95. Celebrate Independence Day with These Uplifting Women's Anthems

Welcome to Mind Power Meets Mystic!

Hosts:

Cinthia Varkevisser (Mystic)

Michelle Walters (Mind Power)

Episode Theme: Independence Day Special - Celebrating Self-Care and Independence through Music

Introduction:

Hi, we're Cinthia Varkevisser and Michelle Walters, co-hosts of Mind Power Meets Mystic. Our weekly show is here to expand your mind to what's possible, uplift your spirits to move forward with confidence and joy, and create a space for your collaboration with the invisible. Welcome to Mind Power Meets Mystic.

Special Independence Day Episode:

Welcome to a special episode of Mind Power Meets Mystic where we are actually together. This is Michelle Walters, I'm the mind power part of our podcast, and I'm here with Cinthia Varkevisser, our mystic part of the podcast. We are here recording today's episode together, and we wanted to celebrate Independence Day. Not so much as a pro-US kind of thing, but more of a "taking care of yourself, taking care of me-time" kind of thing.

Since we're both women, and we think many of our listeners are ladies, we are focusing on some songs, Cinthia's idea, that are all about building up the idea of independence and women. There are so many times that we talk about being codependent or giving too much. I love that we're going to look at the other side of it, which is the things that lift us up, get us going, and motivated. Here are some takeaways and what we're inspired to do once we hear these songs, right?

Absolutely. All right, so we're gonna start, and I'm gonna go with my first song. I seem to have picked the oldies. Cinthia picked the new ones. The song that I want to feature is "Defying Gravity" from the Wicked soundtrack. I don't know if everybody here knows what the Wicked soundtrack is. It is a musical version of the story of The Wizard of Oz, and it is all about the witch. Her name is Elphaba, and it is basically the back story of Elphaba, which, you know, turns out Elphaba had reasons why she became a wicked witch.

And I'm very much hoping to go see Wicked when it comes around. Oh, yeah. Yeah, I cried from "Defying Gravity." Yeah, so the song is "Defying Gravity," and Elphaba sings it. And what I love about the song "Defying Gravity" is that it is all about unlimited beliefs. And I think that, you know, so many of us, we get caught up in thinking about "Oh, if I do this, I can't do that," or "This would be impossible," or whatever. And the whole notion of defying gravity is defying gravity, like doing something that you think is impossible. And in the in the fairy tale, Elphaba flies, right? That's right. And I think that the takeaway for our listeners about this song is, you know, you might be able to fly like don't rule it out. We have discovered amazing ways of doing things that people a few years ago thought were impossible. So "Defying Gravity." That's my song number one.

Cinthia's First Song:

My song number one is Meghan Trainor's "Me Too." I love the song. I love this song. Actually, I'm a Meghan Trainor fan, because I am also not a size two. So when that first song came out, I loved it. The one that I want to talk about though is "Me Too." It's a song about confidence. And there's nothing sexier and more empowering than believing in yourself and just having confidence. Absolutely. Right. And so and with a line that says "If I was you, I'd want to be me too." I mean, come on. Priceless. Right? That is a brilliant line. I need to put that on a sticky on my computer I think. And actually that's the that is the one thing I as a takeaway, which is I don't know about you, Michelle, but I was brought up that to speak really well of yourself is to brag or to be conceited and know there's a big difference between being conceited, which comes from lack, right because you're trying to tell up somebody. Right, right, Harrison. Yeah. And then confidence is just standing really strong in everything you know and everything that you do. So my takeaway is it's a sexy, it's just like it's very sexy. Oh my god. Yeah, it doesn't matter what you look like when I see someone doing their thing. It's pretty fucking hot. Absolutely. And it's Yeah, and it's I don't care what gender you are. No, it kind of it kind of. It's higher than gender doesn't it doesn't really matter. But confident men are sexy, confident women are sexy. Doesn't matter. So who you're usually attracted to? Confidence is just attractive. Right? You know, and I guess maybe sometimes that's sexy. And maybe sometimes that's just attractive. Right? But it's Oh, yeah, no, that's an awesome choice. So here's the thing. If you're feeling like, I don't have time to listen to Meghan Trainor, but I do want confidence. Tell yourself that you're the shit, tell yourself stuff that is true. Look at yourself in the mirror and do it or tell people what you are masterful in, what you're an expert in. And, and say it with confidence. Yeah, it's hot and it's sexy. And if you don't have it, listen to Meghan Trainor's "Me Too" first.

