The Messy Part

In this season 4 opener, they shake the dust off the microphones and start again. During this episode, Adeline and Linda ask themselves what they are currently practicing and what those practices are teaching them. After four years of putting this podcast together, they’ve learned a thing or two. Phrases like “Peaks and Valleys” “Spiral Upwards,” and “Start by Starting” are not just words they repeat often, they are values that shape their decisions and actions. This episode gave them a chance to redefine their language and sit in the joy of noticing all the ways their values show up now. They return to a practice that has always been in the background: Read Alouds. In this episode, they read “Practice Grounds” by adrienne maree brown. A sweet reminder to accumulate pathways that bring us back to ourselves, our communities, and values. May they guide us, may they grow with us.

In this season finale, Adeline and Linda return to where Season 3 began, honoring a tradition of asking the same questions and listening for what has changed. Some answers echo who they once were. Others reveal who they are becoming. Together, they reveal that sometimes the only way to notice change is to ask the same questions.

Forty episodes. Three seasons. Countless moments gathered along the way.

There is something sacred about having this kind of archive. It reminds us that we are never just one version of ourselves. Always in motion, always becoming. It offers the rare chance to sit beside the people we used to be with tenderness, meeting them with curiosity instead of certainty. Looking back becomes an act of witnessing: a gentle reminder that growth is often quiet, vulnerability leaves a trace, and what once felt ordinary can, over time, become undeniable evidence of transformation. This conversation is a celebration of continuing to show up, of growing in public, and of trusting that who we are is always unfolding.

Mantra #40: Returning is a form of witnessing. I offer honey to who I once was and who I am becoming.

For Your Consideration:

What do I notice now that I couldn’t see before?

What have I outgrown that once felt essential?

What practices and rituals bring me back to myself?

Be where your feet are. Life circles back to familiar moments. When those moments are shared with the same community they become invitations to tell more thorough tales, ones that include triumphs as much as pitfalls. Sometimes it may feel scary to share an experience that you weren’t proud of, or one in which you didn't respond as you would have liked. What sharing offers, are people who can see and narrate your effort and success over time. Having your efforts seen and verbalized back helps you notice the story you are telling yourself and is tangible proof of this more thorough tale. This is where lessons are born, where wisdom is formed. Deeper awareness of those around you, gives you the opportunity to notice and reflect back when they shift and change. We tend to cling to our faults and shortcomings with incredible clarity. Community holds our efforts with accuracy and care. Those around you are better archivists of your growth, than you may be.Mantra #39: I notice this time. I give myself grace and I notice small changes. I give myself permission to be witnessed. The triumphs are in the room. I can tell a kinder story.For Your Consideration: Do you notice your triumphs or just your pitfalls? What changes have you noticed in yourself or in others lately? If you haven’t noticed, ask someone around you.

You can be over informed. In this episode, Adeline and Linda talk about data and how it makes them feel less than. Sometimes data about screen time, sleep habits or anything else just feels depleting. The data we receive encourages us, indirectly and directly, to optimize and constantly search for a perfect score even if it’s harmful to our well-being.

Balance asks for equal attention. Harmony invites ebbs and flow, change, and giving yourself what you need.

Mantra: I give myself what I need.

For your consideration: Where can you find harmony?

Levity is ours. In this episode, Adeline and Linda define levity; levity is proof of weightlessness, levity is learned, levity is ever present; levity is change. Levity is there if you reach for it; levity offers release; levity offers pause. Levity is a muscle; levity is an exhale; levity is the liminal space. Levity exists in the midst of things; levity is gentle; levity is kind; levity protects us. Most people choose to work through hard things by laughing and that is a form of levity. Levity is sweet. Levity isn’t always visible; it requires our trust, intuition, and attention. The weight we give the things we can see we owe to the things we can’t. Invisible harm hurts as deep as a physical pain and it is worthy of acknowledging, tending to, and honoring just the same. We hope this season brings you levity.

Mantra #37: Let levity in. Don’t wait to exhale.

