Seen. Heard. Imagined.®

In the season two finale, Elan Masliyah and Rabbi Mark Bloom of Temple Beth Abraham in Oakland, California join Michelle for a conversation years in the making. Elan is an HR technology executive and interfaith advocate, and he is also the son of Judy Masliyah, Michelle's former therapist. Rabbi Bloom is one of the Bay Area's longest serving rabbis, leading a congregation of more than 520 families since 2001. Together they take on the question most people are too polite to ask plainly. What is Judaism? Then the conversation turns to grief. Elan lost both parents four months apart during COVID, and Rabbi Bloom explains why Judaism handles death so well, from burial within days, to shiva, to the eleven months of the Mourner's Kaddish. They also unpack what chosen people actually means, why misunderstanding it has fueled antisemitism, and a piece of Hebrew numerology where love and unity add up to the name of God. 💬 Topics: Judaism explained, interfaith dialogue, Jewish mourning traditions, the chosen people, Jewish mysticism, grief and loss 🙏 Emotional Themes: grief, kindness, belonging, reflection, repair Special Guest - Elan Masliyah & Rabbi Mark Bloom Elan Masliyah on LinkedIn Rabbi Mark Bloom on YouTube Other Links Support the Mission of Seen. Heard. Imagined. Join the Substack Community Additional Show Credits Music by: Mr. Faia Edited by: Christopher Outridge Intro/outro VOG by: Tony Tee Neto Produced & Hosted by: Michelle Francine Productions

Afiya Howell is a Christian comedian, worship leader, and content creator whose sketches about praying mamas, communion, and the pearly gates grew her platform from under a thousand followers to nearly four hundred thousand. She's also a trained chef, a caterer, and the worship director at Shepherd's House International Christian Church. In this conversation she talks about where the ideas come from, the backlash from people who call her comedy blasphemous, and why she still sleeps well at night. Then it turns tender. Grab your tissue! She describes the season after her mother died, the depression that met her in the spring of 2020, and the moment the Holy Spirit made her laugh hard enough to break it. She shares the three words she would use for her mom, why she serves through her hardest seasons, and what a lost passport taught her about asking. 💬 Topics: Christian comedy, faith based content creation, worship ministry, grief and loss, spiritual discernment, serving through hardship 🙏 Emotional Themes: joy, grief, laughter, obedience, legacy Special Guest - Afiya Howell Instagram:@iamafiya YouTube: www.youtube.com/@AfiyaHowellMedia Other Links Support the Mission of Seen. Heard. Imagined. Join the Substack Community Additional Show Credits Music by: Mr. Faia Edited by: Christopher Outridge Intro/outro VOG by: Tony Tee Neto Produced & Hosted by: Michelle Francine Productions

Anastasia Gerali is a faith-based therapist and mentor for Christian women who spent years as a clinical hypnotherapist and New Age teacher before Christ called her out of it. From a village of thirty people in Cyprus, she walks through what New Ageism actually covers, why she calls yoga her gateway drug, how Gnosticism smuggles in almost truths about Christ, and the difference between channeling a spirit and prophesying the word of God. She is clear that she is not speaking down to anyone. She was the first to dip her hand in that cookie jar, and she is open about the depression, the missing childhood memories, and the patterns that sent her searching in the first place. She also shares why the Lord had her close her practice for three years, and what past life regressions really are. 💬 Topics: New Age deliverance, yoga and Christianity, Gnosticism, channeling and discernment, past life regression, hypnotherapy 🙏 Emotional Themes: repentance, deliverance, discernment, humility, surrender Special Guest - Anastasia Gerali Instagram YouTube Other Links Support the Mission of Seen. Heard. Imagined. Join the Substack Community Additional Show Credits Music by: Mr. Faia Edited by: Christopher Outridge Intro/outro VOG by: Tony Tee Neto Produced & Hosted by: Michelle Francine Productions

Marvin Stockwell is the co-founder and head of communications at BVO, the immersive experience company building Baron Von Opperbein and the River of Time inside the former Mississippi River Museum on Mud Island in Memphis, TN. A native Memphian who spent years at Church Health and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital before founding his own PR practice, he makes the case that rebuilding a neglected civic asset is spiritual work, and shares how BVO welcomed ten thousand visitors from forty four states and ten countries in its first three months. He is also candid about the season of job loss that brought him here, the crape myrtle his priest used to explain what pruning feels like from the inside, and why he believes doubt and faith need each other. He closes with two prayers that have shaped him, including one from Thomas Merton about not knowing where you are going. 💬 Topics: immersive experience industry, Mud Island Memphis, faith and vocation, nonprofit communications, civic renewal, career transition 🙏 Emotional Themes: trust, wonder, doubt, perseverance, belonging Special Guest - Marvin Stockwell BVO Website: Baron Von Opperbein and the River of Time Instagram X Other Links Support the Mission of Seen. Heard. Imagined. Join the Substack Community Additional Show Credits Music by: Mr. Faia Edited by: Christopher Outridge Produced & Hosted by: Michelle Francine Productions

The episode opens with a mystery from Michelle's childhood, a neighbor who disappeared every Sunday and never explained why. Decades later, Lacey finally answers it. Lacey Yamaguchi is a stay at home mother of five boys and her son Ashton is a twenty three year old student and amateur theologian who served a mission in Provo, Utah. Both are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in this conversation they take on the questions people are often too polite to ask, from Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon to the history of polygamy and what Latter-day Saints actually believe about becoming like God. 💬 Topics: Latter-day Saint beliefs, Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, interfaith dialogue, Sabbath observance, motherhood and faith 🙏 Emotional Themes: curiosity, reconnection, conviction, honesty, belonging Special Guest - Lacey & Ashton Yamaguchi The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Other Links Support the Mission of Seen. Heard. Imagined. Join the Substack Community Additional Show Credits Music by: Mr. Faia Edited by: Christopher Outridge Produced & Hosted by: Michelle Francine Productions