Perennials Podcast

Your intrepid host is no longer a twenty-something trying to figure stuff out--as of this past July, I'm now a thirty-something trying to figure stuff out! To mark the occasion, this past summer I asked previous Perennials guests to share some wisdom about the third decade of life. They delivered reflections on what they let go of when leaving their twenties, what they wish they could tell their 30 year old self, things they are enjoying or did enjoy about their thirties, and advice on what to hold close during this decade. Their responses are so comforting, kind, and thoughtful that they brought me to tears. I'll continue to cherish these messages for years to come, and I am so happy to share them with you. I also included some of my own brief reflections on this transition, and on what I'm learning about and growing into lately around what it means to create a home for myself.  Many, many thanks (in order of appearance) to the following good, kind, wise friends: Ona Gritz (Episode 15: Broken Things Can Shine) Danica Browne (Episode 68: Exploring the Midnight Library) Mallory Mortillaro (Episode 29: The Mystery of the Missing Statue) Catherine Gilmartin (Episode 21: Dog's Best Friend) Melissa Adamo (Episode 12: Growing Up Gilmore and Episode 64: Spring Cleaning) Zoe Gillis (Episode 43: Holding Space) Andy Feldman (Episode 18: Music & Creativity) Jessica Gaeta (Episode 27: And How Does That Make You Feel? and Episode 64: Spring Cleaning) Alex Baron (Episode 30: Not Babysitting) Lauren Roberts (Episode 23: Spirals of Healing and Episode 36: Grown Ups Vote) Sarah Koestner (Episode 39: True Love) Maya Sanyal (Episode 50: How You Matter, Part 1 and Episode 51: How You Matter, Part 2) Karen Florance (Episode 38: Spiritual Direction for Christmas) Meghan deBoer (Episode 56: Money Matters) Heather Tynan (Episode 11: Living in the Light Today) Lily Percy (Episode 40: Stories that Change Us)

In today's episode, I'm talking to Maria Bowler, a contemplative artist, spiritual director, and enneagram guide. We discuss the mysterious roots of the enneagram, and Maria shares her unique way of differentiating the nine different types, as well as ways to think about identifying our own type. I ask Maria some of my most burning questions about spiritual seeking and growth in general. Is it ever too early to get on a spiritual path? How do we find ourselves while also trying to learn to surrender and let go? How do we get in right relationship with our will and desire while connecting to something bigger than ourselves? So, we got into the deep end pretty quickly, and I loved every minute of it! I know you'll love exploring Maria's poetic, compassionate and wise perspective, too.  References:  The Enneagram Institute The Wisdom of the Enneagram The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective 

Today, I'm talking about couples therapy with Dr. Nadia Nieves, PhD, a limited license therapist in New York City. Nadia works with couples using an integrated approach of relational psychodynamic, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) interventions. She prioritizes supporting her clients in learning how to understand each other, navigating life transitions and conflict, and facilitating adaptive communication skills. I was so excited to pick Nadia's brain about many things that make couples tick: expectations and agreements (or lack thereof), communication styles, family dynamics and history, and how our attachment styles and sense of self worth factor into the health of our relationship. In our conversation, we dispel some myths about couples therapy and who it's for, and discuss common issues that couples bring into sessions. Nadia is so smart, warm and compassionate in her approach to helping people learn how to better love each other and themselves. 

In today's episode, my friend Danica Browne and I are unpacking themes from the novel The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. This is a book about unlived lives, regret, possibility, and hope. In this episode, Danica and I are talking about how these themes play out in our own lives. We discuss living vicariously through fictional characters, the subtleties of familial expectations, regrets and wonderings we have in the realms of career and relationships, and dreams that we suspect would not be as idyllic in real life as they are in our heads. As always, if you have thoughts about today's episode, feel free to let me know! Email me at perennialspodcast@gmail.com or message me on Instagram @perennialspodcast. 

In today's shorter, solo episode, I'm talking about wanting something, trying and striving for something, sitting with uncertainty, anxiety and excitement, entertaining romantic ideas and fantasies about greener grass, and ultimately, being disappointed. It's so common in early adulthood, with so much uncertainty coming from all angles, to feel restless, impatient, desperate to prove ourselves and try to make everything okay. And yet, the nature of life is change. Trying for things and feeling feelings means we are alive, and means sometimes we will struggle and be disappointed. Today, I'm talking about riding all sorts of feelings without pushing them away or labelling them as bad, and about what I've been learning about patience and keeping my seat. 

My sister Felicia Russell and I are continuing and concluding our conversation about Taylor Swift's album Folklore with an exploration of themes like commitment, communication, betrayal, and escape. We share personal stories from our own lives about things falling apart and coming together, just like they do in the songs we're unpacking today. And, we pull out some creative writing tips from some of the techniques we see Swift using in her songs.

In today's episode, my sister Felicia Russell and I are unpacking wisdom from a little-known indie album we found in the back of a dusty old record shop...okay, just kidding. We're close-reading one of the most talked-about albums of 2020, Taylor Swift's Folklore. Our little romantic English and History-loving hearts skip a beat as we unpack each track, discussing themes like unlived lives, patience, anger, forgiveness, people-pleasing and managing mental health struggles. We discuss how the songs highlight cultural values and timeless human experiences, and we share stories from our own lives that reflect lessons from Folklore.  Come back next week for part 2! 

There's something about springtime that can bring a renewed sense of energy and a desire to declutter, freshen up, make space, and look forward with hopefulness. That's why I decided to talk to Monica Geller and Danny Tanner--I mean, sorry, my cleanest and most organized friends and previous Perennials guests Melissa Adamo and Jessica Gaeta. Join us as we discuss cleaning for company, writing everything down, meeting resistance, and managing gendered pressures and expectations around housekeeping that impact our relationships to ourselves and the people we love most. And, of course, we talk about Jess's planner.  Be sure to follow Jess @organziedbyjess on Instagram for organization inspiration!

In Part 2 of our conversation about learning to parent ourselves, Sheryl Paul and I get into even deeper and richer territory--the territory of heart and soul.  We talk about tuning into what's happening in our bodies and in our hearts, and having patience and compassion for whatever we find. We talk about both reaching out for connection and strengthening our inner sense of self. And then there's the most mysterious but equally important key to parenting ourselves that Sheryl speaks to at the end of the episode--connecting to something bigger than us.  

My first-ever Perennials guest is back! This time, beloved therapist and author (whom I'm lucky to call my aunt!) Sheryl Paul and I are talking about learning to parent ourselves. This topic comes up a lot in Sheryl's work as a therapist: the practice of strengthening the part of ourselves that can hold space for big feelings, offer ourselves and others compassion and, with steady wisdom, discern how to act in accordance with our values.  In addition to talking about relating to our emotions, we also talk about the extremely practical, mundane parts of parenting ourselves: taking responsibility for the less fun parts of life, like basic household upkeep, and how to work with resistance around these tasks.  Stay tuned for Part 2 of our conversation next week! 

In today's episode, I'm talking to Shannon K Evans about themes from her book Embracing Weakness: The Unlikely Secret to Changing the World. Shannon is an author, speaker, contemplative and advocate who demonstrates how embracing our need for each other can lead us to greater connection, freedom and love. We talk about how she met her edges in missionary work and motherhood, how we can embrace weakness without being engulfed by it, and the importance of giving ourselves permission to live into our full humanity. 

Today’s episode is a reflection on seasons and being in between seasons. In the month of March here in New Jersey, we have one foot in winter, one in spring. Similarly, I began this podcast out of a sense of feeling in between life seasons in the decade of my 20s--not quite an adolescent, not quite an adult. This episode is an exploration of how our physical environment and surroundings impact our sense of connectedness and presence. It's about finding a little more slowness and kindness, presence and rhythm, space and awareness, in order to dance with hope and openness, to name desire, plant roots, bend without breaking and look forward to rebirth amidst the constant cycle of endings and beginnings.

Jessica Kradjel and I continue our conversation about friendship in today's episode. Jess describes her experience of creating a close chosen family and living community with two of her college friends in their early-mid 20s, and what it’s been like to maintain that friendship once they moved to different places. We also talk about rekindling friendships that have lost their spark or built up baggage, and making new friends as an adult...which, as we all know, can be really hard!

