Episodes
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
Richard Valenza Mother of a Story - The Secret
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
When a mother's reaction is disappointing, is not the support you were needing or hoping for, remember to keep a window open in your relationship because, one day she may just surprise you.
We’re telling stories
Rich Valenza is our guest today. He is the Founder and CEO of RaiseAChild,a national nonprofit organization building loving families for foster children®.
RaiseAChild recruits, educates, and nurtures supportive relationships equally with all prospective foster and adoptive parents while partnering with agencies to improve the process of advancing the nations 437,000 foster children to safe, loving and permanent homes. In its six-year history, RaiseAChild has engaged more than 8,500 prospective parents across the country.
In establishing RaiseAChild, Rich has drawn on more than 25 years’ success in marketing and development for broadcast media and nonprofit organizations. He has used his expertise in working with leading national and international corporations to form strategic partnerships with community service agencies, national and regional LGBTQ organizations, and businesses to build RaiseAChild’s strength and influence. Rich serves as a member of the Adoption Exchange Association’s Board of Directors.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or on our website
Wednesday Apr 03, 2019
Chanel Brenner Mother of a Story - Navigating Loss
Wednesday Apr 03, 2019
Wednesday Apr 03, 2019
Life is a beautiful thing if you can navigate all the loss. Once your child dies you’re still their mother. In this episode our guest shares the death of her 6 year old son and her journey of navigating that loss.
Chanel Brenner shares how she listened and trusted her inner voice, “You know how to survive the loss of your child. Everyone has their own grief journey.” She reminds us to be respectful of each others grief process. Putting boundaries around grief, helped her marriage survive such loss
Chanel Brenner is the author of Vanilla Milk: a memoir told in poems, (Silver Birch Press, 2014), which was a finalist for the 2016 Independent Book Awards and honorable mention in the 2014 Eric Hoffer awards. Her poems have appeared in New Ohio Review, Poet Lore, Rattle, Muzzle Magazine, Pittsburgh Poetry Review, Spry Literary Journal, Barrow Street, Salamander, Spoon River Poetry Review, Literary Mama, and others. Her poem, “July 28th, 2012” won first prize in The Write Place At the Write Time’s contest, judged by Ellen Bass. In 2018, she was nominated for a Best of the Net.
https://www.amazon.com/Vanilla-Milk-Memoir-Told-Poems/dp/0692267476
http://www.literarymama.com/poetry/archives/2019/03/mother-trucker.html
https://www.facebook.com/chanelbrennerauthor/
Grief Haven is an online community for people traveling the path of grief.
https://griefhaven.org/
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable andsome you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or on our website
I Have Two Times the Love for One Child, by Chanel Brenner
*This poem was first published in Snapdragon, Journal of art and healing in June, 2015
Wednesday Mar 13, 2019
Tanya Davis Mother of a Story - Patterns Repeating... or not
Wednesday Mar 13, 2019
Wednesday Mar 13, 2019
We’re telling stories
We talk about the sadnesses that can be passed on to our children. Or sadness of our mother's that we sometimes take on as our own. How do we ease a burden and not take it on ourselves? Eternal questions.
Tanya Davis is a writer, performer, and musician currently based in Montréal, Québec. She has released 4 albums and 2 books of poetry, including an illustrated version of the widely popular video poem on YouTube, How to be Alone (made in collaboration with Andrea Dorfman). She is past Poet Laureate of Halifax, Nova Scotia where she was also Artist in Residence at Dalhousie University's Faculty of Medicine. She is currently at work on a new collection of poems.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Lupe Padilla Mitchell and Katie Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or our website www.ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother.com
Wednesday Mar 06, 2019
Jennifer Hamm Mother of a Story - Embracing the Space Between Us
Wednesday Mar 06, 2019
Wednesday Mar 06, 2019
We’re telling stories
Jennifer Hamm’s story is about learning to raise the child she was given. Her second son was not like her first. She and her husband needed to figure out how to understand him and how to parent him. Through this process she discovered that his emotional intelligence exceeded his ability to articulate and communicate what he was feeling. She shares how she and her husband had to go to therapy so they could get on the same page to effectively parent this son.
As mothers we tend to pad the corners, we are peacemakers so we find ourselves interpreting our your kids to you husband and your husband to your kids.
