Final Episode: What We've Learned from This Podcast

[00:00:00] Wusstest Du, dass zehntausende deutsche Unternehmen bereits Shopify nutzen? Von innovativen Startups bis hin zu Familienunternehmen mit langer Tradition?

[00:00:09] Die Commerce-Plattform Shopify revolutioniert Millionen von Unternehmen weltweit. Mit Shopify kannst Du Produkte über beliebige Kanäle verkaufen. Ob persönliches POS-System oder umfassende E-Commerce-Plattform.

[00:00:22] Auch Social Media und Marktplätze wie Facebook, Instagram und eBay werden unterstützt. Dank der ständig wachsenden Auswahl innovativer Funktionen und des zuverlässigen technischen Supports ist es ganz einfach, Dein Business mit Shopify aufzubauen.

[00:00:36] Ob Produktpräsentation oder Bestell- und Zahlungsabwicklung. Shopify bietet alles, was Du für die Verwaltung Deines Business brauchst. So kannst Du Dich ganz auf Dein Business konzentrieren.

[00:00:46] Shopify kostenlos ausprobieren und Dein Business voranbringen. Shopify.de-try besuchen. Also Shopify.de-try. Made for Germany. Powered by Shopify.

[00:00:59] We've got lots of ground to cover today. We're going to be talking about why we'll never stop loving the South and many of the things that we learned from this podcast. Meet you at the table.

[00:01:10] Welcome to the Steel Magnolias Podcast. We are two sisters here to have uplifting conversations about life in the South.

[00:01:18] The South is full of beautiful diversity in landscape, people groups, and culture. And we want to showcase each part.

[00:01:26] We've got plenty of room at our table, so pull up your chair.

[00:01:33] Welcome back to the table. I'm Laura Beth.

[00:01:36] And I'm Lainey.

[00:01:37] And we are here to draw conclusions of what the heck we've been learning over the last six years.

[00:01:44] It was actually six years to the week that we started this podcast.

[00:01:50] So fun.

[00:01:51] I remember it was so clunky trying to get it all started.

[00:01:53] I had submitted to Apple Podcasts, and we were hoping to release on a certain date.

[00:01:59] And I didn't realize it needed like two weeks for them to review it.

[00:02:03] And it was just like, oh my gosh, what am I doing?

[00:02:06] And we're still having questions around certain things.

[00:02:09] That's true.

[00:02:09] But we have come a long way, baby.

[00:02:12] Yeah.

[00:02:12] Even the sound.

[00:02:13] That's true.

[00:02:14] Of the podcast is so much better.

[00:02:17] So much better.

[00:02:18] We have, yeah, we've gotten upgrades and equipment.

[00:02:21] And I was thinking about just the show.

[00:02:24] We've recorded in, I put down in my notes, hotel rooms, on a cruise ship, in a barn, like a hat shop in a barn, on stage, in a car.

[00:02:36] That one was really poor quality.

[00:02:39] I'm really sorry about that.

[00:02:39] I mean, and it goes on and on and on.

[00:02:42] Just all these.

[00:02:42] But mostly.

[00:02:43] That is really funny.

[00:02:44] Usually we've been right here at this very table in Lainey's kitchen.

[00:02:50] And that's where we wanted y'all to feel like we were welcoming you to.

[00:02:55] And I think from what people have said, that's exactly how they felt.

[00:02:59] I know.

[00:02:59] Is that they were right here with us.

[00:03:01] That made my heart leap every time somebody would say, I feel like I'm with you.

[00:03:05] Yes.

[00:03:06] Mission accomplished.

[00:03:07] That's right.

[00:03:08] Yes.

[00:03:08] That's right.

[00:03:08] Absolutely.

[00:03:09] Absolutely.

[00:03:10] And even thinking through starting in 2018, we had a good year and a half, you know, behind us before COVID hit when people really felt isolated and really started writing in.

[00:03:25] I feel like you're my friends because I at least can take you on walks with me.

[00:03:29] You know, I might not be able to get with people that I love.

[00:03:31] That reminds me of having the hilarious Elizabeth High School on the podcast when she was talking about first being able to have some friends over.

[00:03:42] And she was like, I swear if I, I don't remember exactly how she said it, but something along the lines of, I swear if I put some cheese straws out in the laundry room, people would have been happy.

[00:03:51] Like just to be together.

[00:03:53] Yes.

[00:03:53] She said something like that.

[00:03:55] In the laundry room.

[00:03:56] Yes.

[00:03:57] So funny.

[00:03:58] She was hilarious.

[00:03:59] Well, I had just, I jotted down a few, not a few, like 10-ish things that I've learned from guests, but also just from topics that I wanted to share.

[00:04:11] And I wrote down some things that I learned too, and I will go ahead and preface that there will be, there's already been tears when we just prayed before starting this recording.

[00:04:23] So if I crack and cry, just get ready because it's coming.

[00:04:28] It's been a passion project turned beyond a hobby for us.

[00:04:35] And I know Lainey, Lainey has still aspirations to continue on, but I just really felt like it was time.

[00:04:44] No, it felt right to me that it was the time to wrap it up, but it doesn't mean that it's not painful.

[00:04:50] That's right.

[00:04:51] That's right.