In today’s episode, I’m talking to my friend of almost twenty years, Jessica Kradjel. We trace the trajectory of our friendship from light rivalry in sixth grade Chorus class to long distance love throughout college and beyond. During this trip down memory lane, we explore some of the common experiences we and many others have faced in the realm of friendship: friendships of convenience vs. friendships rooted in values and deep connection; how it’s easy to fall in love with friends but perhaps harder to stay in it for the long haul; and how our romantic relationships and the trappings of adulthood have affected our friendships (and vice versa). We talk about what has helped us to remain friends for so long (both factors in and outside of our control) and some of the things we struggle with in friendship, like jealousy and fear of change, and how we meet those struggles.

Today, I'm talking to Zachary Cox. Zac is a Ph.D. student in the Disaster Science and Management program at The University of Delaware, and since April 2020 he has interviewed almost 100 people from different walks of life to find out how they've been affected by and are responding to the disaster of the covid-19 pandemic. In our conversation today, Zac and I talk about what he's learned from these interviews, including learning to listen and lead with curiosity rather than assumptions. We also talk about the resilient kindness that has helped Zac get to this point in his PhD program, cultivated through his experiences with learning disabilities and being raised by a hardworking single mother. And, we discuss what we've struggled with and ways we've found solace throughout the pandemic. 

Today's episode is about the very grown-up topic of money. So many young adults, like myself, enter into a tough job market with a ton of student debt, little financial education, and no idea how to afford rent. It's easy to feel completely overwhelmed, and to avoid looking at or making a plan for your finances, or to obsessively worry about any spending.  I'm thrilled to share my conversation with Megan deBoer, the founder of Tended Wealth, a business that helps individuals heal their emotional and practical relationship to money. As a certified Financial Recovery Counselor, her approach considers the context of our current financial circumstance: our lived experience, our family of origin, and the broad culture that shape our beliefs about money.  We talk about turning towards and rebuilding our relationship to money, and how to take steps towards slow, incremental, meaningful change that can bring us a greater sense of agency, responsibility and empowerment. 

Today's guest is my aunt, Lizzie Finn. We're talking about how Lizzie has grown through some difficult experiences in midlife (including chronic illness, divorce and empty nest syndrome) and the commonality she finds with young adults asking questions about identity, purpose and true happiness. Lizzie talks about attending to past wounds and trauma, healing to live (not living to heal), and drawing inspiration from our inner children to keep looking forward, learning and growing.  Lizzie is a screenwriting instructor and script consultant trained in the Gateless Writing methodology and program manager of the Screenwriting Academy at Project Write Now. She writes on Medium about health, happiness, relationships, midlife, spirituality, tv and film, politics and psychedelic therapy. During a turbulent year of many transitions, Lizzie embarked on a certificate program in Happiness Studies and discovered the key to getting through life's challenges is to have a sense of purpose and passion. She is dedicated to living a life in creative flow and helping others do the same. 

Amber Haines is the author of Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desire and Finding the Broken Way Home (2015), a spiritual memoir about her search for freedom, belonging and true intimacy with God. Amber's book traces her path from an Evangelical childhood in Alabama to her rebellious teen years and into marriage and motherhood, all while trying to find her place in different church and faith communities and keeping her creative spark.  In today's conversation, I ask Amber how she has honored the "wild" parts of her while also growing in maturity and steadiness; how she keeps in touch with her inner rebel and artist while also showing up in marriage, motherhood and church. Amber shares ways that she reconstitutes and nourishes herself when she's feeling used or used up, and we talk about learning to receive love and be more human.  

Episode 53: A Self-Care Visualization Inspired by Queer Eye invites you into a guided meditation to cultivate a little more acceptance, gentleness and love for your body (but if "love" is too big a word right now, let's just go for kindness!). And, it's fun!  In the first half of the episode, I give some background and context about my own resistance to visualizations and why I used to get angry when therapists tried to make me do them. I share how I came to enjoy them and find them helpful, and why you might too. In the second half, we'll get grounded with our breath, and then, with our imaginations, we'll welcome a visit from Jonathan Van Ness--or anyone you would like to welcome into your space who is eager to reflect back to you your innate beauty, strengths and gifts. Someone who can help you consider how you've been treating your body, self-care and basic grooming/hygiene lately, and give you some ideas for treating yourself kindly and giving your body some small act of care today.  If you're not familiar with Queer Eye, you can still do the visualization! Just replace Jonathan with a person (whether you know them in real life or not) who represents acceptance, celebration and care. If you're having trouble thinking of someone - think of me!  I'll be creating four more QE-inspired visualizations, one for each of the Fab Five, but I won't be posting all of them in the podcast feed. I know this is a bit different from the typical Perennials conversations and not what every listener is looking for. I will send each of the visualizations to my email subscribers, so feel free to sign up at the form on this site or by emailing me at perennialspodcast@gmail.com to let me know if you'd like to receive the other visualizations. Take care, everyone! 

