Deep Dive with Mary Louise Kelly on Parenting Choices

Mary Louise Kelly (host of NPR’s All Things Considered) has been doing some reflecting. What choices did she make and how do they look now, as her nest is nearly empty? Is it okay to travel through war zones when a kid is home with the flu? What is gained and what is lost, for the individuals in question and for society? This is a conversation to take in slowly, to share with every mother you know, and to discuss. (Previously aired) Thanks to the Aspen Ideas Festival. Our takeaways were really good on this one…if you’d like to receive the weekly list, just shoot a note to [email protected] or pop by the website and sign up there. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kelly shares a listener's story that perfectly captures what Thanks For Being Here is all about - honoring the people who matter most, whether they're still with us or have moved on. Tracy Hargan's beautiful toast to her 80-year-old mother Janet shows us why these tributes are so powerful and needed. Through the toast given at her mom's birthday celebration, Tracy reminds us all to speak our love out loud - to grab those chances to tell someone exactly what they mean to us, creating moments of connection that stay with us forever. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this special Go To, Kelly and Christy Turlington Burns sit down with Melinda French Gates to talk about the woman who raised her, Elaine, who taught her to set her own agenda and find a moment every day to really connect with the people who matter most.Our About Your Mother series raises funds to support safe and respectful pregnancy, delivery and postpartum care in 9 countries through Every Mother Counts, founded in 2010 and led every day since by Christy Turlington Burns. (Previously aired) Please join us with a donation here. Maternal health is a human right.With special thanks to Tracy and David at Laughing Man Studios in Tribeca who support this series with pro bono studio time and superb coffee.Got feedback? Have an idea? We love to hear from listeners. Write us anytime — [email protected] - or sign up for our weekly list of takeaways here.Check out Kelly's Tell Me More episode featuring Melinda French Gates.Past episodes from the About Your Mother series:Jennifer GarnerAmy SchumerBonoCindy Crawford Spike LeeEdward Burns To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As we continue our Hard Conversations series, Kelly talks with Ami Dar, the founder of Idealist.org, about finding hope in a deeply divided world. From his days as a teenage soldier in Israel to creating a global platform for good, Ami shares the moment that changed his perspective forever. With genuine optimism, he makes the case that small actions ripple outward, the world is often kinder than we think, and we're all just looking for ways to connect. Their talk offers both comfort and a nudge toward action - finding common ground with others by starting with what we share before tackling the hard stuff. This episode was made possible by a grant from Templeton Religion Trust. To learn more, go to templetonreligiontrust.org. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week's Thanks For Being Here comes from listener Hilleary Wright who shares an essay written by her 10-year-old son Bruce titled, "Accidental Growth." Bruce's piece details a skiing accident that left him with a spiral-fractured tibia at age five, requiring a full leg cast for six weeks. But the real magic happens in Bruce's reflection on how challenges make us stronger - just like the burls that form on giant sequoias when they're stressed or injured. Bruce's "little-kid wisdom" feels perfect for all of us grinding through 2025's challenges. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today is another episode in our series about moms in honor of Every Mother Counts. Today we talk to the iconic Cindy Crawford, an old friend of Christy’s (you may have seen them together in the Apple TV docu-series The Super Models). Cindy is a Midwestern girl, a high school valedictorian who started at Northwestern on an academic scholarship to study chemical engineering before her career took her around the world. She is also the daughter of Jenny, a young bride who had four children and lost one to childhood leukemia. This is a candid and loving conversation about the realities of family life. Please share. (Previously aired) This series hopes to raise $100,000 to support safe and respectful pregnancy, delivery and postpartum care in 9 countries through Every Mother Counts, founded in 2010 and led every day since by Christy Turlington Burns. Please join us with a donation here. We know that maternal health is a human right; let’s help make it ubiquitous. Love it? Don’t like it? Have an idea? We love to hear from listeners. Write us anytime — [email protected] - or sign up for our weekly list of takeaways here. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is the first in the 2nd half of our Hard Conversations series. Kelly speaks with Rabbi Sharon Brous, who she discovered at the Aspen Ideas Festival and was so captivated by that she waited backstage to invite her onto the podcast. Together they explore forgiveness through ancient and modern perspectives, examining a powerful ritual where those with broken hearts walked against the crowd at the Temple Mount and were asked simply, "What happened to you?" Rabbi Sharon unpacks the Jewish process of teshuvah (repentance), shares why sitting beside someone in their darkness can mean more than offering solutions, and reveals how truly seeing one another might help us bridge our deepest divides. Their exchange offers fresh insights for anyone seeking to repair relationships or create meaningful connections after harm. Check out Rabbi Sharon's book: The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Mend our Broken Hearts and World. Episode recorded at Aspen Ideas Festival, June 2024. This episode was made possible by a grant from Templeton Religion Trust. To learn more, go to templetonreligiontrust.org. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode of Thanks For Being Here features a moving eulogy written by listener Maggie Willman for her father. Through a beach photo and thoughtful words, Maggie reveals how her dad became the "somebody" everyone could count on. Her story reminds us of the impact we have when we show up for others. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Continuing our special series about moms in honor of Every Mother Counts. Christy and I recently spent an unforgettable Saturday afternoon talking to the singular force of nature that is Spike Lee about his mother, Jackie, who died when Spike was a sophomore at Morehouse College. Spike has 134 directing credits over four+ decades, in each case imploring us to Wake Up. Here’s a chance to understand something about the development of this legendary voice. Please share. (Previously aired) This series hopes to raise $100,000 to support safe and respectful pregnancy, delivery and postpartum care in 9 countries through Every Mother Counts, founded in 2010 and led every day since by Christy Turlington Burns. Please join us with a donation here. Maternal health is a human right. Love it? Don’t like it? Have an idea? We love to hear from listeners. Write us anytime — [email protected] - or sign up for our weekly list of takeaways here. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kelly sits down with global philanthropist, women's advocate and friend Melinda French Gates to dive into her new book The Next Day: Transitions, Change and Moving Forward and chat about what Melinda calls "the clearing" – that awkward space between ending one thing and figuring out what's next. They cover everything from pushing back against Catholic school rules as a kid to making tough calls about work, family and marriage. It's a warm, honest conversation about finding your way through life's biggest transitions and coming out stronger on the other side. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices