Find yourself a rocking chair, sit back, and listen. Jimmy Carnazza on harmonica and vocals. Larry Lusignan on guitar. The duo are a part of a band called BlueSwitch. Trouble in Mind was written by Richard M. Jones and first recorded by Thelma La Vizzo in 1924.

This piece was written and recited by my friend, Evan T. Cowgill. You can find more of his work here. It's been such a treat to get to build scenes and worlds with his words, tone and beautiful mind.

This napkin poem was written and recited by my friend, Evan T. Cowgill. Check out more of his work here.

This piece of autofiction was written and recited by Evan T. Cowgill. You can find more of his work here.

Months ago, while working in a cafe on East 9th, a guy with blue hair and a huge smile asked excitedly what I was up to. What followed was hours of passionate chatter about our work, our relationships with our mothers and syrup drenched pancakes. His words often expand, delight and surprise me. He has become a dear friend that I'm lucky to know.

Onto the audio!

Listen to this as you’re going from one place to another, ideally around strangers. The moments in between make us.

Music created by my friend, Jesse Morgan.

Warning: gunshots, violence, screaming.

Enough killing.

In 2025 alone, 32 people died in ICE's custody. Their names include Genry Ruiz Guillén, Serawit Gezahegn Dejene, Maksym Chernyak, Juan Alexis Tineo-Martinez, Brayan Garzón-Rayo, Nhon Ngoc Nguyen, Marie Ange Blaise, Abelardo Avellaneda Delgado, Jesus Molina-Veya, Johnny Noviello, Isidro Pérez, Tien Xuan Phan, Chaofeng Ge, Lorenzo Antonio Batrez Vargas, Oscar Rascon Duarte, Santos Banegas Reyes, Ismael Ayala-Uribe, Norlan Guzman-Fuentes, Miguel Ángel García Medina, Huabing Xie, Leo Cruz-Silva, Hasan Ali Moh’D Saleh, Josué Castro Rivera, Gabriel Garcia Aviles, Kai Yin Wong, Francisco Gaspar-Andrés, Pete Sumalo Montejo, Shiraz Fatehali Sachwani, Jean Wilson Brutus, Fouad Saeed Abdulkadir, Delvin Francisco Rodriguez, Nenko Stanev Gantchev. In 2026: Geraldo Lunas Campos, Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres, Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz, Parady La, Victor Manuel Diaz, Heber Sanchaz Domínguez, Keith Porter, Renee Good, Alex Pretti.

Enough enough enough.

Cover image by Kate Revels. Other voices include Quincie Ndiaye and Zola Nagusky. Editorial advice from Ahmed Ashour.

Pregnancy and childbirth absolutely fascinates me. So, I interviewed two important women in my life to hear their stories.

Some of what is discussed may be overwhelming to listeners. Please take care. Also, the week markers and time codes are factually incorrect, and serve merely as a stylistic tool.

Thank you to Gideon Parker, who composed the music for this piece. If you want to check out their music, their artist name is King Bird.

Thank you to Hanna Burgers for the cover image. Find her other pregnancy and childbirth photo work here.

Thank you to Axel Kacoutié, Avery Trufelman, Sayre Quevedo, Josie Fan and my other audio peers for your edits.

I want to give special thanks to Isabela Ponce de Leon, Cyerra Dillard and Quincie Ndiaye.

Thank you to my instructors and peers at Carriage House Birth for the doula training. I felt so much more equipped to make this piece with the knowledge, insight and empathy I gained through the program.

Most importantly, a huge thank you to the two protagonists in this episode. Both of your stories are magic. I am infinitely grateful to know you both.

An extra thank you to my mom for putting up with my incessant interviewing and, also, of course, for birthing me. I love you so!

My friend Lara wouldn't necessarily call herself fun. I figured I could help her out with that.

Special thank you to Sarah Kate Kramer and, of course, the queen: Lara.