Earth Tones Podcast

Ella Kuhn

Earth Tones is a soulful podcast rooted in four pillars: survival, passion, service, and love. Born from personal experience, spiritual devotion, and huge heart for humanity, this show explores the sacred intersections of faith, culture, healing, empowerment, and human connection.  Through raw storytelling, spiritual reflection, and conversations that matter, host Ella- a single mama, creative, solo traveler, and once, non profit founder- invites you into the journeying that shapes each of us. From her time working with refugees in Syria and Afghanistan to the quiet revelations that come through motherhood, each episode offers perspective, purpose, and permission to keep growing.  Whether you’re rebuilding, reimagining, or reaching for more- this space is for you. For the ones yearning for closer connections to each other or to God. Earth Tones is a return to what is real- a rhythm, a remembering, a quiet rebellion against a world that tells you to stay surface- level. Here, we go deeper.

  1. APR 28

    Episode 38: Let’s Talk About It, Why I’m Still Single

    Send us Fan Mail This episode came from a really simple but honest realization I had recently… I’m not single.  I’m ALIIIVE!  The word “single” has been carrying a lot of weight that doesn’t actually belong to it. For some people, it means something is missing.  It turns into questions like: Why are you single?  Why aren’t you married?  What’s wrong? And then on the other side, it swings into this hyper-independent, anti-love energy.. I don’t fully resonate with either. I wanted to sit down and talk through what this season has actually looked like for me. After almost 7 years of being a single mom, I’ve had time to really observe life-  my own patterns, relationships around me, and what actually creates stability… especially when kids are involved. This episode is about: redefining what “single” actually meansthe pressure women feel to explain their relationship statuswhy I stopped saying I’m single… and started saying I’m alivewhat it means to build a life that already feels fullhow time gives you clarity in what you actually need in a partnermy ideal man “list” (to God)and why I’m willing to wait for alignment instead of settling for “decent”I also share some perspective around: single-parent households in the U.S.how common this actually isand why bringing someone into your life (and your kids’ life) isn’t something I take lightlyThis isn’t about being anti-love, I do want love. I do want marriage. I would love to have more children. But I’m not living from a place where something is missing while I wait for that. 🫶🏼 Connect with Host, Ella 🎞️ Earth Tones Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthtones.podcast 🎞️ Personal Instagram https://www.instagram.com/earthmamaella 🎬 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@earthtones.podcast 🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@earthtones-podcast

    32 min
  2. APR 21

    Episode 37: Think Twice, Discernment in a Digital World

    Send us Fan Mail How often do patterns show up before the problem ever does? Not just online… but in how we move through our lives. What we share. What we normalize. What we stop questioning. In a digital world, those patterns don’t just stay personal… they become visible and sometimes even traceable. We’re not called to live in fear but we are called to be aware. “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise.” — Ephesians 5:15 “Watch your life and doctrine closely…” — 1 Timothy 4:16 “The prudent see danger and take refuge…” — Proverbs 22:3 There’s wisdom in noticing.  There’s protection in awareness. In this episode, I talk through: the subtle patterns we tend to overlookhow repetition can quietly reveal more than we realizewhy awareness is not fear—it’s protectionand how to move with more intention in what we share and how we show up onlineI also touch on something I think matters to say out loud-  there’s a difference between sharing meaningful, consented moments (especially in global work or storytelling)…  and unintentionally creating patterns in everyday life that make us more visible than we realize. Especially when it comes to our children. Our routines. Our homes. We don’t need to disappear.  But we do need to be mindful. Because what we miss… someone else might not. 🧭 Helpful Resources If this stirred something in you and you want to go deeper, here are a few places to start: For digital awareness + safety: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) — resources on online safety for familiesCommon Sense Media — guides for social media, kids, and digital boundariesStop.Think.Connect. — simple digital safety practicesPractical things to consider: Turn off location tagging on posts (or delay posting)Avoid sharing consistent routines in real-timeCheck privacy settings across platformsBe mindful of what backgrounds reveal (schools, streets, landmarks)For spiritual grounding + discernment: Revisit Proverbs (wisdom + awareness)Sit with Psalm 119 (guidance + alignment)Reflect on James 1:5 (asking for wisdom)

