All the Forbidden Things

Lyonel Laverde and Rebecca are conservative and liberal, respectively, but they agree on the need for integrity, discernment, openness, and respect when it comes to navigating politics. In this episode of The Minefield, they discuss how they each stand by their values, what it means for voters and political leaders to have integrity, and the idea of the "mushy middle". They offer an example of how to talk about politics with friends across the aisle and how to maintain constructive attitudes in the midst of immense political unrest.The Minefield is an episode format that is focused on conversations with people across the aisle, politically or otherwise.

Many women are raised to believe that men are meant to have more power than them, and some women continue to hold onto this in various contexts, especially when it comes to voicing their opinions. For a lot of us, this has created patterns that have undermined our own power and self esteem, and sometimes caused us to end up in dangerous situations. In this episode, Rebecca and her close friend Nicole Netti talk about what they were taught, what they've experienced, the level of power they want, and how Nicole has managed to find her voice amidst the contradictions and obstacles. You can find Nicole on Tiktok at @petty_netti

Religions often ask for people to believe in what they cannot see, and many argue that science and faith are not compatible. But what if you are committed to both, and which wins out in the end if there's a conflict? In this episode, Rebecca interviews her father, an engineer, on how he came to his Christian faith, how he understands his faith through logic and science, and how he handles discrepancies and grey areas. We discuss the role of humility and the value of consulting other minds when things are not always obvious.

Comedians have been telling political jokes for centuries, but in today's landscape, political comedy threatens to limit a comic's audience or livelihood. Where do you draw the line in order to keep getting booked and how do you maintain a reputation that people will pay for? Comedian Harrison Friedman and Rebecca talk about his political journey from Zionism to democratic socialism and his stance on comedy both politically and personally.

In our first political episode, Rebecca, a liberal, meets with Tim and his sister Kristin to talk about the hate they get for being Christian conservatives. We get into perceptions, fear, power, and the importance of context to achieve understanding.

Bonnie is the owner and director of a theater company in Savannah, Performers for Social Justice Awareness. Her productions span topics from race inequality to religious fervor to female relationships. Needless to say, it's an interesting time and place to produce this kind of work, and not without its challenges. Bonnie and Rebecca were first introduced when they were placed next to each other in the Savannah Philharmonic chorus. They’ve since become friends and artistic allies, and have watched (and helped) each other advance each other's mission. In this episode, we talk about launching Performers for Social Justice Awareness, the challenges Bonnie's faced with it — including the state of the political landscape — and how to approach an emotionally exhausted audience.--You can find Performers for Social Justice Awareness on FB: www.facebook.com/justiceawareness2016

Lavon and Rebecca met through their shared love for performance. When they met, Rebecca didn’t know one of Lavon’s most pronounced challenges: that he has a stutter. In this episode, Lavon opens about what it’s meant for him to stutter as a child and as an adult, how it manifests, and how it affects his relationship to other people and opportunities. They discuss how just one affectation can change the course of your life, and what it’s like when you are divergent from the norm, but not in a protected group. And they explore how to find power over a source of shame.You can find Lavon Youins on Facebook, if you're lucky enough to become his friend. You might also see him act in productions by the Savannah Readers Theatre, led by Bonnie Brault.

Nichelle and Rebecca met once at a networking event and ended up in a conversation about the forbidden nature of death. Nichelle shared that she'd recently experienced a sudden loss in her family that brought her closer to the realities of death, even beyond grief. It also made her more aware of how little we talk about death and end-of-life planning in our culture.In this episode, Rebecca and Nichelle explore each other's personal relationships to death, including losing loved ones, facing mortality, and preparing for our own eventual passing.You can find Nichelle on Instagram @nichest and on Substack nichelle.substack.com.