This conversation is a follow-up to Episode 45: Belonging in Yoga with Khay Muhammad. In that episode, Khay and I talked about how her experiences as a Black woman have shaped her approach to practicing and teaching yoga. We spoke about how Khay is bringing her full self to her yoga practice and teachings, not shying away from speaking to her students about racial justice. A few weeks ago, Khay asked if we could do a follow-up conversation, because something important was missing from that episode. This led us into a conversation about patriarchy, white supremacy, and trauma. We spoke about how these forces affect us on personal and collective levels, in our lifetimes and inherited from generations before us. Khay generously models what it looks like to notice and meet those forces within and around us. She does it with courage, humility, strength, integrity and compassion. 

In Part 2 of our conversation, Maya Sanyal and I get a little deeper and more philosophical about questions like: “Who cares?” “Why does it matter?” and “Who do I think I am?” Maya believes it is possible to be deeply grateful and content, and also ambitious. She believes in the power of presence and creating spaciousness in our lives. Maya has worked to notice, question and dismantle her own thinking traps and hurtful thought patterns, and she offers hope that we can, too. 

More than anything, Maya Sanyal teaches hope. In Part 1 of our conversation, Maya and I talk about her career trajectory, which includes navigating the communal culture she comes from and the individualistic culture of the U.S.; a PhD in English literature and a Masters in Counseling; and years of teaching and advising students in the university classroom, Writing Center and Career Center. Maya's newest incarnation is being an entrepreneur with AlkaDevika Project Solutions. Maya shares her thoughts on our cultural obsessions with passion, excitement and quick fixes, rather than knowledge, values and patience. We talk about our own aversion to learning about money and finances, and why it's important to have that knowledge in order to then decide how to use it.  Maya also opens up about her history with depression, and why she now sees it as a gift.  Maya has too much wisdom to squeeze into just one episodes. Come back here tomorrow for Part 2! 

In Part 2 of our conversation, poet Ysabel Gonzalez and I talk about how the poems in her collection Wild Invocations explore relationships and identity, and interrogate expectations, disappointments and arbitrary life timelines. Ysabel shares how poems help her express different parts of herself and get in touch with "characters" within her that need release. We discuss why it sometimes feels easier to write about tumultuous relationships with unavailable people than to write about healthy, loving relationships. Ysabel expresses her desire to write not just from heartache, but also from peace and joy. And, she talks about the nuance she's finding in her relationship to her family's homeland of Puerto Rico. 

Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Ysabel Gonzalez, poet and author of the collection Wild Invocations, published by Get Fresh Books in 2019. Ysabel is also my friend and colleague at the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, where she is Assistant Director of the Poetry Program. In Part 1, Ysabel and I talk about the seeds of Wild Invocations, some of the challenges that ultimately helped her learn how to use her voice, and how she grapples with writing and speaking about difficult topics like grief, mental illness and white fragility. Ysabel shares her poem “How to Unlearn Being a Princess,” and we begin talking about the transition from girlhood to womanhood.   If you want to hear us continue that conversation, and talk about relationships, embodiment, and celebrating love, return here tomorrow for Part 2 of our conversation.   You can find Ysabel online at ysabelgonzalez.com

Today's episode features a truly delightful guest: Florence Hamer, a woodworker who lives in her self-built tiny house, and spends her time carving spoons, turning bowls, enjoying nature and baking cakes. In our conversation, Flo describes the path that led her to her beautiful tiny home, from growing up on her mother's woodland, to learning to carve spoons at university, to living in a van in Australia for six months. We talked about Flo's relationship to living against the grain; how she adventures amidst and despite worry; the romance vs. reality of tiny-house living; and treading lightly on the earth.