Writer Jennifer Hamm is from Beverly Hills and has lived between LA and London since 1994. She began writing over 30 years ago in the worlds of film, tv, blogs, travel and now novels. She is a mother to four boys… and her husband.
www.itsonlyforayear.com is a blog about raising her boys between two countries and all the wonderful chaos that comes with motherhood.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Lupe Padilla Mitchell and Katie Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or on our website
Friday Feb 15, 2019
Bird Sizelove Mother of a Story - 3 Stages of Parenting
Friday Feb 15, 2019
Friday Feb 15, 2019
We’re telling stories
Bird Sizelove is the lucky mother to her son Boston Powers- 25.5. She refers to him as her "voodoo-doll" because when he's cool, she's cool.... when he's not, she's not.
Bird has been writing poetry from bar napkins to lap tops all through her course with her hands on work with everyone from gang members, to cancer support to Oscar winners. All the while seeing the poetry in it all.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or on our website
Wednesday Jan 30, 2019
Tori Time Mother of a Story - Gypsy Grandma
Wednesday Jan 30, 2019
Wednesday Jan 30, 2019
We’re telling stories
Our writer this week shares her gypsy grandma with us and how she embraces the bits of free spirit she's inherited from her.
Tori Time is a writer, director, actress, and poet living in Los Angeles. After
graduating from The University of Southern California where she received
her Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting, Tori worked for renowned film director,
Sam Taylor-Johnson. Tori studies writing in Jack Grapes Method Writing
classes and is a member of the Los Angeles Poets and Writers Collective.
Tori wrote, directed, and stars in Girl on the Side, a short film which was
made with an all-female crew (release TBD) and is in the process of
adapting it into a feature film. Tori was a finalist for the Sundance New
Voices Lab in 2017 and can be seen on Season 2 of the Mick on Fox.
Tori’s latest poetry can be found in the October 2018 edition of On The
Bus. Tori is a writing mentor at WriteGirls to promote creativity and self-
expression to spotlight the power of a girl and her pen.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Follow us on social media or on our website
www.ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother.com
Sunday Jan 06, 2019
Elya Braden Mother of a Story - How To Be A Bad Mother
Sunday Jan 06, 2019
Sunday Jan 06, 2019
A writing teacher told her that everyone is an expert at something. That is how this story came to be. She says you can't give what you didn't receive.
Elya Braden, former corporate lawyer and entrepreneur, is now a widely-published poet and collage artist. Her writing and art are expressions of her healing/spiritual journey that she shares to connect with others and open their hearts. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and her cat. You can find her on the web at www.elyabraden.com.
Through the S.H.E. Fund (http://www.shecollegefund.org/), Elya is now sponsoring one of the girls of the Tasaru Rescue Center - a refuge in Kenya for Masai girls escaping FGM and childhood marriage.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell. Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
www.ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother.com
Saturday Dec 29, 2018
Alexis Rhone Fancher Mother of a Story - Cruel Choices
Saturday Dec 29, 2018
Saturday Dec 29, 2018
We're telling stories.
Raw honest unapologetic episode about life after the death of this writer's son. She holds nothing back.
Alexis Rhone Fancher is an award winning poet and photographer. She has been published in Best American Poetry 2016, Rattle, Hobart, Verse Daily, Plume, Tinderbox, Cleaver, and elsewhere. Her books include: How I Lost My Virginity to Michael Cohen…, State of Grace: The Joshua Elegies, Enter Here, and Junkie Wife.
Next up? The Dead Kid Poems, the follow up to State of Grace, which will be published in early 2019.
Alexis’s photographs are published worldwide, including the covers of Witness, Heyday, and Pit-head Chapel, and a spread in River Styx. Since 2013, she has been nominated 22 times for the Pushcart Prize. Alexis is poetry editor of Cultural Weekly.
The poems in this episode are:
Cruel Choices -winner of the Pangolin Prize, nominated for The Pushcart Prize (pub in ASKEW, and in Amarylis, UK)
Keeping Things Cold (pub in Diode)
Snow Globe (pub in The MacGuffin)
You can find Alexis Rhone Fancher here -
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexis.fancher
Website: www.alexisrhonefancher.com
Links to her books:
How I lost my Virginity to Michael Cohen and Other Heart Stab Poems
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell.Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Find out more about us at www.ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother.com
Monday Dec 17, 2018
Eric Mann Mother of a Story - Corporal Punishment
Monday Dec 17, 2018
Monday Dec 17, 2018
We're telling stories.