[00:04:52] I just, it's so easy to talk about the American South.

[00:04:57] I mean, it's by no means perfect.

[00:04:59] No, but I wanted to start.

[00:05:02] Remember about a conversation that I had.

[00:05:04] Yes, yes.

[00:05:05] I recently made a trip to Northern California, which is so beautiful.

[00:05:12] Like I've been a few times before, I think at least three times before.

[00:05:17] And I just think Northern California is so beautiful.

[00:05:22] But I met up with a friend that I knew from my college days.

[00:05:27] And we got to just catch up on life and family and all of that.

[00:05:33] And he's a very smart guy.

[00:05:37] And he made a statement that I just had to laugh, but I totally disagreed with.

[00:05:45] What he said, I agreed with lots of things he said, but this is what he said.

[00:05:51] I said, well, you've lived out here in the Palo Alto area for about 20 years now.

[00:05:56] So you must love it.

[00:05:58] And it is beautiful.

[00:05:59] Right.

[00:06:00] And he said, well, I mean, I could live anywhere because you just do the same stuff.

[00:06:05] No matter where you live, you go to Costco, you go to Lowe's.

[00:06:09] It's like, it's basically, you know, wherever you live, that's what you do.

[00:06:15] And I get what he's saying.

[00:06:16] I really do.

[00:06:18] That is what we do.

[00:06:19] I do too.

[00:06:19] Yeah.

[00:06:20] But I disagree with like, I don't think I could just be happy.

[00:06:24] Well, I should be because I have Jesus.

[00:06:26] But it's hard to picture myself happy living in certain places.

[00:06:34] Though I might could do Northern California.

[00:06:36] But she's not opposed to Palo Alto.

[00:06:42] But because of the people, that's what I'm getting at, y'all.

[00:06:45] The people in the American South are stellar.

[00:06:49] Yeah.

[00:06:49] I mean, Costco might not be the best example from my experiences at the Costco here.

[00:06:53] Because everybody's ugly and self-centered and pushing their cart fast.

[00:06:57] But what I was going to say is, what are the interactions inside that, you know, grocery store or that home improvement shop?

[00:07:06] You know, like the last time I went to Costco, though, we talked to, I talked with one of the girls about something I bought.

[00:07:12] So see, I bet that doesn't happen in Palo Alto.

[00:07:15] That's true.

[00:07:16] Where they're asking about something.

[00:07:17] That's true.

[00:07:17] And what you're going to, you know.

[00:07:19] Like they do.

[00:07:19] We had a little interaction.

[00:07:20] Yeah.

[00:07:21] Yeah.

[00:07:22] They care.

[00:07:23] Yeah.

[00:07:24] So I do.

[00:07:24] I hear his sentiment that like a lot of us spend our Saturdays getting stuff done around our house.

[00:07:30] Because we work Monday through Friday.

[00:07:32] And a lot of us have, you know, soccer games on Saturdays and football games on Friday nights.

[00:07:39] And, you know, there is a rhythm.

[00:07:41] So all of that is a rhythm.

[00:07:43] But there is a big difference.

[00:07:46] In those examples, I'm like Friday night lights ain't the same as it is down here, baby.

[00:07:52] So.

[00:07:53] And there's just our culture of hospitality.

[00:07:55] Our culture of faith in God.

[00:07:58] Yes.

[00:07:59] Is so much more prevalent here.

[00:08:01] Yes.

[00:08:01] Our culture of story, which we can talk about more.

[00:08:05] Mm-hmm.

[00:08:06] I just, yeah.

[00:08:08] There are true characters here.

[00:08:11] True characters.

[00:08:12] Like that is why so many things are set here.

[00:08:14] I mean, I feel like I'm repeating things we've said in prior episodes because I am.

[00:08:19] But yes, to your point, it's full of good people.

[00:08:23] And that is what makes it the greatest region of the country.

[00:08:28] It just is.

[00:08:29] And the reason we named it Steel Magnolia's Podcast was the theme of a strong but feminine woman.

[00:08:36] Right.

[00:08:36] Which can exist.

[00:08:37] But also.

[00:08:39] Feminine.

[00:08:39] That movie.

[00:08:41] Yes.

[00:08:41] Was such great characters.

[00:08:43] Such great characters.

[00:08:44] Yeah.

[00:08:44] The play itself is just their conversations in the beauty shop.

[00:08:49] Because their conversations are that entertaining.

[00:08:52] Yeah.

[00:08:52] I love what you say in our trailer for this show.

[00:08:57] Like the little sort of teaser that we created even talking about this show.

[00:09:01] You said the South is full of beautiful diversity in landscape, people, groups, and culture.

[00:09:07] And we want to showcase every part.

[00:09:09] And we didn't every single part.

[00:09:12] But we did do our best in six years with our own finances instead of a budget of travel.

[00:09:21] I see you, Arkansas.

[00:09:22] I'll just say that.

[00:09:23] I see you, Arkansas.

[00:09:24] I see you, West Virginia and Virginia.

[00:09:27] And I wanted to get to that beautiful natural state of Arkansas.

[00:09:32] Yeah.

[00:09:32] Yeah.

[00:09:33] Anyhow.

