Where Did You Come From? (December 26, 2015)

“Where Did You Come From?” is the title of the first track on Suz Slezak’s newest album, a collection of lullabies called Watching the Nighttime Come. Slezak and David Wax, both members of Mexo-Americana band David Wax Museum, perform live in the studio—and share some challenges and triumphs of taking their baby on the road. And: In their book Balancing the Big Stuff: Finding Happiness in Work, Family and Life, Miriam Liss and Holly Schiffrin (University of Mary Washington) find that “having it all” isn’t a matter of having more, but achieving a balance in life. They dissect the myths of helicopter parenting and gender issues to give concrete steps toward reaching harmony among our roles in life. Miriam Liss is a recipient of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award.

Later in the show: Adoption in America

With the success of TV shows like Modern Family and Parenthood, it’s clear that the way Americans think of family is starting to change. Yet Linda Seligmann (George Mason University) says for trans-racial and trans-national adoptions there are still many cultural barriers. And: Carmen Balogh talks about what it was like growing up in a blended family. Plus: Forgiving others is hard, but forgiving ourselves is harder. Everett Worthington (Virginia Commonwealth University) learned this painful lesson after his brother committed suicide in 2005. One of the country’s foremost experts in the study of forgiveness, Worthington tackles the subject in his upcoming book Moving Forward: Six Steps to Forgiving Yourself and Breaking Free from the Past.