When Ant and Rebecca met, Ant was a flight attendant who liked acting. He’d was taking classes and was involved with a local improv group. Rebecca had noticed he enjoyed it, and that he was talented, but he told her it was too late for it be a serious pursuit. Years later, when Rebecca and Ant catch up, she finds out he’s performed in three productions within one year and just wrapped a commercial. As someone who also loves performing — and is also more than a decade into another career — Rebecca is curious what changed for Ant. In this episode, they explore what it means to take their love of acting seriously. Calling something a hobby can feel like an insult to your talent or a painful reminder of a career that’s passed you by. And at a certain age, fantasies of performing in the big leagues feel embarrassing and the fear of failure turns into feelings of futility. When is your passion doomed to only be a “hobby” or “another life”, and is that a problem? From the outside, it might seem like Rebecca and Ant should just do what they love. But in some industries, the voices in your head can be louder than your heart — and the price of trying can be higher than the price of putting it behind you.

Mallury and Rebecca were "color-blind" friends for over three years until a vulnerable admission opened the door to a frank and sometimes shocking dialogue about our races. These conversations became a primary inspiration for All the Forbidden Things, as we found that the more forbidden the dialogue became, the more powerfully we understood each other. We discovered that there were problems that we'd over- or under-estimated and things we never knew we never knew about the inner workings of the other's community. No matter how many personal secrets we had shared, there were significant parts of our lives and selves that we realized had been obscured from each other. In this episode, we offer a taste of our dialogue by talking about the particular dynamic between black men and white women and each group's perceptions about racism. We hope that you can feel the power of our connection and feel brave enough to talk more earnestly and more authentically with friends about race. The cost of never really knowing a loved one is much greater than a momentary awkwardness. We look forward to sharing more from our conversations in the future. Find Mallury on Instagram: @mallurypatrick

Armando is a Pagan priest. What on earth is that? In this episode, Rebecca finds out what Paganism is, how it relates to the Occult, and whether or not it's a religion. Armando asks what she thinks pagan priesthood might mean, and Rebecca takes a guess based off an earlier "session". Rebecca realizes she has some experience in new age things, but she didn't know much about the old gods, and what she really didn't know is what lies at the center of all magic—and perhaps all of religion.

Emily has a very personal relationship with psychedelics, including Ayahuasca. In this episode, Rebecca investigates how Emily finds herself in Ayahuasca, as well as what—and who—she knows Ayahuasca to be. We find out what Rebecca thinks Emily's physical experiences are like and reveal what's really going on inside Emily's trips. Rebecca touches on fears people have about losing their minds, and other misunderstood elements of the psychedelic experience. We realize how Ayahuasca re-introduces Emily to aspects of her identity, helps her face old wounds, and expands her awareness. Ultimately, Rebecca and Emily recognize we all have our own personal “psychedelics”, and find out what Rebecca's is. You can find Emily’s work at ⁠freebirdhotel.substack.com⁠. Subscribe (recommended) or click No thanks to go straight to her content!

Roberto is a first-generation Mexican-American. Rebecca always perceived that Roberto lives within these two worlds with pride and ease. But she finds out it isn’t accidental, nor is it exactly right. In this episode, we explore who Roberto really is and how he relates to both Mexicans and Americans in terms of appearance, relationships, culture, language, and family expectations. Roberto reveals his 'immigrant lite' presentation and how he experiences his first-gen identity. Follow Roberto on IG: @infiitive.o

Laurie is 23, Rebecca is 35. We are friends—which feels rare between women of our ages. In this episode, we explore the differences in our experiences of life and the world at large. We discuss lives lived online and off, the origins of self-esteem, new and alternative relationship models, and how each generation is managing projections of a dark future. You can find Laurie's "entire life online" at @laurieorsi on Instagram.

Juleigh is intersex, Rebecca is cis. We think we know each other's relationship to our genders, but in this episode we find out the reality. Find out more about Intersex here: unfe.org/know-the-facts/challenges-solutions/intersexCheck out Juleigh's YT channel Just Juleigh for our live show "Optimistic in Orlando" every Sunday at 7pm ET. You can also see more from Juleigh at justjuleigh.com.