[00:09:34] But we did the best we could with what is in our hands.

[00:09:37] And I'll say that actually is probably a good segue to one of my favorite guests that we had on our show.

[00:09:43] And actually the first interview that we did on the show.

[00:09:46] We didn't know if we wanted to do interviews.

[00:09:48] We were very safe and secure in our little corner of a kitchen table.

[00:09:54] But we did feel like it would paint a more beautiful picture if you could actually hear the voices of some of the Southerners that we wanted to highlight.

[00:10:01] And so one of those as the first one was actually a two-part with our friend and pastor Glenda Gleave Sutton of Family Affair Ministries.

[00:10:10] And she always has said to us, because we knew her many years prior to sitting down and interviewing her.

[00:10:17] She always says, use what's in your hand.

[00:10:21] And that is the resourcefulness that I believe is an incredibly important trait for any human being.

[00:10:28] Use what's in your hands, no matter what corner of the globe you live on.

[00:10:34] It's even biblically a concept where, you know, there's lots of stories of Jesus taking the loaves and fishes.

[00:10:42] That's all they had.

[00:10:43] Right.

[00:10:44] What do we got to work with here?

[00:10:45] Yes.

[00:10:46] I think about the woman with the widow that was making what she thought was a last meal for her.

[00:10:53] That's right.

[00:10:54] And her son.

[00:10:54] And Elijah says, bring the bottles that you have.

[00:10:58] Mm-hmm.

[00:10:58] We're about to, the oil's about to flow.

[00:11:01] Yes.

[00:11:02] Bring all the bottles you got.

[00:11:04] Yeah.

[00:11:05] Using what we do have.

[00:11:07] Right.

[00:11:07] And I think that's a strong characteristic of the Southern person is just that tenacity, perseverance, but also just resourcefulness.

[00:11:19] Just using what you've got.

[00:11:20] So good old Scarlett O'Hara, baby.

[00:11:23] That's right.

[00:11:24] Wearing the drapes.

[00:11:26] Well, I also continue to be amazed at everything that was birthed musically in the South.

[00:11:33] I know I just talked about this with Western Swing, but we've got Sun Records, the Grand Ole Opry.

[00:11:42] We've got Clarksdale, Mississippi, where the blues was born.

[00:11:46] It's just truly amazing.

[00:11:48] All that's been musically come out of the South.

[00:11:51] It is.

[00:11:52] Yeah.

[00:11:52] I mean.

[00:11:53] You boldly said on that episode that you kind of could say that all music genres that came out of the United States were birthed here.

[00:12:03] Yes.

[00:12:03] Yes.

[00:12:03] They might not have their roots here.

[00:12:04] They might not have like grown here, but they're like sprouted here.

[00:12:10] Yes.

[00:12:10] Yes.

[00:12:11] Chicago has the blues, but it was when the people from Mississippi went north to work.

[00:12:18] Yes.

[00:12:19] Exactly.

[00:12:20] You know, that's when that all happened.

[00:12:22] Exactly.

[00:12:24] Great point.

[00:12:24] Yes.

[00:12:25] I've learned so much about music and just the beauty that the South has contributed in that vein.

[00:12:33] Muscle Shoals.

[00:12:34] God, I loved going to Muscle Shoals.

[00:12:36] Go to Muscle Shoals, y'all.

[00:12:38] I do hope that you will scroll through the episodes when you're trying to think of places that you'd like to visit and consider some of the places that we've highlighted.

[00:12:47] Because we've highlighted lots of incredible cities and attractions.

[00:12:53] It's so true.

[00:12:55] And that actually, further down in my notes, but I'm going to go ahead and jump to it because that's a good little segue.

[00:13:01] One of the things I've learned is small to medium sized towns are my favorite.

[00:13:06] Me too.

[00:13:07] Yes.

[00:13:08] And amen.

[00:13:08] Thomasville, Georgia.

[00:13:10] Loved it.

[00:13:11] Oxford, Mississippi.

[00:13:13] Greenville, South Carolina.

[00:13:14] I mean, give me those all day long.

[00:13:18] Yeah.

[00:13:19] You get to talk to people.

[00:13:20] You get to get a real feel for a place.

[00:13:24] Whereas if you go to a city for a weekend, you barely get the vibe of a neighborhood.

[00:13:30] That's true.

[00:13:30] And a lot of people that have been living in a city for a long time actually live in the suburbs.

[00:13:39] So you're not even going to run into them in the city per se, right?

[00:13:43] Like I'm thinking of Atlanta even.

[00:13:46] Yeah.

[00:13:46] Like, you know.

[00:13:47] Somebody that has been there a really long time is probably in Marietta.

[00:13:50] They're in Marietta.

[00:13:51] Yeah.

[00:13:52] Or Alpharetta.

[00:13:52] Yeah.

[00:13:53] That's true.

[00:13:54] Yeah.

[00:13:55] Yeah.

[00:13:56] I just love that pace of life too.

[00:13:58] Where they're savoring the moment a little more.

[00:14:01] They're not hurrying to get to the next thing and make the next dollar.

[00:14:04] Right.

[00:14:06] Like they are in the city.

[00:14:07] Yeah.

[00:14:08] Huh.

[00:14:08] That's a great point.