In today's episode, multimedia artist Marina Carreira and I talk about our relationship to creativity, especially during the pandemic; things like who gets to claim the title "creative," the importance of carving out creative time and rest time, and the practice of finding beauty in the mundane.    We also speak about the opportunity for self-reflection during stay at home orders, especially reflecting on racial injustices and the importance of locating white supremacy within ourselves.   We talked about how, ultimately, it takes a creative mind to imagine new ways of being for ourselves and for the world.

In Chapter 21 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne's school teacher leaves town (byeeeee Professor Patriarchy!) and a new minister and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Allan, arrive. Mr. Allan prays like he means it, and Mrs. Allan, who assumes the role of teacher, actually welcomes questions? Anne can't wait for the couple to visit Green Gables and is eager to bake a cake for her new kindred spirit, but she fears something is going to go wrong. (Spoiler alert...something does.) In today's reflections, I think about the importance of asking questions and holding authority figures accountable; how silence on the part of people like Marilla upholds the status quo; and how Anne can inspire us to be not only better individuals, but better citizens of the world.  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 17:18 Reflections on the chapter: 17:22 - 32:56

In Chapter 20 of Anne of Green Gables, it's springtime and everything is coming up roses, except for the spruce grove which, in Anne's imagination, is now absolutely teeming with ghosts, goblins, ghouls and all manner of dreaded "white things." Will Anne have the courage to journey through the Haunted Wood to fetch an apron pattern for Marilla? Will she survive the harrowing trip? And for the love of mayflowers, will Marilla ever tell Anne how much she loves her? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 11:19  Reflections on the chapter: 11:23 - 18:28

In Chapter 19 of Anne of Green Gables, Diana invites Anne to a late night concert and sleepover at her house for her birthday. Anne can't wait to have the honor of spending the night in the Barrys' spare room, like a proper guest. But when Diana and Anne go barreling into the spare room and dive onto the bed, they find someone under the covers. Who did Anne and Diana unwittingly attack in their sleep? And will this person react with good humor...or will she vow to take out her wrath on the Barry family?

In today's episode, I'm talking to Khay Muhammad about her journey of becoming the yoga teacher she is today. Khay and I talk about her childhood growing up in the urban landscape of Newark, New Jersey, spending long days with her father in Branch Brook Park and learning about her connection to nature. We also talk about her experiences taking yoga classes for the first time in Brooklyn during her early post-grad years, and why her first yoga class "sucked." Khay explains why inclusivity is so important to her teaching style, and how she's found more freedom to bring her full self to her classes teaching virtually from her home.  You can learn more about Khay and today's episode on the Shownotes page.

In Chapter 18 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne and Matthew are enjoying a cozy winter evening at home, while Marilla, Mrs. Lynde, and many other Avonlea residents (including both doctors...which seems like a bad idea, in hindsight) are off at a political rally a few towns over. Diana comes flying to Green Gables in tears, because her baby sister has fallen sick and the babysitter is totally clueless about croup. Matthew races off to find a doctor while Anne hurries to the Barry household to take care of Minnie May. Will Anne save Minnie's life? And might this act be enough to melt the icy heart of Mrs. Barry? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 16:26 Reflections on the chapter: 16:30 - 25:11

In Chapter 17 of Anne of Green Gables, Diana tells Anne she loves her and the two share a tearful goodbye, though their souls will of course commune forevermore. Anne returns to school, and the rivalry between her and Gilbert heats up. Who will get top marks on the next exam? Will Anne ever master decimals? And will Anne's love for Diana truly prove inextinguishable?  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 10:39 Reflections on the chapter: 10:42 - 19:03

In Chapter 16 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne invites Diana over for tea and Diana ends up stumbling home drunk as a skunk. What was up with that raspberry cordial that Anne served her, and will Mrs. Barry ever forgive Diana's bosom friend? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 19:12 Reflections on the chapter: 19:17 - 26:06

In Chapter 15 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne starts school, so you know we're in for a wild ride! After an uneventful but enjoyable first few weeks, Gilbert Blythe pulls Anne's braid and calls her "Carrots," and let's just say he ends up with a slate tablet broken over his head. Will Anne ever forgive Gilbert? Will she return to school? And will her creepy teacher stop hitting on his sixteen-year-old student long enough to teach the class? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 26:56 Reflections on the chapter: 26:59 - 38:33

