Hello Universe

This week, Eva and Kyley sit down with Eduardo Rombauer, a Brazilian “soul scientist,” activist, and healer whose work begins and ends with love — not as an idea, but as a living force.Once a political organizer trying to change the world from the outside, Eduardo now guides others in what he calls “the revolution of the heart.” He believes that love is both our original nature and our most advanced technology — and that remembering it is the real work of our time.Eduardo’s work is about finding those barriers and learning to stay with them — not to remove them through force, but to soften them through acceptance.What we cover in this episode 🌹💗 Love beyond the mind: Why trying to define love keeps us from experiencing it — and how the intellect can never grasp what the heart already knows.🌎 The soul as scientist: Eduardo’s evolution from politics to consciousness work, and how he now explores love through community, healing, and spiritual inquiry.🧬 “To love is to unite without mixing.” How this one principle applies to everything from parenting and relationships to nations and the self.👶 Parenthood as initiation: The way Eduardo’s daughter became his greatest mirror — helping him confront inherited anger, repair generational patterns, and rediscover tenderness.🌑 Loving the “evil side”: What it means to include every shadow and contradiction within us, and why true self-love requires embracing what we’ve been taught to reject.🕊️ From savior to servant: The humbling shift that comes from realizing you can’t rescue anyone — only walk beside them as they remember their own power.🔥 Facing ridicule as a spiritual practice: Eduardo’s recent initiation into being seen, misunderstood, and still choosing love anyway.💫 Mind in service of soul: A practice for using awareness as a bridge between intellect and intuition, reason and reverence.Eduardo’s story is a reminder that love is not something we earn or achieve. It’s the material we’re made of.Connect with Eduardo -https://www.instagram.com/durombauer/https://www.eduardorombauer.com/A Gentle & Fierce Path Forward: A Workbook for Staying Present, Committed and Resourced in Times of Crisishttps://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/gentle-fierce-workbookSign up for Awakening with Eva for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dTorchbearer Workshop with Kyley https://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/torchbearer-workshopEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course 

In this week’s listener Q&A, Eva and Kyley unpack a deceptively simple question:"Do you resonate with the idea of “emotionally immature” people, or the framework of “old souls” vs “younger souls”? Sometimes these labels help me soften toward challenging people in my life (like parents, in-laws, or bosses). Other times, I worry they’re just ways to avoid looking at my own patterns.So my bigger question is: when you’re in relationships that really test you, do you find frameworks like this useful? Or are they just the mind trying to control things?"________________________________________In this episode, we explore:💭 When labels like “emotionally immature” or “narcissist” offer relief—and when they become crutches for self-protection or self-abandonment🪞 The difference between using frameworks to understand others vs. using them to avoid your own patterns🌗 Why discernment (not perfection) is the real skill of emotional and spiritual maturity⚖️ How the “old soul / young soul” hierarchy can quietly feed superiority, ego, or even spiritual elitism❤️ The power of dropping the story altogether - what happens when we meet people as they are, without a label or framework💡 How anger, resentment, and cynicism can actually be doorways to deeper acceptance and peace🌀 What it looks like to balance compassion with boundaries - especially in relationships that are less safe or still painful🔥 The ongoing practice of holding paradox: seeing what’s true about someone and keeping your heart open________________________________________A Gentle & Fierce Path Forward: A Workbook for Staying Present, Committed and Resourced in Times of Crisishttps://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/gentle-fierce-workbookSign up for Awakening with Eva for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dTorchbearer Workshop with Kyley https://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/torchbearer-workshopEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course 

