Curious Ahjuma's Podcast

Abby and Jess share their story of falling in love, serving in the military as gay women, having babies, and challenging our society's often mistaken assumptions.    Their relationship is beautiful, thoughtful, and encouraging.  Above all, what you hear is that love is love is love.  

When Andy started his theatre career in San Diego in the mid 90s, there were little to no roles for Asian Americans in the theatre space.  So just like a true pioneer, he refused to accept the closed doors and created his own.  Today he has paved the way for so many Asian American actors in the US and now he is the Director of Production and Casting at East West Players in Los Angeles.  I'm grateful for people like Andy who have so much grit and vision.  

In this episode, Mona and I talk about Mona's Abba (Dad) who moved to the US from Korea to live and dream a life of authenticity.  It's emotional and so familiar to so many of us who share the common ground of immigration to the US.    

Aimee is a passionate and compassionate teacher.  She loves her children - not just her own but also her children at school.  Aimee teaches and runs programs for children with autism and she celebrates how differently their minds can see the world at times.  

One of the scariest memories I have as a mother was when my own daughter had an unexplained illness.  The uncertainty, the fear of losing your child, and the unbearable moments of seeing your child suffer feels like someone placed your heart on an open chopping board.  Alex and Carrie share their story of grief, pain, and triumph as they talk about their daughter's battle with Leukemia.   #CurrynStrong

I would love for Jared Barbick to toot his own horn more because he is truly inspirational and just a genuinely good, thoughtful human being.  But he is too humble for that.  Listen to our talk about his childhood struggles with Attention Deficit Disorder, refusing to be put into a box, and his ultimate rise in art and teaching. 

Jeff talks about being a nurse and his patient caretaking that takes him on journeys that begin with newborns and end with the elderly.   He talks about the celebration of life, grief, and joy and gives us insight on what it is like to care for the dying.  

This episode is just one story of the many that I feel exist inside me.  But it is the one that beat me down to the floor, the one that  left the imprint of trauma in my DNA.   I tell it because this is part of my healing journey and because I am using my power and my voice to transform a negative event into something positive. This is how I take back what was taken and this is perhaps the justice I had always sought.  I hope that you Dear Survivor find your justice and healing too.    

In this episode, I interview Michelle and Toma about their love story.  They met quite accidentally at an intersection in New York City. Their path to love had a lot of road blocks that they had to tackle together but their stars are aligned and they now share their cute, inspiring, and fulfilling love with the Curious Ahj. 

Today's guest is Bill White. I love Bill's story - it's so human,  complicated, and beautiful. Bill is a pastor of the City Church of Long Beach and he insists you only call him Bill, not Pastor Bill.  He's not a man of formal titles. His current church congregation looks very different  from his first congregation.  There's a lot of growth, wisdom, and pain in between - much of which was triggered by Bill's desire to have conversations around LGBTQ acceptance.  During this same time, Bill's son courageously shared that he was gay and wanted to be open and authentic. In this episode, we talk about Bill's grieving, his struggle, his son's incredible courage, and then his overwhelming love. This is not the typical Christian coming-out story you hear about.  Join me as I get curious about Bill's journey.