[00:14:09] Yeah.

[00:14:10] So just, you don't even have to go deep into listening to the episodes.

[00:14:13] You could even just use the titles as you're scrolling through to look through ideas.

[00:14:19] And then if something pops up, then go listen to those episodes.

[00:14:21] Or if you're in a state we didn't get to, find a little small town.

[00:14:26] I bet there's lots of wonderful treasures.

[00:14:28] That's right.

[00:14:29] Uncovered.

[00:14:30] Just go.

[00:14:30] Just go with an open mind, open agenda.

[00:14:34] I learned on this podcast what a salami river was.

[00:14:38] Do you remember when we were talking to Courtney Bowman of Raleigh Cheesy?

[00:14:44] Just saw her last night at a wedding.

[00:14:45] Oh, that's so funny.

[00:14:47] Okay.

[00:14:48] And here I am bringing up her name.

[00:14:49] I mean, this was also really early on for us talking to anyone.

[00:14:54] It was just before COVID in 2020.

[00:14:56] And she had just gotten started and she blew up.

[00:14:58] They have two locations in Raleigh now.

[00:15:01] Yes.

[00:15:02] Because she got after the to-go.

[00:15:05] Yes.

[00:15:05] Idea of picking up food and not having contact with people.

[00:15:09] She like pivoted big time.

[00:15:11] Yeah.

[00:15:12] From cheese boards, charcuterie boards for parties to now no one's gathering.

[00:15:17] Now I'm just doing these for individuals to have something fun and like that they can personally enjoy.

[00:15:23] What a pivot.

[00:15:24] Yeah.

[00:15:25] But yeah, when she said, no, you're just going to make like a salami river.

[00:15:28] And she was, I knew exactly what she meant.

[00:15:31] You've seen it.

[00:15:31] You just didn't know it had a name.

[00:15:33] She's just talking about like scrunching up deli salami meat.

[00:15:36] And making a-

[00:15:36] Making it kind of swirl around.

[00:15:38] A nice wave through everything.

[00:15:40] Which is what a river does.

[00:15:42] So good.

[00:15:43] It works.

[00:15:44] It makes the board so much better.

[00:15:47] Prettier.

[00:15:49] Laura Roberts.

[00:15:50] We met Laura Roberts.

[00:15:53] Gosh, we love Laura.

[00:15:53] Through this podcast.

[00:15:54] She lives here in Nashville.

[00:15:55] But I would probably not have run into her and been connected with her had it not been through this podcast.

[00:16:01] Because we have a mutual friend, Laura and I do, that was like, y'all need to know each other.

[00:16:08] Isn't that fun?

[00:16:09] She was like, you know, Laura loves Southern culture.

[00:16:12] You guys are doing a Southern culture podcast.

[00:16:15] Connectors are important.

[00:16:16] Let's just give credit where credit is due.

[00:16:18] Yes.

[00:16:19] People that connect people, they don't hardly ever get the credit.

[00:16:22] Yeah.

[00:16:23] But it's important.

[00:16:24] It's how it all happens.

[00:16:25] It's true.

[00:16:26] And we talked to her about Lennon's, about estate sales.

[00:16:31] We even went and had a coronation tea at her home here in Nashville.

[00:16:36] She posed this question on the estate sales episode and said, why buy something new when something old will do?

[00:16:43] And I was like, wow, that's like really deep.

[00:16:47] It's deep.

[00:16:48] And I'm even thinking from like a, you know, a lot of the young people want to not create more land waste.

[00:16:57] And all of that kind of thing.

[00:16:59] Even for that perspective.

[00:17:00] It already exists.

[00:17:01] Go get it at an estate sale.

[00:17:03] Yeah.

[00:17:04] Yeah.

[00:17:04] So it was really special that she did invite us into her home for tea.

[00:17:09] And I was so inspired in getting to actually see how she uses in her home, inherited items and estate sale purchases to make her home so full of personality.

[00:17:20] It really is so wonderful when things tell a story.

[00:17:25] And it's not just like you went and, you know, purchased everything that was in a showroom floor.

[00:17:32] Right.

[00:17:32] Yeah.

[00:17:33] Yeah.

[00:17:34] Yeah.

[00:17:34] Yeah.

[00:17:34] So she was a delight.

[00:17:35] She's wonderful.

[00:17:36] So grateful to know her.

[00:17:38] There's so many people that we met.

[00:17:40] I feel so much richer for knowing.

[00:17:42] Yes.

[00:17:43] Agree.

[00:17:43] And I was floored with the, we didn't get to meet in person, though.

[00:17:48] I hope someday I will.

[00:17:49] Meeting via Zoom, Donald Davis.

[00:17:52] Yes.

[00:17:53] Yes.

[00:17:53] He's a just very renowned storyteller in the South.

[00:17:57] And his observations of that a place has an identity as a story culture or a fortune culture.

[00:18:08] I know.

[00:18:09] Mind blowing.

[00:18:10] I know.

[00:18:10] Larabeth and I both like looked at each other like, what?

[00:18:13] Oh my gosh.

[00:18:14] This is unbelievable.

[00:18:16] And basically what that gets at is when people gather, what do they talk about?

[00:18:22] If they talk about, what do you do for a living?