Today's guests Lauren Burke and Hannah K Chapman are hosts of the podcast Bonnets at Dawn, which explores the lives, work and fandom of women writers from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.   Lauren and Hannah share some of the wisdom they've taken from the books and authors that they devote so much time to--authors like Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, Elizabeth Gaskell and Louisa May Alcott.   You'll hear about how Lauren is drawn to the Brontës' treatment of women's rage, what Jane Austen taught Hannah about "never trusting false bitches," and why writing for money didn't make these women mercenaries.    Learn more about today's guests and episode by visiting the Shownotes page. 

In Chapter 14 of Anne of Green Gables, Marilla's prized amethyst brooch goes missing, and Anne was the last one to touch it. Anne swears she didn't lose it, but the evidence is stacked against her. Is Anne telling the truth? Will Marilla believe her and let her attend the much-anticipated Sunday School picnic? Will Anne finally get to try ice cream? Or will she remain locked in the east gable forever? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 15:19 Reflections on the chapter: 15:21 - 21:39

In Chapter 13 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne tells Marilla about her adventures playing with Diana at Idlewild and looks forward with fervent anticipation to the upcoming Sunday School picnic. Marilla and Anne exchange different views on expectation and disappointment, and Anne wonders: will she finally get to taste ice cream for the first time, or will the gathering be rained out? 

In Chapter 12 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne meets her potential bosom friend Diana Barry. Will Diana be charmed by Anne's suggestion that they perform a solemn oath of eternal friendship, or will she run screaming back to her strict mother?  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 10:28 Reflections on the chapter: 10:31 - 13:43

In Chapter 11 of Anne of Green Gables, Marilla gives Anne a few (less than satisfactory) new dresses and tells her it's time to go to Sunday School. Anne must contend with a lack of puffed sleeves, stares and whispers from the other little girls, and boredom in the pews. Marilla must contend with the discomfort of realizing she agrees with some of Anne's observations. Chapter reading: 0:15 - 9:19 Reflections on the chapter: 9:21 - 14:38

In Chapter 10 of Anne of Green Gables, Matthew convinces Anne to apologize to Mrs. Rachel for shouting at her after Mrs. Rachel insulted Anne's looks. Will their outspoken neighbor accept Anne's apology? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 13:33 Reflections on the chapter: 13:35 - 22:24

In Chapter 9 of Anne of Green Gables, Mrs. Rachel Lynde pays a visit to meet Anne and decides it's totally cool to tell an eleven year old little girl that she is ugly. Since Anne is no shrinking violet, she gives it right back to Mrs. Rachel. What is Marilla to do? Chapter reading: 0:14 - 13:07 Reflections on the chapter: 13:09 - 18:19 

In Chapter 8 of Anne of Green Gables, Marilla tells Anne that they’ve decided to keep her, and promptly begins the task of bringing up Anne to be a good girl, starting with telling her to learn the Lord’s Prayer. We get another vivid peek into Anne’s imaginative spirituality, learn of her deep desire for a bosom friend, and find out the heartbreaking story behind the friends she left behind when she moved to the orphan asylum.  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 14:35 Reflections on the chapter: 14:37 - 22:18

In Chapter 7 of Anne of Green Gables, Marilla finds that Anne has never been taught to say prayers at night. We get a little insight into how Marilla and Anne think about God and prayer; Marilla gives instructions for how to pray; and we find out what Anne most wants to ask God for (hint: it's not world peace).  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 6:13 Reflections on the chapter: 6:15 - 10:23

Chapter 6 of Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery is a real turning point in the book--Marilla comes to a final decision about whether she and Matthew will keep Anne at Green Gables with them. Based on the title of the book, you can probably guess her decision, but for the sake of suspense... Chapter reading: 0:14 - 9:42 Reflections on the chapter: 9:44 - 12:49 

Chapter 5 of Anne of Green Gables finds Marilla and Anne heading by buggy to Mrs. Spencer's, where Marilla hopes to settle the mix-up and find a way to send Anne back to Nova Scotia. Along the way, Anne shares her history up until that point, and let me tell you...I just wanted to hop into that buggy and turn it right back around to bring Anne back to Green Gables. Chapter reading: 0:14 - 10:35 Reflections on the chapter: 10:37 - 13:31 For information about the virtual Perennials Book Club meeting on Wednesday, April 1, click here. 

