Introducing SGTI's Newest Faculty Member
August 27, 2023
Welcome to Kristina Kaiser!
Could you tell us a bit about who you are? What would you like for the SGTI community to know about you?
I’m a mother of 4, a wife, a spiritual guide, and a pastor. We’re from, and currently live, in Central Wisconsin, but we lived in the Boston area for 18 years, which has left me feeling like I have two places I can equally call home.
In the last several years, my husband and I have picked up a huge interest in growing food. In fact, we recently took out our deck and built a small greenhouse where we hope to be able to keep growing through the winter. We marvel daily at a cardinal that sits in the nearby pine trees and sings a song that sounds like, “So pretty, so pretty, so pretty, tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet.” And while I was first not at all amused with the pine needles and pine cones that fall from said pine trees, I’ve come to view them as friends and even guardians. I tend to live into my experience of home, as if it were some sort of oasis or sanctuary.
For many years now, I’ve had a strong interest in joy. In general, people tend to describe me as having a sunny disposition, and while I agree, I’ve always been curious about the why. Life isn’t always easy. And so where does joy come from? Can it be cultivated? Does it require replenishment, and if so, how much and how often?
As for the rest of my labels, it’s really a winding road. I began my adult life studying opera. But one day in my mid-20’s, I woke up one morning with the distinct realization that I needed to do something with my life that was far more people-focused. This eventually led to becoming the pastor of a small church that offered inclusion, participation in social action, and fun. My work as a Spiritual Guide ultimately evolved naturally from there.
How do you define spiritual companionship? How do you practice spiritual companionship?
Since I’m a fast and energetic person by nature, I’ve found it helpful to imagine two people, sitting in intertubes, floating down a Lazy River together. This image helps me keep the journey of life in the forefront of my mind. For me, I often say that spiritual companionship is about having a place where you can - not just share - but even discover your own story. Life is often moving so fast that we don’t have time to process what it all means. And sometimes when we do try to do that, we find that our need for someone to witness our story becomes intertwined with everyone else’s need for the very same thing.
So for one, spiritual companionship is having a place where you can share your story, name your joys and your difficulties, and discover meaning. It’s a safe space where you can know you won’t be judged or pressured. And it’s a place where all of you belongs, where you can be as sure or as unsure as you are.
As for how I practice spiritual companionship, most recently, I’ve been inspired by some words from Psalm 145 where the author talks of One who both upholds and raises up. I often speak of spiritual guidance as being an encouraging space, but to be a space where you can feel both “upheld” and “raised up” feels even more powerful to me. Whenever I enter that space for companionship, I aspire to be one who is rooted in Presence, who is with you compassionately, and who is holding space for you to connect with Mystery.
What do you like about SGTI and what are your hopes as you begin working with SGTI?
As someone who first encountered SGTI as a student, I know first-hand how important SGTI’s offerings quickly became to me. As a mother of young children, it was important for me to find a program that was offered primarily online. What’s more, SGTI ultimately put words to ways I had been trying to live for a very long time. It meant everything for me to find a community of people where I could practice being together in interspiritual and intercontemplative ways. Diversity is an important aspect of how I desire to live in community with others, and SGTI creates an environment that brings that diversity to life.
What’s more, when I first applied to SGTI, I had a lot of questions about whether or not I could fit in the larger community of spiritual guides. Both the directors of SGTI and my cohort helped me truly appreciate the gifts I uniquely brought to the table. All of this culminated in me being able to write a graduation speech that included the words, “I am saying yes to authentically sharing the Joy Spark in my own heart.”
In working with SGTI, I’m eager to contribute to an environment that is encouraging others to uniquely be who they are, both in their work as spiritual guides and in the world at large. I’m excited to work with a team that believes that our work as spiritual guides can bring about peace, equity, and justice in our world. And I’m motivated to be a voice that welcomes interconnection and interdependence.