[00:18:27] How was your year this year?

[00:18:30] You know, you're getting a big bonus.

[00:18:32] Yeah.

[00:18:32] That kind of thing.

[00:18:33] Where are your kids looking at going to college?

[00:18:35] College, those kinds of questions tell you that it's a fortune culture.

[00:18:40] So often thinking about the accumulation of wealth and that kind of thing.

[00:18:47] If they're asking you, how's Uncle John?

[00:18:53] Who are your people?

[00:18:55] Yeah.

[00:18:56] Where'd you come from?

[00:18:58] Yeah.

[00:18:58] Where'd you grow up?

[00:18:59] Where'd you come from?

[00:19:00] Yeah.

[00:19:00] Those kinds of questions means it's a story culture.

[00:19:03] They're interested in the characters and.

[00:19:06] The story of you.

[00:19:07] Yes.

[00:19:08] Yeah.

[00:19:08] What are you about?

[00:19:11] And that just blew my mind because I thought, that's why I like the circles that are story

[00:19:18] culture so much more than fortune.

[00:19:23] And maybe that's one of many reasons I love the South.

[00:19:27] And he pointed out, it doesn't mean all of the South is story culture and all of the rest

[00:19:35] of the country is fortune.

[00:19:36] That's not true either.

[00:19:37] Correct.

[00:19:38] He said suburbs of Atlanta are still going to be fortune most of the time, you know, or

[00:19:45] something like that.

[00:19:46] But, and you might have a story culture in Oregon.

[00:19:50] Right.

[00:19:51] Yeah.

[00:19:52] Even the very next week after having that discussion with him, I was watching my kid

[00:19:57] on the playground and the other moms I was talking to, what do you do for a living?

[00:20:02] Where's your kid thinking about going to preschool?

[00:20:04] Like those are the questions.

[00:20:05] And I was like, oh no, I'm in a fortune culture.

[00:20:08] How do I shift this quickly?

[00:20:10] And I did.

[00:20:11] I was like, no, where did you grow up?

[00:20:13] You know, I was like, let's just turn this around.

[00:20:15] We're going to turn this ship around.

[00:20:17] Right.

[00:20:17] So yeah, there's a way to impart your own sort of insertion of let's make this more story,

[00:20:24] this discussion more story.

[00:20:25] But yeah, that was a really mic drop moment that he did on our podcast.

[00:20:34] Do you remember Dr. Jerome Burt?

[00:20:37] Oh my gosh.

[00:20:38] Yes.

[00:20:38] He taught us that dinner parties can save people's lives.

[00:20:42] Now what do we mean by that?

[00:20:44] Because that's a pretty bold statement.

[00:20:45] He meant that there is connection that happens over a shared meal that does things to our body's chemistry.

[00:20:56] As good as breath of breath in our lungs can do like the change in chemistry in our body that happens while we are dining in a home or he would probably say it's got to be in a home or in a more intimate environment to really see.

[00:21:13] Yes.

[00:21:14] Chemically what he was describing.

[00:21:17] Just that the being seen and being recognized and that engagement and connection, it has like actual health repercussions.

[00:21:28] It literally does stuff in your brain.

[00:21:29] Yes.

[00:21:30] That releases things like as if you're being hugged or...

[00:21:35] Yes.

[00:21:35] Yeah.

[00:21:36] I mean...

[00:21:37] And he even was mentioning certain foods do it all the more.

[00:21:41] He was like...

[00:21:42] Southern foods.

[00:21:43] Comfort food, anyone?

[00:21:44] That's a real thing.

[00:21:46] That's not just...

[00:21:46] Actually a real thing.

[00:21:47] Yeah.

[00:21:48] Don't do it too, too often with always comfort food, but...

[00:21:51] That's right.

[00:21:52] It's okay every once in a while.

[00:21:54] That's producing more of a dependency on the food.

[00:21:56] Dolly Parton, she's had some of the funniest sayings, but she...

[00:22:01] I remember her big thing with eating was just in moderation.

[00:22:06] Like don't...

[00:22:08] Don't cut a bunch of stuff.

[00:22:11] Completely.

[00:22:12] Right.

[00:22:12] Or you'll just be always wishing you could have and...

[00:22:16] But just don't eat too much of it.

[00:22:18] And I thought, that's pretty smart.

[00:22:20] Yeah.

[00:22:20] Takes discipline.

[00:22:21] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:22] But it feels a little more doable, too, than just...

[00:22:26] I'm not allowed to ever have that.

[00:22:27] I'm never allowed to ever have fried chicken ever again.

[00:22:32] Well, another thing I would say that...

[00:22:36] Not...

[00:22:36] This was not an observation because of doing the podcast, but...

[00:22:40] In researching certain topics, I saw it all the more.

[00:22:44] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:45] And that was the Judeo-Christian values are so much more apparent in daily life here...

[00:22:51] Yeah.

[00:22:51] Than they are in other parts of the country or world.

[00:22:55] Right.

[00:22:56] There is just a much more apparent giving glory to God for things and acknowledging him in day-to-day life.

[00:23:04] Now, I'm not saying that your town doesn't do that also.

[00:23:08] Right.