Spare the rod, spoil the child. A funny story about discipline and respect and his mother's unique brand of justice
Eric Mann is an author, actor, musician and non-profit executive director. He currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, with his wife of 38 years, Susan.
He is the author of the highly-popular book The Delmont Street Gang, which is described as "The Wonder Years" on steroids. A collection of short stories about a group of boys growing up in small-town Manchester, Connecticut, during the 60s and 70s, when "getting into trouble" meant skipping school or throwing snowballs at cars. These stories are true. The names have been changed to protect the morons. Hilariously funny and touching.”
Link to Book:
He is currently in the final stages of the sequel, titled Beyond Delmont Street, which will be released in Spring, 2019.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners, songwriters, stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell.Story is in our DNA. It's how we make sense of the world around us. We have so much to teach each other. We welcome you to rate and review us.
Find more about us at:
Insta @ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother
facebook.com/ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother
twitter @IfItsNot1Thing...Podcast
Monday Dec 10, 2018
Anonymous Mother of a Story - Her Mother Can Never Know
Monday Dec 10, 2018
Monday Dec 10, 2018
We're telling stories.
Today’s guest is a best selling novelist and an all around wonderful writer. She wrote a beautiful piece for this podcast and then called us with a special request-- that we keep her identity anonymous.
Who doesn't speak to their mother?
What do you do when you have a toxic relationship with your mom? When the mother you want, is not the mother you have? When you are looking for courage or permission to put your well-being first, to live in your truth? What do you do when you don't want to hurt your mom, but continuing the relationship you two have set up is making you miserable? What lesson will you teach your kids if you disconnect? Or on the flip side, what will you teach them if you don't?
Self-love is not a bad word.
Life lessons are all around us. And one big lesson to be learned from today’s show is, ‘the way a mother handles her divorce can make or break her relationship with her children going forward’.
Every nugget of wisdom that can save us time along our journey of self awareness, in our effort to evolve into a higher self, is of value. And this episode is chocked full of those nuggets.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners and songwriters, to stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell.
Find out more about us at:
www.ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother.com
on Facebook and Instagram @ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother or on twitter @IfNot1Thing
Tuesday Dec 04, 2018
Cea Sunrise Person Mother of a Story - North of Normal
Tuesday Dec 04, 2018
Tuesday Dec 04, 2018
We're telling stories.
As a toddler, this writer's mother had her tending the fire, fetching water, and learning to skin bears, in contribution to their wilderness off-the-grid lifestyle.
Cea Sunrise Person is the author of two bestselling memoirs, North of Normal and Nearly Normal. They chronicle her counterculture childhood in the wilderness of Canada and then dramatic move into an international modeling career at 13. She has made many appearances to speak about her unique life, including a TEDx talk.
She reads an excerpt from her first book and we have a great conversation with Cea about her unusual early years, her very young mother, and the wisdom and forgiveness that comes from empathy.
Learn more about her here www.ceasunriseperson.com
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you have not thought of. Each week, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. We have excerpts from best selling novels, memoirs, poetry award winners and songwriters, to stay at home moms, insurance brokers, teachers, actors, college students and beyond. Some famous. Some not at all. But they all have incredible tales to tell.
Find out more about us at facebook.com/ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother and on Insta @ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother and twitter @IfNot1Thing
Saturday Dec 01, 2018
Dan Bucatinsky Mother of a Story - Wake Up and Smell the Fingers
Saturday Dec 01, 2018
Saturday Dec 01, 2018
We're telling stories.
A father discovering the mother within. We discussed the mothering nature that a baby can bring.
Dan Bucatinsky reads WAKE UP AND THE SMELL THE FINGERS from his spectacular memoir "Does This Baby Make Me Look Straight?"
Dan Bucatinsky is an actor, writer, producer and author. You recognize him from a million things like Second Act, The Post and Under the Tuscan Sun, but Dan probably best known for his role as James Novak in Scandal. We know you will enjoy Dan as much as we did. Listen as he reads from his hilarious book and then our conversation about parenting and facing all the uncertainties we all face.
If it's not 1 Thing, explores the topic of 'mother' from every angle imaginable and some you haven't thought of. Each show, hosts Katie Mitchell and Lupe Padilla Mitchell share a new story and have great conversations with the writers, many of whom are in fact not writers by trade. Some are famous. Some not at all. But every one of them have incredible tales to tell. Find more about us at Insta @ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother and facebook.com/ifitsnot1thingitsyourmother and twitter @IfNot1Thing