In Chapter 4 of Anne of Green Gables, Anne wakes up to a beautiful morning and leaves the depths of despair. But she's still sad at the prospect of leaving Green Gables, and chooses to stay inside rather than go out and explore, because she doesn't want to fall in love with the place and find it that much harder to leave. Chapter reading: 0:13 - 11:44 Reflections on the chapter: 11:47 - 17:19 To join the free, live virtual book club meeting on April 1, from 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. EST, sign up for the Perennials Book Club mailing list to have information sent to you.

In Chapter 3 of Anne of Green Gables, Marilla is surprised, Matthew is quietly distressed, and Anne is deeply (and loudly) disappointed when she finds out that she was right: this was all too good to be true.  Chapter reading: 0:14 - 11:21 Reflections on the chapter: 11:24 - 15:37 To join the free, live virtual book club meeting on April 1, from 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. EST, sign up for the Perennials Book Club mailing list to have information sent to you.

I'm so grateful for this conversation with Zoe Gillis, a licensed marriage and family therapist who in today's episode is helping us to get as grounded as we can and try to stay present during a time of great global anxiety. There's a lot of uncertainty right now, and a lot that we can't control. Zoe reminds us to focus on what we can control; to meet our own feelings and suffering so that we can work with it and use what we learn to meet the suffering of others; and to look for the good where we can. Zoe also talks about accessing the healing power of nature, acknowledging that looks very different for people depending on their circumstances. I mention in the intro that we had technical difficulties with our call dropping a lot (hello uncertainty and lack of control!), but don't worry--I edited the episode so you won't be able to tell! To find out more about today's episode, and to learn about Zoe, her immersive wilderness retreats, and her upcoming virtual events, visit the Shownotes page and follow Zoe on Instagram @zoegillismft

Join me in reading Chapter Two of Anne of Green Gables today, to find out what happens when shy, woman-fearing Matthew Cuthbert arrives at the Bright River train station to pick up an orphan boy, and instead finds a strange little red-haired, fast-talking, eternally optimistic girl named Anne. Chapter reading: 0:15 - 24:38 Reflections on the chapter: 24:44 - 30:02 To join the free, live virtual book club meeting on April 1, from 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. EST, sign up for the Perennials Book Club mailing list to have information sent to you. I'd love to hear whether you're more of a listener like Matthew, or a talker like Anne; whether you ever anthropomorphized objects as a child like Anne does (I know I did!); and of course, the eternal question: "'Which would you rather be if you had the choice—divinely beautiful or dazzlingly clever or angelically good?'”

During this difficult and strange time of social distancing amidst a pandemic, I wanted to offer some extra comfort and connection. So I decided to start a Perennials Podcast Book Club! Thanks to all who voted on Instagram and via e-mail for our first Book Club pick: Anne of Green Gables, by L.M. Montgomery.  In addition to my typical conversation episodes, I’ll be sharing regular mini-episodes in which I’ll read a chapter of the book and then end with some thoughts on the chapter.  I’m also inviting you to join me for virtual Book Club meetings to talk about the book. Anyone is welcome--feel free to invite a friend and pop in whenever you want, for however long you want. I will post detailed information about joining the meeting on the Book Club page soon. You can sign up for a Book Club email list here to get updates on episodes and meetings, and access Anne of Green Gables free online if you want to read along with the text. My reading of Chapter 1 runs from 3:12 - 18:07, and my thoughts about the chapter/topics for Book Club discussion runs from 18:09 - the end of the episode at 23:30 

Today, I'm talking to Gillian Herbert, an avid hiker, rock climber and fourth year veterinary student. Gillian hiked the Appalachian Trail after high school graduation, which led her to reassess her plans for college and inspired her to study biology. As an undergrad, she got involved with the outdoors club and started rock climbing.  Gillian and I talk about how the AT helped her gain more confidence in herself and widen her ideas about what she's capable of. We also discussed how rock climbing helps her to get out of her head and work with fear in a new way. To learn more about topics covered and references made in this episode, visit the Shownotes page.