[00:23:08] I'm just saying a general blanket statement is you're going to see that more.

[00:23:13] Right.

[00:23:14] In the South.

[00:23:15] Wünschst du dir jemanden, der dich versteht wie kein anderer?

[00:23:18] Jemand, der deine Wünsche wahr werden lässt und mit dir das schönste Abenteuer deines Lebens erleben möchte?

[00:23:24] The Commerce-Plattform Shopify revolutionized millions of companies worldwide.

[00:23:30] With Shopify you're in your online shop.

[00:23:33] Without a program or design-application.

[00:23:36] Thanks to efficient and intuitive social media and online marketplace integration

[00:23:42] you can't sell Instagram, eBay and Co. and sell and sell.

[00:23:46] New goals to reach was never easy.

[00:23:49] Shopify offers all tools to your online business.

[00:23:54] To build a business and sell.

[00:23:55] To test and sell a business in the world.

[00:23:59] Shopify.de-try.

[00:24:02] Einfach Shopify.de-try eingeben und loslegen.

[00:24:07] Made for Germany.

[00:24:09] Powered by Shopify.

[00:24:24] Things that are.

[00:24:26] Yeah.

[00:24:27] So here there's Christian music playing in the shops.

[00:24:31] Yes.

[00:24:32] Sometimes.

[00:24:33] Often.

[00:24:33] Yes.

[00:24:34] I often see people reading their Bibles in coffee shops.

[00:24:37] I mean that's something you're not going to see as much in Palo Alto or.

[00:24:43] Right.

[00:24:44] Wherever.

[00:24:44] Prayer request portions of a you know a business.

[00:24:48] That's a clothing store.

[00:24:50] Leave a prayer request.

[00:24:51] Right.

[00:24:51] That's not a Lifeway Christian bookstore.

[00:24:54] Right.

[00:24:54] That's yeah.

[00:24:55] Selling boutique clothing.

[00:24:57] But also if you've got a prayer request.

[00:24:58] Or one of.

[00:24:59] Put that over here.

[00:24:59] Take one of these.

[00:25:00] To pray for somebody.

[00:25:01] Amazing.

[00:25:02] That left one.

[00:25:03] Yeah.

[00:25:04] Yeah.

[00:25:05] So that's just.

[00:25:06] I already knew that was not normal.

[00:25:08] But.

[00:25:09] Yeah.

[00:25:10] He's just.

[00:25:11] It's kind of mind blowing too.

[00:25:13] Yeah.

[00:25:14] I learned that sometimes even when you think it's a no.

[00:25:19] Just ask anyway.

[00:25:20] And that resulted in us getting to interview Jenna Bush Hager.

[00:25:25] And one of my favorite authors of all times.

[00:25:27] Fanny Flagg.

[00:25:28] Who wrote Fried Green Tomatoes.

[00:25:30] She wrote the sequel in 2020.

[00:25:34] And.

[00:25:35] We got her.

[00:25:36] Our request just hit at the right time.

[00:25:38] And Jenna Bush had a book that came out that year too.

[00:25:41] And her book tour got canceled because of COVID.

[00:25:44] Right.

[00:25:44] So guess who.

[00:25:45] Just make your ass.

[00:25:46] Guess whose email hit the publisher.

[00:25:48] And was willing to do a video.

[00:25:50] You have not because you ask not.

[00:25:52] That's right.

[00:25:52] Sometimes.

[00:25:54] So.

[00:25:55] That brings me to the point of.

[00:25:57] I'm excited that this archive is going to continue on.

[00:26:02] Yes.

[00:26:02] Because.

[00:26:04] The truth is we.

[00:26:05] People pass away.

[00:26:06] Yeah.

[00:26:07] And it is.

[00:26:09] Amazing.

[00:26:10] That.

[00:26:11] These episodes are now going to be available.

[00:26:14] To live on.

[00:26:15] Even after we're gone.

[00:26:16] Right.

[00:26:17] Right.

[00:26:17] So.

[00:26:18] While we still have Fanny Flagg.

[00:26:21] Mm-hmm.

[00:26:22] She's getting older.

[00:26:23] Yeah.

[00:26:23] So she won't be with us forever.

[00:26:25] And Donald Davis.

[00:26:26] And.

[00:26:27] We've got.

[00:26:28] Tommy Jackson.

[00:26:29] And Vivian Sims.

[00:26:30] Yeah.

[00:26:30] We've had a good amount of 60 plus.

[00:26:33] Yeah.

[00:26:34] Guests.

[00:26:35] I mean Vivian Sims was 90.

[00:26:37] Yeah.

[00:26:37] Plus.

[00:26:37] Yes.

[00:26:38] She's probably our oldest guest.

[00:26:40] And we've already.

[00:26:40] Too early.

[00:26:42] Lost Dr. Paul Kwame.

[00:26:43] Mm-hmm.

[00:26:43] That we had on from the Fisk Jubilee Singers.

[00:26:46] And what an amazing episode it was.

[00:26:48] Yes.

[00:26:49] On Negro Spirituals.

[00:26:50] That was incredible.

[00:26:51] And he was so grateful to get to speak about his faith.

[00:26:54] Because he said he doesn't always get to do that.

[00:26:57] Mm-hmm.

