Looking Back: Season 2 Highlights

Listen in as Chaplain Kevin and Kathy reflect on Season 2 of Coping. You'll hear their favorite moments and lessons from the past season. Be sure to listen to the end as they offer a sneak preview of Season 3! Enjoy.

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Kevin: Welcome. This is Chaplain Kevin.

Kathy: And I'm Kathy, and today we're looking back on season two of “Coping”. 

Kevin: It's so nice to have you here with me to reflect a little bit. I can't believe the season is over. We've had our ups and downs, but we're happy to look back on some of the best parts of the journey today. 

Kathy: We did have our ups and downs. I really feel like it was a bit of a roller coaster of stories of emotions, vivid imagery of all of the stories that these women shared, and I got to share, too, which is kind of a surprise at the end of this season. 

Kevin: So I think what I would like to do for this episode is to take us back to season one, episode one, and talk a little bit about the beginning of “Coping” and how it all came together. 

Kathy: Yeah. Well, I think you had an idea to take your reflections and make it into a podcast. These are reflections you did for the hospital, and that's in effect, what season one was, correct?

Kevin: Yeah, basically, I work as a chaplain in a hospital, and one of the things that I do is write these reflections and deliver them over the PA system in the whole hospital. And I've been writing them for a few years now and have enough to do one every week for a whole year. So basically 52 of them, including holidays and stuff, and nurses were asking me for the reflections and handing them a piece of paper just doesn't quite do justice. 

Kathy: Yeah, it's not the same thing.

Kevin: I think it's the reading of it. It's the performance of it that I think is really meaningful for folks. So I recorded them, then put them up for the nurses that I work with, and staff seem to appreciate that. And after I recorded a full year of that, you and I got together and we're like, “What could we do for season two?” You wanted to do something with Be Well and connect to the work that we've been doing for almost ten years now. 

Kathy: And one huge component of our ten year journey is that we used to host where women would share their stories. And so that's basically what we did. We decided to bring back some of our guests in the podcast format and you interviewed them. We came up with a theme that we would pull out, and the fact that we could send it around the world with a link was unbelievable. Kevin: What was the whole point of these stories being shared at the event? Why did you have these women share their stories?

Kathy: So the thought when when I first started these in 2015, and then we ended actually last year, having done 26 of them, was to provide a platform where everyday women could share stories that were authentic and would empower and encourage other women. I think it's important to say that these are not women who are on the speaking circuit. These are just everyday women sharing their stories. And I think that's a lot of the power of the story that these are everyday women. 

Kevin: Absolutely. As the host, I just have to say I feel so honored to have sat with each of these women. I spoke with them for about an hour and a half, each of them, and then edited down the podcast to about 15 minutes, which was quite a task. 

Kathy: Gargantuan task, yeah. And what do you think was your favorite part of this season two of “Coping”?

Kevin: Gosh, there's so many of them. I think perhaps the best part of this season is how memorable each of the stories are. Having spent so much time with the editing process, hearing the voices of these strong women in my head again and again and again, really ingrained a lot of their strength, a lot of their wisdom, and I feel like they have spoken to me not just as I've edited, but in my life. And that's kind of the point, right? That these lessons, these stories, although powerful, be not just powerful in this telling of the story, but in the application of the lessons that the listeners can also feel like they can tap into the lessons that are being taught by each. 

Kathy: Absolutely. That's them. And so I think what we want to do, we want to review some of the highlights of our favorite moments. There's a lot of those favorite moments. What are some of the favorite moments from this last season? 

Kevin: One of the things that I recall really vividly as you talk about their story sticking is the metaphors that these women came up that were so powerful from Stephanie's mustard seed. Faith. When I think about faith, I think about the mustard seed. That little seed is so tiny, but yet when it's planted, it just grows into this gigantic tree. Lindsay's letting go of the glasses of comparison. I think when we choose to put on a kind of glasses and lens of comparison, where we're constantly comparing ourselves and our circumstances, then we really kind of close off our ability to receive joy. 

