and Spiritual Coherence
00:59:05 - The Experience of Self01:02:18 - Finding Humor in Tragic Times
01:05:49 - Being Conscious in Daily Tasks01:09:28 - Suffering and Consciousness
01:13:16 - Overcoming Agoraphobia and Social Anxiety01:16:47 - A"What Me Worry"Approach
01:19:48 - Manifesting Grace through Leaps of Faith01:23:09 - The Grace of Christmas Dinner
01:26:53 - The Phoenix Rises from the Ashes01:30:35 - The Intensity of Spiritual Practice
01:34:26 - The Power of Consciousness and Grace01:37:42 - The Journey of an Ordinary Spiritually Awakening Person
01:41:27 - Finding Wholeness in Life01:44:56 - The Art of Going Deep
01:47:39 - Closing Remarks

Further episodes of Buddha at the Gas Pump

Further podcasts by Rick Archer

Website of Rick Archer