Michelle's Second Song:

What about you? Okay, so my song number two, another old classic. "I Am Woman" by Helen Reddy, who doesn't love this song. I think everybody should love this song. Part of the reason why I love this song is it comes from my childhood. My mother had it on an eight track tape. And oh, yeah, remember, eight track tape. We had an eight track tape player. And I didn't like all music my mother did. But I did like this song. And the word that stands out from the lyrics of this song in my mind was I am woman. And I am invincible. Not just strong, because she says that too. But invincible. Like that takes strong to a whole different level. Right. And what I love about this notion is well, it was defying gravity was about limiting beliefs. This is about taking risks. This is about realizing that no matter what happens is going to be okay. Like, you've got to go for it. You got to be courageous. Like I own it. And that's, that's, that's part of the reason why I love this song. I know the thing that I love is if you were even younger than me, right? Because we are friends. But can you imagine all these little girls coming in? Yes, I am wise, but it's wisdom. Right? And so the thing that I love about this song that I didn't understand as a as a little kid, right, is that she's really standing on all her experiences. And going you know what, you've done all this shit to me. And yet here I am. Yeah. So I guess kind of the what to think about this one is, next time you're feeling down, try listening to "I Am Woman" and realizing like, you can pick yourself up again, like the down is in your head, almost certainly. And it can be it can be gently swept aside. And a new thought of hey, a better day is coming. What can I do to change things up? Right? And that scars are beautiful, right? Whatever has a scar just like yours. And there's a story that goes with it. Yep. And if it's a scar, that is a pain that's healed over Yep. Right. So it is really about taking a look at your experiences and your scars and, and sitting really strong on those.

Reminder to Listeners:

I want to remind everybody listening to us that we are Michelle Walters that's me and Cinthia Varkevisser, my podcast. We are here recording Mind Power Meets Mystic, our podcast, we would love it if you would hit the little Subscribe button. Come back and listen to us. We produce an episode every week. We also want to be rated and reviewed and we would love it if you are liking these recommendations. And there are more to go on. If you would share this episode with a friend it would mean so much to us. Yes, please. So much.

Cinthia's Second Song:

Cinthia, what's your next song? My next song is from Miley Cyrus. Just so you know, I have not always been a Miley Cyrus fan and I'm not even sure that I'm a Miley Cyrus fan now. Let's just be real okay. She's not my song. She's really good song. Yes. And it's "Flowers" and it's pretty much a response and a fuck you song to Bruno Mars. And cool I love I find him sexy as hell too because he's got a confidence thing. And even though he does do a little bit of kind of misogynistic songs, but um, song rock. So here's the deal. Bruno Mars sings a song about he should have bought your, he should have bought you flowers as a breakup song, he should have held your hand, he could have did you know he should have danced for hours. Because you know, that's what you wanted from your man, Miley responds and says, I can buy my own flowers, and write my name in the sand. And I can talk to myself for hours about things you don't understand. But basically, what she's saying is that she is she realized that she's loving herself, way more than he could have ever loved her. And that you know, that this love has changed and that she has changed based on all this stuff. So I love it because it goes back to what we were just talking about, which is taking a look at your experiences. And instead of going boohoo woe is me. It's like, fuck, I can buy my own flowers. I can do this myself. This is amazing. And so in a relationship, and I say this to clients all the time, is that when you think about a relationship, think about all the good things that you bring to the table, and all the things that you can do for yourself. And that you get to pick and choose how you're treated. It's it's a choice. It's not like you know, you're in this relationship, and they're the ones that define the whole thing. And so "Flowers" by Miley Cyrus just says, Hey, I am going to, I'm going to take care of myself. And I know that you and I are big proponents of self care. Absolutely. Yeah. So I just find it sexy. That is a great message. And the other thing that it reminds me of is, there's a saying that I hear, which is, you know, all of us are looking for somebody to love. But also all of us are looking for somebody to love us. And that's really important. It is it is. And I think the other thing is that if you're not getting what you want out of the relationship, then you get to be that strong person and say, I want to do something different. Or I want this or I need to go or I need to stay or, you know, whatever it is, but you get to be the one that's in charge. And sometimes it's as easy as looking at that person and saying, Hey, this is not okay. And see what happens. And what I've noticed is that when I do that, it's much easier to ask the person to step up. Absolutely. And they want to step up. People want to step up. But you just need to kind of tell them. So a funny story on that. I was in a relationship and he was working really hard. I think I was working really hard too. But there wasn't a lot of time that we had for us. And we used to talk on the phone a lot. And I was just like, you know what? This isn't working. I mean, the talking on the phone is great, but I need to see you and he goes, Okay. And I said, so tell me what you got. And he goes, Well, I guess we need to do a date night every Friday. And I was like, all right. So every Friday night, we did a date night. And it was just as simple as asking and I thought I was going to get a rebuttal or, or that's not gonna work for me. Or maybe I can't do that for you or whatever. But it was as simple as that.