Kathy: Two Jean’s. Love being a carousel. I'm going to give you the analogy and compare it to a merry-go round, a carousel at an amusement park where everyone's excited to go and to participate with family and friends. And you get on that carousel and it goes round and round and round and up and down and up and down. And for me, that's what love is. It's a continuous circle, but with lots of ups and lots of downs. Just the way that they captured their words in pictures was very memorable to me and will always stay with me. 

Kevin: Yeah. I'm also thinking about Melinda, who shared about how in the hardest time of her life, she drove herself home. I equate Grace with the action and feeling of coming home, because in one of the hardest seasons of my life, grace called me home physically and spiritually. 

Kathy: Thinking about Amy, who shared, about always finding a way. I always remembered what my father would tell me. You will figure out a way, even if it's different. Even if it takes longer, you'll figure out a way. Thinking about Summer, who talked about finding her people and how important that is as it relates to belonging. It's important to find your people, to find the people who will love you and care for you and show up for you the way you need

Kevin: Gosh, there's just so many. I'm even thinking back to episode one where you shared on Perseverance. Perseverance is trying to find your footing in the midst of crashing waves coming again and again, and just even if it topples you upside down and you swallow saltwater, figuring out a way to get back on your feet. 

And there were so many powerful lessons with each story, with each image. What are some of those lessons that stand out for you?

Kathy: I recall Anne talking about not muting your voice for anyone, but to understand that our voice is worthy and that it resonated with me because I can think of times where I have muted my voice because of what other people have said. And it was a great reminder to speak your truth, which was what her word was, and allow that to be heard. Yeah, I'm thinking about Stephanie, who shared, about struggling with faith and about how that's a good thing, because that means that we need to take help, that we're not in this alone, that we can reach out to our community and ask for help. 

Kevin: Yeah. I think that's a thread that is pulled together with all the stories appreciated so much was the deep authenticity and vulnerability of each story. And I think that showcases what our entire platform of stories this season has been all about. 

Kathy: Yes. So I'm excited to see what's up for next season. What do we have cooking up for next season Kevin?

Kevin: We've been thinking about how to improve upon this topic of coping, and so season three is really going to be about practical tools for coping. We're going to be talking about relevant topics that are either in the news or things that we're sensing that our community is in need of right now. And so I'm really excited to announce that will be joining me for season three. 

Kathy is a certified life and Vocation coach and runs Vocation groups and has a lot of students that she works with through her coaching business, so I'm excited to have her join us. And Kathy, do you mind sharing with us just some of the topics that you think that we'll cover this next season? 

Kathy: Sure. I think some of the topics are going to be ones that, as a coach, I encounter and have been encountering often. Some familiar ones are surrounding vocation and calling. And it's all about how do you find a job, what is a good fit for you for your job, what is meaningful work look like? Another one that we work with a lot has to do with boundaries, like how do we say no and how do we set boundaries in our life and what does that actually look like? Some of the topics I'm hoping to discuss are topics around loss, grief, and how we cope. 

Kevin: I'm hoping to also offer some practical tools for building spiritual practices and having spiritual balance and wellness in your life. And so I'm just really excited about the possibilities of this next season and making it even more practical as we offer some helpful tips and tools for what you may be coping with. 

Kathy: Yes, sounds great. Looking forward to it. I just want to say thank you so much for all the work you've done this season, especially with the editing and. This is Kevin's brainchild, this whole podcast, and he's put tireless amounts of effort like he said, but you all literally have no idea. 

Kevin: Thank you. So appreciate that. Thank you. I've really enjoyed this. And those of you that are subscribers to this podcast and listen every week, I thank you. I'm watching the metrics of those that are listening. So I really appreciate those of you that are tuning in. If you haven't already, you can go ahead and reach out to us and connect with us on Instagram. You can find Kathy at Bewellresources on Instagram, and you can find me at Chaplain Kevin. We'd love to chat with you more there, maybe even hear some ideas about future episodes. If there's a topic that you want us to cover, if there's something that you're coping with that might be helpful for others who may be coping with the same thing, we'd love to hear from you and love for you to be part of the community. 

Kathy: So thank you all so much for the last two seasons. We're looking forward to what is up ahead and for whatever it is that you're coping with. Blessings to you.