In this heart-opening conversation, we sit down with Shahem -  Black queer therapist, content creator, and community organizer whose work bridges grief, joy, and resistance. Together we explore how to grieve in a culture that doesn’t make space for loss, how joy can be a radical practice of survival, and how resistance can look like choosing authenticity when the world wants you numb. This episode is a reminder that balance is about staying connected to ourselves and each other through it all.In this episode we explore:✨ Grief as more than death—why losing a job, identity, or sense of autonomy deserves to be honored as loss🌀 The three pillars of balance: grief, joy, and resistance—and how each keeps the others alive❤️ How to actually grieve💬 Men and emotional disconnection—what patriarchy steals from everyone, and why reclaiming tenderness is liberation🔥 Resistance  as the everyday practice of showing up authentically”🌈 Community as the antidote to despair—why healing, grieving, and joy all require other people💡 “Not enoughness” as a tool of oppression—and how reclaiming your own enoughness becomes an act of defiance🌻 Finding your role in the revolution—why balance means giving what you can, in the ways that are true to youIf you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, cynical, or unsure how to stay tender in the face of so much collective pain, let this conversation be a place to land.Connect with Shahem - https://links.5hahem.com/A Gentle & Fierce Path Forward: A Workbook for Staying Present, Committed and Resourced in Times of Crisishttps://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/gentle-fierce-workbookSign up for Awakening with Eva for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

In this episode, we sit down with Susan V, Eva's dear friend and facilitator of The Work of Byron Katie, to discuss how to stay connected to yourself — in conflict, in love, and when you’re single.They unpack how shame turns into perfectionism, how to take responsibility without collapsing into guilt, and making peace with being single. Susan shares how she released the idea that love would “save” her, and how that shift made space for her to stay connected to herself when she found herself in a loving relationship.  This episode is for anyone who’s ever over-apologized, abandoned themselves for love, or struggled to stay true to themselves when things get messy.We discuss:  Being whole in relationship — How to be yourself while staying connected to others.Accountability vs. shame — Taking responsibility for your impact without turning it into self-blame.Perfectionism trap — How trying to “get it right” keeps you from experiencing fulfillment and safetySinglehood & self-worth — Letting go of the idea that being single means you're unlovable  Real love — Why healthy relationships come from wholeness, not from finally being “healed enough.”About Susan:Susan Vielguth is a Facilitator of The Work of Byron Katie, whose work is rooted in the liberation that comes from questioning our painful beliefs. You can learn more about Susan at theworkwithsusan.com.Susanwww.theworkwithsusan.comwww.instagram.com/reclaimyourlight/EvaSign up for Awakening for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyleyKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

In this week’s episode, we dig into the paradox at the heart of the spiritual path: how to surrender to life’s unfolding while still staying fiercely committed to your dreams.This conversation was sparked by a listener question that felt so alive for both of us right now:"Hello universe. I keep circling around the same dilemma. How do I balance surrender with my own will and desires? I have clear dreams for my life and business, and I feel called to pursue them, but how do I know when I'm gripping too tightly in control versus when I'm actually being asked to stay committed and persevered despite the obstacles? Sometimes devotion and discipline feel like the opposite of surrender. How do I weave them together? Signed God, take the wheel, but not my dreams."We get real about:The subtle difference between devotion and self-abandonmentWhy “should” is almost always a red flag that you’re forcingLearning to trust life moment by moment (even when things fall apart)How attachment to a specific outcome often masks the deeper desire underneathFinding the wisdom inside the “gripping” without bypassing or bulldozing over itAlong the way, you’ll hear stories about our own messy edges with business, health, parenting, and money—and how the practice of surrender meets the daily reality of deadlines, big goals, and longing for stability.✨ If you’ve ever wondered how to trust life without losing sight of your dreams, this episode is for you.A Gentle & Fierce Path Forward: A Workbook for Staying Present, Committed and Resourced in Times of Crisishttps://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/gentle-fierce-workbookEvaSign up for Awakening for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyleySign up for upcoming FREE  Workshop - Torchbearer: Build a Business That Builds a Better World https://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/torchbearer-workshopKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