    18 min
  3. MAR 24

    Episode 34: Egyptian Christian Monks, Better Known as the Desert Fathers

    Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we step back into the early centuries of Christianity, long before institutions, long before polished theology and into the raw, quiet lives of the Egyptian monks known as the Desert Fathers. After the death of Jesus and the scattering of early believers, faith spread primarily through oral tradition- shared in homes, over meals, and in small, intimate communities. But as Christianity began to grow and shift within society, some believers felt called not toward influence, but toward withdrawal. Beginning in the 3rd and 4th centuries AD (around 250–400 AD), men and women fled into the deserts of Egypt seeking a deeper, more undistracted relationship with God. These individuals later called the Desert Fathers and Mothers- lived lives marked by silence, prayer, simplicity, and inner transformation. Figures like Anthony the Great and Pachomius helped shape what would become the foundation of Christian monasticism. Their teachings were not written as formal theology, but passed down through short sayings, stories, and lived example. This episode explores: The historical moment that gave rise to the Desert FathersWhy early Christians walked away from society into the wildernessThe role of silence, solitude, and spiritual disciplineHow their wisdom was preserved through oral traditionWhat their lives reveal about the earliest expressions of the Christian faithAn invitation to meditate This is not just history, it’s an invitation to reconsider what it means to live a quiet, grounded, and intentional spiritual life in a world that is often anything but. 📚 Sources & Further Reading If you want listeners to go deeper, these are beautiful, credible, and widely respected: The Sayings of the Desert Fathers (also called Apophthegmata Patrum) → Short, powerful wisdom sayings directly from the Desert FathersThe Life of Anthony by Athanasius of Alexandria → One of the earliest and most influential accounts of desert monastic lifeThe Desert Fathers: Sayings of the Early Christian Monks → A very accessible modern translationThe Lives of the Desert Fathers → Narrative-style stories of their lives and practicesThe Spirituality of the Desert Fathers → A reflective, modern lens on their wisdomConnect with Host, Ella 🎞️ Earth Tones Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthtones.podcast 🎞️ Personal Instagram https://www.instagram.com/earthmamaella 🎬 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@earthtones.podcast 🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@earthtones-podcast

    14 min
  4. MAR 17

    Episode 33: Part 2- Ancient Wisdom & Walking the Rooms of Your Interior Castle

    Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, I spend a little more time exploring The Interior Castle by Teresa of Ávila and her beautiful image of the soul as a castle with many rooms. Each room represents a different stage of the spiritual journey, inviting us to move deeper inward toward God. I gently walk through Teresa’s seven rooms of the castle and pause for reflection, asking where you might see yourself within them right now. Along the way, I also lightly reference the writings of John of the Cross and his idea of the Dark Night of the Soul, exploring how seasons of spiritual dryness may actually be some of the most meaningful parts of the journey. One image I return to is that our spiritual life is a lot like a landscape. Beautiful landscapes aren’t made only of sunshine. They include storms, fog, quiet valleys, and long seasons of shaping. In the same way, faith often grows through both clarity and mystery. I also share a personal reflection on how this metaphor can change the way we see others. Instead of closing doors when we don’t see eye to eye, perhaps we can remember that we are all moving through different rooms of the same castle, each on our own path inward. Toward the end of the episode, I briefly touch on the wisdom of the desert seekers who embraced silence and solitude as part of their spiritual life, reminding us that the journey inward has always been part of the human search for God. New episodes of Earth Tones release every Earth Tone Tuesday. 🌿 Connect with Host, Ella 🎞️ Earth Tones Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthtones.podcast 🎞️ Personal Instagram https://www.instagram.com/earthmamaella 🎬 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@earthtones.podcast 🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@earthtones-podcast

    10 min
  5. MAR 10

    Episode 32: Part 1- The Spiritual Garden & Lessons from a 500-Year-Old Spanish Mystic

    Send us Fan Mail Many of us know the feeling of spiritual dryness. We pray, we search, we scroll, we listen to podcasts… and still feel strangely disconnected from ourselves, from our relationships, and from God. In this episode of Earth Tones, I reflect on a heavy start to the year and the quiet realization that sometimes the problem isn’t that God has gone silent. Sometimes it’s that our world has become too loud. Looking back nearly 500 years, a Spanish mystic named Teresa of Ávila wrote about the soul’s journey toward God in her book The Interior Castle. Her reflections on prayer, stillness, and the inner life feel surprisingly relevant in a generation shaped by constant digital noise. Digital boundaries this week have opened unexpected space for reading, reflection, and creativity.  In this conversation, we explore: • What spiritual dryness can look like in the modern world • Why prophets and spiritual leaders often withdrew into wilderness and solitude • The Physical and Spiritual preparation I’m currently working on • A gentle visualization of your own interior castle • Why spiritual growth is like tending a garden  Sometimes the wisdom we need most was written long before we were born. More on the development of my reading on next weeks episode! Connect with Host, Ella 🎞️ Earth Tones Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthtones.podcast 🎞️ Personal Instagram https://www.instagram.com/earthmamaella 🎬 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@earthtones.podcast 🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@earthtones-podcast

    18 min
4.5
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

Earth Tones is a soulful podcast rooted in four pillars: survival, passion, service, and love. Born from personal experience, spiritual devotion, and huge heart for humanity, this show explores the sacred intersections of faith, culture, healing, empowerment, and human connection.  Through raw storytelling, spiritual reflection, and conversations that matter, host Ella- a single mama, creative, solo traveler, and once, non profit founder- invites you into the journeying that shapes each of us. From her time working with refugees in Syria and Afghanistan to the quiet revelations that come through motherhood, each episode offers perspective, purpose, and permission to keep growing.  Whether you’re rebuilding, reimagining, or reaching for more- this space is for you. For the ones yearning for closer connections to each other or to God. Earth Tones is a return to what is real- a rhythm, a remembering, a quiet rebellion against a world that tells you to stay surface- level. Here, we go deeper.