Welcome to our first episode of 2024! Today I'm speaking with Canadian metalsmith, Robin McGauley. Robin shares her journey from leaving a career she loved as an ordained minister in order to follow a deeper longing to create beauty with her hands as well as her heart. We talk about abandoning fear, healing ourselves with the medicine of our work, the link between voice and vocation, deepening the connection to our inner wisdom, and toilets!  Robin McGauley was an ordained minister in The United Church of Canada where she served as Program Director at a retreat centre and then as a policy writer for the organization. This was meaningful work, so giving it up to follow the longing of her heart and a deeper calling to be an artist was a painful yet beautiful process.   Since 2019 Robin has been a full-time metalsmith, creating jewellery and small sculptures, as well as seeing clients who come to her for spiritual direction. She has also taught courses in the Expressive Arts program at the Haliburton School of Art & Design.  Robin lives with her incredibly supportive husband in Kitchener, Ontario, which is the territory of the Haudenosaunee, Anishnaabe and Neutral peoples.    You can follow along with Robin and see her beautiful offerings at the links below.   Instagram: @robin.mcgauley.metalsmithing   Website: robinmcgauley.com   Substack: @robinmcgauley   Books discussed in the podcast:    Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking by David Bayles & Ted Orland   Beauty: The Invisible Embrace by John O'Donohue   Please consider supporting the podcast by joining our Slowmade Podcast Community on Patreon. Your support makes the podcast possible!   Do you have someone you would like to hear interviewed on Slowmade? Please connect with Christine on Instagram @christinemighion