We’re back for Season 6 of Hello Universe! 🎉We kick off this season with a listener question so many are asking:  ”Every time I open the news, I feel like I'm hit with another wave of heartbreak. Part of me wants to stay awake and engaged, but another part of me just feels so tired. But then I turn away to preserve my sense of self and protect joy, and I feel guilty and maybe irresponsible. How do you hold hope in a moment that feels so dark? How do I find the balance in a moment like this?”HighlightsThe “not enough monster” that latches onto everything—including activism.Joy as resistance, and the radical practice of letting yourself feel good even when the world is on fire.“Tend to your part of the garden”—why committing to your thread matters more than chasing all of them.The difference between helplessness (grief that opens) and despair (grief that shuts down).Why living in possibility is vulnerable work—and how to practice it every day.Eva’s blunt question: “Are we evolving or regressing?” and the nuanced answers that follow.The paradox of progress: letting go of the myth of linear evolution while still choosing trust.Kyley on unworthiness as the invisible wall between us and love—and why believing we deserve better is collective sacred work.The radical agency of choosing happiness, and why blame is a seductive detour away from accountability.This episode is a balm for anyone who has felt the whiplash of living in a world of abundance and devastation at once. If you’ve ever wrestled with guilt for feeling joy, or wondered if your thread really matters, we made this one for you.A Gentle & Fierce Path Forward: A Workbook for Staying Present, Committed and Resourced in Times of Crisishttps://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/gentle-fierce-workbookEvaSign up for Awakening for FREEhttps://dogged-trailblazer-8821.kit.com/756fe8553dEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyleySign up for upcoming FREE  Workshop - Torchbearer: Build a Business That Builds a Better World https://portal.kyleycaldwell.com/torchbearer-workshopKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course 

 Welcome back to season six of Hello Universe. We have been working together all summer to improve the show and bring you topics we think you will love to make this truly, I think what is going to be the most epic season ever!

Kyley opens up about a story she never tells.Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

This week is a deep dive on money, anti-capitalism, and ethical business with artist and author Sarah Faith Gottesdiener.https://moon-studio.co/https://www.instagram.com/gottesss/Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

Melody Beatty wrote a number of really important books, including most famously Codependent No More, and she actually passed away in February of 2025, which makes this really moving interview so much sweeter. I am happy for you to get a chance to experience some of her warmth and honesty and courage.Bestselling author Melody Beattie comes on the show to teach us about codependency, loving yourself more than others, setting limits, and generally being a badass.https://melodybeattie.com/https://www.facebook.com/writermelodybeattie/  Twitter: @MelodyBeattieInsta: @authormelodybeattieEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course 

What does it all mean & spiritual awakening. Kyley has a drug free psychedelic trip. She trips on “mushrooms”—without taking any drugs Eva and Kyley dissect what the hell happened Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

In this deeply personal and vulnerable conversation, Eva is pulling back the curtain on her relationship with her partner, Tom, an incredibly special and unique human by all accounts.  He’s also the man she once had on a spiritual pedestal, who also happens to be 26 years older than her, a wildly private human. In other words… not your average “how we met” story.In this conversation with Kyley, Eva spill’s on all the odd and beautiful circumstances that come with their love — from navigating projections (“isn’t that the cliché of the teacher dating the student?”) to dismantling conditioning about what’s “right,” to learning how to actually let ourselves be loved without condition.It’s juicy, hilarious, and rooted in something much bigger than just romance: it’s about self-love, joy, and trusting life enough to let the good all the way in.In this episode, we discuss: The meet-cute that took seven years — from a Costa Rica retreat crush to living together in a surf shack in BrazilLove without conditions: how it feels to be in a partnership where both people are exploring whether there’s any limit to love or joy.Pedestals are prisons: how putting someone “above” you is unkind to them and to yourself, and what happens when you smash the hierarchy.Self-love as subtraction, not addition: letting go of self-condemnation, judgment, and the “I” story so Source can pour in.Being willing to be disliked — and why your joy might be the medicine that irritates someone right into their own healing.Living under the influence of good: the simple but terrifying practice of trusting life right now, in this moment.

