How has your community changed over the years?

If you’ve ever moved somewhere new, drifted from friends you thought you’d have forever, or tried to make friends as a couple (with kids in the mix!), this one’s for you. And if you’re the friend who quietly slips out of the party early, we see you too. Mel’s right there with you.

This week we’re sharing how our own community has grown and shifted: the close friendships that fill us up, the padel crew, the little moments at the coffee shop that make a day feel brighter, and the courage it takes to show up somewhere new. We hope it leaves you feeling a little more connected, and maybe inspired to reach out to someone you’ve been missing.

We don’t have the answers, just starting the conversation.

This week’s question: How do you intentionally build community?

How do you change your expectations when your head already knows you need to, but your heart isn’t there yet?

Mel is grieving a little. Their oldest son, 14, is at a new school, playing football, and answers every question with “fine,” and the closeness she’s always had with him suddenly feels out of reach. She knows it’s normal. It still hurts. Chris says she may be missing what’s still there, like the fact that the boys still fight over who gets to sit next to her. From there, the conversation turns back on them: “on my way home,” meaning two hours later, coming home from a work week wanting completely different things, love languages that don’t match, and the expectations each of them never said out loud.

This episode is about the gap between what we expect and what’s real, and about how expectations can bring people closer once they’re actually communicated.

So we’ll leave you with this: What expectations do you have of others, or of yourself, that you’re not communicating, and how are they leading to frustration?

We don’t have the answers. We’re sharing our conversation in hopes it sparks yours.

What did faith mean to you growing up, and how has it changed?

Chris was a "holiday Catholic" who prayed every night but never felt at home in church. Mel grew up in the pew every Sunday and has always known God is love, even as she wrestled with parts of religion that didn't match it. In this episode, they get honest about the moments that shaped their faith: a grandmother's near-death experience, a hand he didn't raise at a Christmas play, a stranger who prayed over him at a trade show, and a quiet church in New York that set up a dinner that changed everything.

This episode is about the difference between religion and relationship. It's also about noticing the moments that seem random, and how faith shows up in a family without anyone preaching it.

We don't have the answers. We're sharing our conversation in hopes it sparks yours.

Pull up a chair.