[00:26:57] In interviews.

[00:27:06] Mm-hmm.

[00:27:07] Archive.

[00:27:08] And I never would have thought.

[00:27:09] Or categorized it as that when we were first starting out.

[00:27:12] I would have never thought.

[00:27:13] We're creating like an audio library.

[00:27:16] I know.

[00:27:16] Of topics.

[00:27:17] I know.

[00:27:18] That sounds so educational.

[00:27:20] And.

[00:27:20] We're your own little.

[00:27:22] Southern library.

[00:27:24] Fact checking is allowed though.

[00:27:26] If there's.

[00:27:26] Oh my gosh.

[00:27:27] Don't actually write a paper on something.

[00:27:28] Please don't.

[00:27:29] That you've heard on here.

[00:27:30] Well I would also say.

[00:27:32] Even to the.

[00:27:33] Just another point.

[00:27:34] Of things I've learned.

[00:27:36] Is.

[00:27:36] Maintaining the culture of a place takes work.

[00:27:40] Wow.

[00:27:41] Great point.

[00:27:42] Yes.

[00:27:43] Our podcast.

[00:27:44] And.

[00:27:45] Just.

[00:27:46] Was a.

[00:27:47] Labor of love.

[00:27:48] In trying to maintain culture.

[00:27:50] Mm-hmm.

[00:27:51] And the things we find important.

[00:27:52] In this region.

[00:27:54] While we welcome people from other regions.

[00:27:56] We don't want to lose the beauty of our culture.

[00:27:59] Here.

[00:28:00] And.

[00:28:01] You know.

[00:28:02] Teaching the youth the importance of clogging.

[00:28:05] Yeah.

[00:28:06] With Tommy Jackson doing that on the square.

[00:28:08] Yeah.

[00:28:08] Or Western Swing.

[00:28:10] Being preserved on the.

[00:28:12] Steps in Fort Worth.

[00:28:14] Yeah.

[00:28:15] That's so true.

[00:28:16] You got.

[00:28:16] The storytelling festival in Jonesboro, Tennessee.

[00:28:19] Where they're trying to maintain that culture.

[00:28:22] Mm-hmm.

[00:28:22] Or.

[00:28:22] Mm-hmm.

[00:28:23] What Foxfire is doing in Northeast Georgia.

[00:28:27] Appalachian culture.

[00:28:28] Let's.

[00:28:28] Remember where this all came from.

[00:28:31] So.

[00:28:32] I even wanted to kind of pose the question to listeners who are sad about this ending, if

[00:28:38] you will.

[00:28:39] What can you do to pass on to the next generations a piece of culture that you know about?

[00:28:46] That is so good, Lainey.

[00:28:47] Yeah.

[00:28:49] Are you a tradition?

[00:28:50] A master quilter?

[00:28:51] Or.

[00:28:51] Yeah.

[00:28:51] Yeah.

[00:28:52] There's something that needs to be passed on.

[00:28:54] Yeah.

[00:28:55] That is so good.

[00:28:56] Because, yes, we each carry different things that do need to be passed on.

[00:29:01] Oh, what else did I learn?

[00:29:03] I learned about the Pack Horse librarians.

[00:29:06] Oh, my gosh.

[00:29:06] That I've never even heard of until this podcast.

[00:29:09] And it made me so proud of women and just how far we've come.

[00:29:13] So, under President Roosevelt, the Pack Horse Library Initiative provided women jobs as librarians

[00:29:20] that were sent deep into Appalachia on horseback to deliver books.

[00:29:26] I mean, that is, that's America.

[00:29:30] Really, it is.

[00:29:31] Yeah.

[00:29:32] It makes me think of, like, even, yeah, where people would go on horseback to preach the

[00:29:37] gospel into a little community.

[00:29:38] Like a circuit rider.

[00:29:40] Yeah.

[00:29:41] Yeah.

[00:29:41] Yeah.

[00:29:42] So cool.

[00:29:42] Staying along the lines of women, I was blown away that on August 18th, 2020, we marked

[00:29:51] with an episode the 100-year anniversary of women winning the right to vote in the U.S.

[00:29:57] And I learned that the final state to pass ratification was Tennessee.

[00:30:01] Tennessee, baby.

[00:30:03] I thought of that while I was standing in line to vote this last time.

[00:30:07] Oh, I bet.

[00:30:07] And just thinking of, like, man, don't take for granted.

[00:30:12] True.

[00:30:13] Your right to vote.

[00:30:14] Even if it's not a major election.

[00:30:17] If it's for your mayor and alderman.

[00:30:20] Yeah.

[00:30:21] Yes.

[00:30:21] Don't take, yes, go do it.

[00:30:23] It's important.

[00:30:24] Yeah.

[00:30:24] That was a big, those were some big women sort of moments I felt incredible about.

[00:30:31] Well, I don't know that this was a new observation, but I certainly have read a lot more books about

[00:30:36] the South in the last six years than I ever had.

[00:30:41] And I just had the observation of reading books from your region or places that you know can

[00:30:48] really take you to that place.

[00:30:50] I think about, like, when I read Where the Crawdads Sing.

[00:30:54] Oh, man.

[00:30:55] Yes.