This episode is an honest look at difficult relationships in all their paradoxical glory. It will touch anyone navigating complex family dynamics, caregiving, inner conflict, or the slow, radical return to self.Eva opens up about the intense push-pull dynamic with her mother—someone who is mentally ill, disabled, and fiercely challenging, yet also one of the people she loves most in the world. From the tropical beauty of Brazil to the ancestral weight of being back in Taiwan, Eva unpacks the spiritual and emotional reckoning of caretaking, resentment, cultural expectations, mortality, and what love actually asks of us.Kyley, ever the sorting hat of spiritual insight, helps organize the messy candy pile of emotion. Together, they navigate:- How resentment isn’t your enemy, but your flashlight- The difference between love with a story vs. love without one- What it means to love yourself and someone else without abandoning either- How sacrifice can either be sovereign or soul-squelching- The unbearable tension between caregiving and freedom- Why boundaries can sometimes become cold walls- The danger of spiritual bypassing through over-intellectualizing pain- The terrifying (and freeing) question: What if their life isn’t your responsibility?“My needs are generous”—the new mantra for every recovering codependent By the end, Eva has a mic-drop moment of realization:  What if real love—capital L Love—is loving yourself without a story?Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

One of Eva's favorite conversations from last year! We sat down with Diana Harper—relational astrologer, poet of the cosmos, and philosophical firestarter—to explore a radically different take on healing, belonging, and what it means to be in true relationship. This isn’t a conversation about “doing the work” in isolation. It’s a remembrance of your interconnectedness with everything: your ancestors (yes, even the weird ones), your neighborhood spiders, the trees on your block, the grief in your belly, the granite boulders in your backyard.We explore:Diana’s definition of healing as “increasing the capacity to be in relationship”The grief and rage of being severed from Indigeneity—and how that rupture underpins modern disconnectionThe deep wisdom encoded in cities, sidewalks, vegetables, and purple carrot soupHow creature comforts like herbal tea can reveal our tenderest fears about worthiness and comfortThe devastating illusion of separateness—and how spiritual belonging doesn’t mean samenessThis episode will leave you soft, wrecked, held, inspired, and maybe a little furious at the Stanley Cup industrial complex.Whether you’re crying in a grocery store parking lot at sunset or whispering thank-you to your morning tea (or giant granite boulder in your backyard), Diana reminds us: you are in relationship. You belong. You’ve always belonged.Diana - ddamascenaa.compatreon.com/ddamascenaainstagram.com/ddamascenaa

This week, we’re bringing you a deeply real, wildly tender conversation with Ned Buskirk — founder of You’re Going to Die — an artist, grief guide, and all-around wise soul who is not afraid to look directly into the darkness… and still choose love.Together we dive into:How grief work can be healing — but also a sneaky trap for self-worthThe quiet ways life tries to harden us, and how to stay (or become) softParenthood as a portal to awe, heartbreak, and presenceWhat it means to dissolve the ego and disappear into connectionIf you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the weight of this world — or confused about why you’re drawn to the darkness in the first place — this conversation will feel like a warm, unflinching hand on your shoulder.Ned Buskirk is the Founder, Podcast Host, Facilitator, and Executive Director for You’re Going to Die [YG2D] – a 501(c)3 nonprofit bringing diverse communities creatively into the conversation of death and dying, inspiring life by unabashedly sourcing our shared mortality.www.yg2d.comhttps://www.instagram.com/yergoing2die/https://www.facebook.com/yergoingtodie/https://twitter.com/yergoing2dieEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free mini-course

In this very special episode, we sit down with Eva’s personal mentor of two years, Amma Thanasanti. Formerly living as a fully ordained Buddhist nun for 28 years, today Amma guides others in the path of embodied awakening—bringing together deep meditation, nervous system repair, and attachment healing to help people feel truly safe, seen, and at home in themselves.Through Amma’s stories—including an unbelievable near-death encounter with a bear—this conversation explores the ways early attachment wounds shape our nervous systems, how safety can be reclaimed through somatic practices, and how reimagining our origin stories can transform not only our minds, but our physiology.This episode is less of an intellectual download and more of a transmission. If you’ve ever longed for deep connection, struggled with overwhelm, or felt like your nervous system was living in a permanent state of hypervigilance—this one is for you.🌀 In this episode, we explore:What real safety feels like in the body—and why many of us have never actually experienced itHow Amma re-imagined her origin story through “belly bonding” ceremonies with the EarthThe role of the pelvic floor in nervous system regulation, trauma, and embodimentThe three-pillar framework for attachment repair, developed by Dr. Dan Brown and David ElliottThe difference between telling yourself you’re safe and actually feeling it somaticallyThe subtle but profound impact of living with an insecure attachment styleWhy some people retreat from relationships—not because they don’t want connection, but because their system is stuck in overprotection 

Two years ago, Eva packed up her life in Portland, left a breakup in the rearview mirror, and hit the open road to start over in Austin, Texas… solo. What followed was an epic road trip, equal parts grief, healing, awe, and badassery. In this reissued episode, Eva shares the behind-the-scenes of that transitional season—one where everything was falling apart, and somehow also coming together better than she ever could’ve planned.It’s summer. People are road-tripping. Maybe you’re also in a season of upheaval. Maybe you're grieving, starting over, or wondering if it's possible for life to get better than you imagined. Spoiler alert: it is.This episode is your message from the future: you’re gonna be okay. Actually? Better than okay.What we cover in this episode:😭 The messy, nonlinear reality of grief (and how Eva tried to "do it well")💔 Rage, sadness, and the surprise healing that comes from visiting an ex🧼 The difference between surviving grief vs. trying to control it🐍 Lessons from nature, the desert, and the wide open sky🔥 The secret catharsis of screaming and throwing rocks into water (yes, really)🌈 The beauty of trusting the in-between and letting arrival be just another beginning💡Why it's okay to romanticize a new life—and why it's also okay when it turns out to be messy AF💃🏼 The importance of place: finding the kind of land that makes you feel alive🤝 Friendship as medicine and why it's absolutely possible to make real friends as an adultEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free 2 Day Money Magic Workshop 

What does it mean to hold the unbearable complexities of the world without shutting down or lashing out? In this rich, heartfelt conversation, Eva and Kyley sit down with Ellen Wong, entheogenic death companion and host of the Mum podcast, to explore how we can stay present with grief, righteous anger, and the impossible paradoxes of life.Together, we grapple with questions like:How do we show up when the world is on fire?How do we stay human when social media, activism, and politics feel polarized and violent?Is it possible to hold both fierce anger and deep compassion without collapsing into binaries?Ellen shares her profound perspective as a death doula, inviting us to develop an intimate relationship with death—not just at the end of life, but in the countless transitions, identity shifts, and ego deaths we encounter along the way. The conversation weaves through themes of grief, cancel culture, safety, attachment, social justice, ancestral wounds, and the liberating power of surrender.💥 Expect tears, belly laughs, and a radically honest look at what it means to be alive in these times Ellen - https://tripwithellen.com/https://www.instagram.com/tripwithellen/https://www.instagram.com/mumthepod/Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwellKyley's free 2 Day Money Magic Workshop 

This episode got meaty & esoteric fast. We wound up discussing free will and the grace of choicelessness with the brilliant and wise Victoria Jane.https://victoriajane.co/,https://www.instagram.com/victoriajane.hd/Eva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaPocket Mentor(Friend)ship- Eva's Newest Offering!Kyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwell 

This show is brought to you by our inner teenagers.  With surprise and delight, we wound up reminiscing about the 90s, reveling in fashion-as-play and power, and generally invited our inner teen selves to run the show this week.Kelly - Instagram.com/kellymahalakEva's instagram: @iamevaliaoBook a discovery call with EvaKyley's Instagram: @kyleycaldwell