For Your Consideration: Where can you call levity in?

We can clearly talk to each other about anything. In this episode, Adeline and Linda find their way to intellectualizing boredom. They spend time exploring what holds their attention, only to discover how much passion their life is filled with. Their takeaway is that boredom is information to pivot and realign. Boredom asks you to reflect on how you spend your time and what fuels your energy. The opposite of boredom is being fully engaged in your life. Take what resonates, leave the rest. 

Mantra #36: I remember my agency. There’s treasure in the in-between. Good things come in small. 

For Your Consideration: Do you spend your time living your passion? Is passion a motivating factor in your decisions?

People aren’t their worst moments. In this episode Adeline and Linda learn a new word together; equanimity: steadiness of the mind across circumstances. They spend the rest of the time grappling with what that looks like in practice, from the chaos of reality TV to a memoir they’re both reading. They learn there’s a distinction between finding the truth and telling the truth; verbalizing truth can offer release. They end up somewhere interesting: Grateful that their worst moments can’t be played on a loop for entertainment and with deeper empathy for what non-attachment and language can offer.

Mantra #35: I can speak my truth. 

For Your Consideration: Who can you share your truth with? 

You are not a robot. In this episode Adeline and Linda unravel their idea of discipline, disconnecting it from rigidity and control. Instead of something forced or performed they began to see discipline as a relationship, one that asks for attunement, honesty, and care.They spend time exploring their natural rhythms and flows, by asking themselves what discipline has looked like for them. They discover that their definition of discipline has nothing to do with punishment. The kind of discipline they’re rejecting is one that expects you to show up no matter what. The discipline they are seeking is a more discerning one that prioritizes safety and sustainability first.

Mantra #34: I can give my body what it needs, even if it’s not what I want. I listen to my body and pivot as needed. My highest form of discipline is restarting. 

For Your Consideration: In what ways does discipline serve you? In what ways does it harm you?

The body knows, the body protects, the body is always a witness. In this episode, Adeline and Linda stop beating around the bush, and finally face their college experience.(Hint: The DRAMA) They have spent years building safety and trust in their friendship. As a result, they felt safe enough to lean in and untangle something intimate and violent. They explored all the ways that trauma changes you and can show up as a shadow next to you. They affirmed for themselves and hopefully all of you that there is no shame in delayed realizations and reactions. There is no shame in not reacting as expected. 

Trauma can take a lifetime to uncover, verbalize or reconcile. They practiced staying gentle with all the versions of themselves that have survived. They giggled and held each other through this episode. Joy has always been medicinal. They landed somewhere soft; trauma reveals itself over time and we can choose to sit with, nourish, avoid, deny, interrogate, confront, resolve, transform, grapple with it all for as long as we want and need.  They return to the original intention of their podcast, to say things out loud to other people. We say we do hard things and here we are yet again.

TW: Sexual violence is discussed in this episode.

Mantra #33: 

My body can recover with time and community 

May my body hold me steady always 

May I stay protected as the world gets hectic 

I am also a warrior 

For Your Consideration: What are the words you do not yet have? - Audre Lorde, our bestie

When we started this journey we committed to archiving our thinking and articulating what we were doing on and off -camera. The intention being to document the messy part of podcasting, relationships, friendships, and vulnerability. So far, we’ve learned: Ease is intuition. Iterate. Show Up. Stay in Conversation. Take a creative risk. Stay vulnerable. Be teachable. Choose and stay in your lane. Stay close to what you want. Keep the plan, please. Sometimes the fruit of your labor hasn’t come yet, don’t pivot. 

In this episode, Adeline and Linda take a moment to pause. They notice what's changed in their inner world and they spend some time reflecting on what alignment looks like. This is a peak moment. Expect shiny objects, the fruit of your labor, deeper relationship to change, being in the same place, while being a completely different person. Valleys make way for peaks. 

Mantra #32: Make a plan. Keep the plan. Maintain a plan. Show up for the plan. The plan is you.  Be like water, bro

For Your Consideration: What happens when you stop seeking?