In today's episode, Doris and I discuss beauty - what it means to us, what we find beautiful and where we locate beauty in our lives. Perhaps I am more old-fashioned, while Doris is both a fan of the old and new, and more excited about what beauty means in our technologically evolving world. The discussion gets heated up at certain points, but with a topic like beauty, we have to let our souls express themselves. Perhaps we cannot agree on certain points, but if we were all the same, this beautiful world would be boring, wouldn't it? And it is a beautiful world. What is beauty for you?
We can't always be up, so what does it mean for us to be down, to be melancholic? Today we discuss the moody spell along with the sometimes joyful aspects of melancholy and ask certain questions: if we're introverted and shy by nature, do extroverts experience melancholy like us? Is melancholy just a result of feeling tired from experiencing too much of something? Too much of a social situation? Are we melancholic because it can be difficult to navigate ourselves emotionally in a life where there is constant pressure to be 'up', to smile and be joyful? Dolli shares a poem and together, we share our thoughts on this murky but intriguing subject. Join us on the moody journey!
Today, in time for the New Year, Dolli and I decided to discuss the power and wonder of forgiveness. We take an inquisitive and self-reflective dive into what forgiveness means to us personally and how forgiveness can raise our level of consciousness. Forgiveness is about mindfulness, compassion and releasing anger. We share anecdotes and Dolli reads a recently-penned story about a young boy trying to understand the rifts and arguments within his own family through the help of a wise old man.
The winter is upon us and for many, it’s not only a time of Glühwein (for Dolli) and The Nutcracker (for me) but also a time for reading. In this episode, we indulge in our love of literature, discussing our favourite books. We talk about the books we are reading, the beloved ones we’ve read and the ones we hope to read in the future. The days are shorter, while the books keep us bright. Join us for another lively discussion.
In this episode, Dolli asks me the question: have you, Rob, ever been in love? And from that single question, we get the whole ball rolling on the endless question of what is love? What does it mean? What does it look like? When is love real? How do we love? We look at the philosophy and histories of love from the Ancient Greeks to the Troubadours to the modern approaches of romantic love and online dating. It’s all quite lovely or ‘loverly’.
In this episode, Dolli and I discuss the great hereafter, Death. We reflect on our impressions and brushes with death while delving into the world of poets, writers and thinkers that have mused on the mortal coil that is our lives and the endings that await us all. We wonder about the dominion of death and our relationship with it. I read an excerpt from one of my Anna, Stories and finish with a poem. Crack open a bottle, raise a glass and join us.
To compliment my podcast From the Jaws of the Lion, I am doing a joint project with psychologist and educator, Doris Gerlach. This is our pilot episode, where we introduce ourselves to each other and talk things up in a literary fashion. There is some joking around and some serious topics. The first of many episodes to come!