Michelle's Third Song:

Okay, that's an awesome story. So here's my next one. This one is like way over on the other side of the spectrum. I'm doing "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper. Everybody knows this song. I think everybody knows this song, but I still think it's relevant. This was actually one of my first like, albums. I remember like an actual album, the vinyl, you know, thing. And I loved it because it just seemed so light. And it still seems light. I can still sing every word, you know, sometimes it gets stuck in my head. And it is, to me a perfect song to dance to. And I think the point of it is that not every moment in our life has to be serious. Right? We don't have to go through life constantly doing the next thing or the next chore. Sometimes you just need to have fun. And so many people are working so hard these days. I just think the reminder to put on your favorite song, whether it's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" or "Defying Gravity" or, or something else, and take that time for you and dance around your house and be a little bit silly. To me, that's what the song is all about. And it always makes me feel better. That's my story. So what's interesting about that song is, you know, she did a follow-up song. I think it's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun After Dark." Right. And it's really about how girls are still holding up the family and holding up the career and doing all that stuff. But then they're going to go out and party. Yeah. And so what I like about this one is it just gives you permission to have fun. It gives you permission to step out of that caretaker role. And there's a time to just say, Oh, I'm going to go dance. So I think this is great for Fourth of July, but I also think it's great for Valentine's Day. You know, if you're not with somebody just go out and have fun. Just go out and have fun. Valentine's Day doesn't have to be any big thing or even going out, but it's doing something for yourself. Absolutely. Yeah, I like that. Good call.

Cinthia's Third Song:

Okay, so I'm going to go on to my third song. "Run the World" by Beyonce. Love this song. Yeah, so here's why I love this song. It's a calling to all the girls. And it gives you permission to stand up and to, you know, do the thing. And it doesn't have to be anything other than just standing up and doing the thing, which is great. Right? It reminds me of one of my first real spiritual awakenings. I was standing in a metaphysical bookstore. And I was looking at all the books. And I thought, oh my god, I'm never gonna get to read all these books. I'm so far behind. And I could hear laughing behind me. And I was like, oh my god, and there was this little tiny black lady standing there, I say she's black, because she was from Africa. So she really was African American. She was just all dialed up. And she had her turban on and all these beautiful colors. And she just looked at me and she was very wise. And she just put her hand on her chest and she goes, honey, all you have to do is smile. And I was like, Oh my god. And it was such a profound moment that it's never left me. It's like sometimes the thing that you need to do is to just be happy and to be loud in your joy. Oh, that's wonderful. So "Run the World" by Beyonce, I think it's a great call to all the girls. Yeah, to come together and to stand up and to be happy and do your thing.

Bonus Songs for Younger Generations:

I love it. Okay, well, let's give a couple of shout-outs to a couple other songs that might work for you. Cinthia, what are your two or three shout-outs to songs that might fit for our younger generation of people? So I was thinking about what is really popular right now. Cardi B's "WAP." Oh my gosh, talk about confidence. Love it. Megan Thee Stallion, "Body." Okay, I know that one's on TikTok a lot. People like that one. And then "PYNK" by Janelle Monáe. And what I love about that one is it's really a love letter to the labia and it is a song and it is a video. The video is pretty cool, right? And it goes through all kinds of gender identity things too. But it is just a great song of independence and you are who you are. And it's beautiful.

Closing Remarks:

I love it. I love it. Those are some great selections. So listeners, if you like these suggestions, please try listening to these songs. Please tell us if you like them. Please tell us if there's something that resonated with you. We would love to hear from you. We will put links to these songs, maybe we'll do a little playlist, in the show notes so that you can find them and enjoy them and let us know what you think.

Thank you so much for joining us today on this special episode of Mind Power Meets Mystic with Michelle Walters and Cinthia Varkevisser. We hope you enjoyed our selections for celebrating self-care and independence through music. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share our podcast. We appreciate your support and look forward to connecting with you next time.

Happy Independence Day!