Libsyn Directory

Create Your Own Rituals: Jennifer L. Holm on Family Rituals; Creating Your Own Rules; Family History; and Teaching Equality

Thank You, Mama

Release Date: 01/08/2025

Replay - Nevertheless She Prevailed: Ashura Kayupayupa on Perseverance; Hope; Patience; and Focusing on Your

Thank You, Mama

Lawyer from Tanzania specialized in human rights, Ashura Kayupayupa, talks about her mother Rose, who, after her husband was killed in a car accident, was disowned by his family. Ashura tells us about widow abuse and witch-hunt, a problem that’s still widespread in Africa. But mama Rose stayed strong, re-built her life and started her small agricultural business. Rose teaches us about hope, endurance, hard work, patience, and focusing on your own life. We also learn not to ponder on why something happened to us, but to make the best out of any situation. Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama...

You Decide What “All” Is: Jenn Hildreth and Aimee Leone on Having it All; Mothers’ Moxie; Lifting Others; Continuously Evolving; and Doing Tough Things

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Emmy-winning ESPN broadcaster Jenn Hildreth and FOX Sports Senior Vice President Talent Relations Aimee Leone, talk about “Tough as a Mother: Women in Sports, Working Moms, and the Shared Traits That Empower Us All”, their anthology offering an intimate look at the lives of iconic women in sports and their journeys of balancing family and career. Jenn also talks about her mom Sandra, from whom she learned to love, have courage and strength, always do her best, and find her own way of doing things. Aimee talks about her mom Diane, from whom she learned to always keep evolving, be accepting...

What Belongs to You: Nida Sophasarun on Finding Your Voice; Understanding What Truly Belongs to You; Mysticism; and Trusting Yourself

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A published poet, author of “Novice”, and mom, Nida Sophrasarun talks about how her poetry is influenced by her family on two ends: on one end, it was her family’s inability to communicate emotions that lead her to finding her voice in poetry. On the other end, the birth of her son lead her to finding herself again through writing. Nida talks about her Thai mom Kobkua, “a tiger”, as Nida describes her, from whom Nida learned important lessons, in spite of their challenging relationship. Nida talks about showing love and connecting through food; about the solace of mysticism; about...

Make Your Decision Right: Dr. Ellen Langer on Mindfulness; Ageing; Mind and Body Unity; and Smiling

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Widely known as the “Mother of Mindfulness”, Dr. Ellen Langer is a foundational figure in the study of mindfulness outside of meditation traditions. Dr. Langer is the first woman to ever receive tenure in psychology at Harvard, where she has researched, in her own lab, mindfulness for over 40 years. Dr. Langer has published well over 200 research articles and 13 best-selling books, (“Mindfulness”, “The Mindful Body”, “The Art of Noticing”, “Counter Clockwise”, and “The Power of Mindful Learning”) in which she has written on the illusion of control, aging, stress,...

Replay - It’s not Your Pain: Dr. Julienne Shin on Letting Go of Your Mother's Pain; the Importance of a Mother-Child Relationship; and Emotional Intelligence

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A mother, a US Marine Corps combat veteran and a Navy psychologist, Dr. Julienne Shin, talks about lessons she learned through her difficult relationship with her Filipino mom Corazon. We learn about the impact of a mother's relationships with her child at a young age, about not holding on to your parents’ pain; and about the importance of emotional intelligence. Julienne also shares some amazing things she learned through writing her dissertation about mothers in combat. Subscribe to Ana's new "Mama Loves…” newsletter . To contact Ana, to be a guest, or suggest a guest,...

Compassion for Yourself: Suzy Hopkins and Hallie Bateman on Domestic Violence; What to Expect in Relationships; Walking Through Grief; Asking for Help; and Talking

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Authors of “What To Do When I’m Gone” and “What to Do When You Get Dumped”, a mother-daughter team, share their mothers’ lessons. Suzy Hopkins is a former newspaper reporter and magazine publisher. Her daughter Hallie Bateman is a freelance writer and illustrator based in Los Angeles whose work has been published by The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Awl and others. Suzy talks about her mother, a soft-spoken librarian, and mother of six, who suffered domestic abuse and managed to leave the marriage after 30 years - only after she found out her husband had a...

Take Risks: Audrey Kodjo on the Importance of Values and Roots; Women as the Backbone of a Family; the Power of Prayer; and Risk-taking

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Project Associate at UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) and co-founder of Diaspora Creatives, Audrey Kodjo tells us about her mom Lucy, who, in spite of having the status of a queen in Benin, had to master many obstacles both in her childhood and adulthood – from being a foster child to facing marital challenges. We learn about Benin, and what it means to be a queen there, but we also learn many life-lessons about teaching your children values and strong roots; why women are the backbone of a family; the eternal split between family and your dreams; the power of...

See the Invisible: Alejandra Wild Proano on Allowing Different Versions of Our Mothers and Ourselves; Seeing the Invisible; Protecting our Relationships; and Not Seeing Things in Black and White

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Psychodynamic psychotherapist, Alejandra Wild Proano, talks about her Ecuadorian mom Desiree, and shares her inspiring story. Desiree went from the first female guide through the Amazon to finding herself widowed, with two small children, a foreigner in the US. Not giving up, she took classes and became a licensed psychotherapist. We learn many wonderful lessons from Desiree: to follow your path and never give up; to see the invisible - the spiritual, energetic, magical side of our existence; to protect our relationships by cherishing what’s important and letting go of small things; and to...

Ask Why: Briana Chen on Love of Learning; Questioning in Order to Grow and Find Motivation; and Giving Back by Thinking of the Underprivileged

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Dr. Briana Chen is a postdoctoral neuroscientist at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, where she researches sex differences in stress resistance and psychiatric disorders. Briana is particularly interested in developing sex-specific treatments for depression, anxiety, and PTSD. She won numerous awards for her scientific work and was included in Forbes 2023 list of 30 under 30. Briana shares her Chinese mom May's lessons on the value of education, continuous learning, and curiosity about the world; about how important it is to question things and to always try understanding the...

Become an Interesting Person: Zeva Bellel on Following Your Interests and Expanding Perspectives; Knowing You Deserve Better; and a Healthy Relationship with Money

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Career and leadership coach based in Paris but originally from New York, Zeva Bellel, talks about her mom Karen, an artist from Brooklyn. Karen teaches us about becoming interesting people by following our curiosity; not getting hooked on a specific goal because it seemed right and good to others but thinking about choices that would expand our perspective and personality; building a healthy relationship with money; and recognizing what we want, and knowing that we deserve it. Zeva also talks about coaching and why it offers help our friends and family cannot provide. She also talks about...

More Episodes

New York Times and USA Today-bestselling and award-winning children's writer, Jennifer L. Holm, is known for “Our Only May Amelia” (a book inspired by her a great aunt’s diary), “Penny From Heaven”, and “Turtle in Paradise”. Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on several graphic novel series including the “Babymouse” series, which has sold over 3.2 million copies and won the Eisner Award, the “Sunny” series, which is a NY Times-bestseller, and finally, the “Squish” series, which was turned into an animated series and aired on HBO MAX. Her latest novel, “The Lion of Mars” is a USA Today - bestseller. Jennifer talks about her American mom Penny who raised five children and worked as a nurse. From Penny, we learn about creating your own family rituals, family history, and teaching girls they are equal to boys. Jennifer is also sharing how she became a children’s book author and what she learned from writing for children. One of her lessons: we don’t do our kids any favors by shielding them.

To learn more about Jennifer and her books, please visit her website.

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