[00:30:56] And just the descriptions of the bayou.

[00:30:59] You're in the swamp.

[00:31:00] Yeah.

[00:31:00] Like, you feel it.

[00:31:01] Like, because I've seen those places.

[00:31:03] You're in the marsh.

[00:31:03] You are the marsh girl.

[00:31:05] With the marsh girl.

[00:31:06] Yes.

[00:31:07] Yes.

[00:31:07] Yes.

[00:31:07] The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

[00:31:09] You know, I just think about the Mississippi River and the parts of it I've seen.

[00:31:14] And I just have images.

[00:31:17] It takes me right back there.

[00:31:19] So that was just kind of one of those things where it makes it even more enjoyable when

[00:31:25] you have your own visuals.

[00:31:26] So true.

[00:31:27] That's so true.

[00:31:28] Yeah.

[00:31:30] Yeah.

[00:31:30] The Mississippi River we talked about a lot on this podcast.

[00:31:33] It's such a marker.

[00:31:34] And, and yeah, it was rivers and trains make such a difference in early life.

[00:31:42] Yes.

[00:31:42] Of where things started.

[00:31:44] Yes.

[00:31:44] Hopping.

[00:31:45] Yes.

[00:31:46] A real memorable trip was driving the Natchez Trace down to Mississippi for both of our

[00:31:52] first times even in that state.

[00:31:54] The Magnolia State.

[00:31:55] Neither one of us had ever visited.

[00:31:59] And now I've, now we've been two times together to the Delta.

[00:32:05] And man, I loved the culture down there.

[00:32:08] And I don't think I would have found myself down there had it not been seeking out the

[00:32:15] understanding of the culture of the Delta of where blues originated and visiting cities

[00:32:21] like Clarksdale and Greenwood and Cleveland.

[00:32:24] And, you know, obviously I wouldn't have found myself there because I hadn't found myself

[00:32:29] there in the 40 plus years before that.

[00:32:31] So like, I was just so encouraged to like, you do sometimes have to just go somewhere

[00:32:38] that is outside of the box and just be open to like, what, what's something cool that

[00:32:44] might, you know, happen here.

[00:32:46] And I think sometimes those are the best.

[00:32:47] Because if you've already done all the research and planned your day by day, it's almost like

[00:32:52] you kind of feel like you've already been because you've seen all the pictures.

[00:32:55] That's so true.

[00:32:57] And everybody else has already been to on your same trip.

[00:33:00] Right.

[00:33:00] Like, oh, the Trevi Fountain in Rome.

[00:33:02] I already know exactly what it looks like.

[00:33:04] I've seen it in five movies.

[00:33:06] That is so true.

[00:33:08] You know?

[00:33:08] Yes.

[00:33:08] If you're going to Cleveland, Mississippi.

[00:33:11] Right.

[00:33:12] I have no idea.

[00:33:13] Right.

[00:33:13] And it's also just fun fodder at a dinner party too.

[00:33:16] Because people are like, I've never, never even heard of it.

[00:33:19] Tell us about it.

[00:33:20] I know.

[00:33:20] You know?

[00:33:21] Yeah.

[00:33:22] So fun.

[00:33:22] So great.

[00:33:23] Well, again, I don't know that I learned this from the podcast, but I certainly went

[00:33:28] deeper in my knowledge and a lot of things.

[00:33:30] And we really do have some of the best food in the United States of America, in the South,

[00:33:37] thanks to the diverse cultures of cities like Charleston and New Orleans.

[00:33:41] Yes.

[00:33:42] I mean.

[00:33:43] Yes.

[00:33:44] When I travel, I really like to try regional fare, even if it doesn't sound that great to

[00:33:50] me.

[00:33:50] I mean, I remember in Cinque Terre, Italy, hearing like anchovies are really popular

[00:33:58] there.

[00:33:58] And I'm like, I don't even like anchovies.

[00:34:00] But I ate some.

[00:34:01] Yes.

[00:34:02] On a focaccia bread.

[00:34:03] Yes.

[00:34:03] Because I wanted to see.

[00:34:05] I started to say when in Rome.

[00:34:07] Right.

[00:34:07] Right?

[00:34:08] Yeah.

[00:34:08] But I do think it's great to try things.

[00:34:11] How are you going to know if you like it until you try it?

[00:34:15] If you don't, you don't.

[00:34:16] But now you know they like to eat it in that region.

[00:34:19] And so anyway.

[00:34:21] Now, you know, that's a little too salty for my taste.

[00:34:24] But now you know why.

[00:34:25] Right.

[00:34:27] That's good.

[00:34:27] The tamales.

[00:34:28] We would have not known about that until going to the Delta of Mississippi.

[00:34:32] But yeah.

[00:34:33] There's lots of regional fare that's fun to try when you travel.

[00:34:37] Yeah.

[00:34:37] We definitely heard from people how hungry they got while listening to the show many, many

[00:34:42] times.

[00:34:43] People definitely caught our love for college football.

[00:34:46] That's my next point.

[00:34:48] We are huge Tennessee fans.

[00:34:50] We've never been shy about that.

[00:34:52] I'm so glad our joy of the game and pregame came through the airwaves.

[00:34:57] Yes.

[00:34:57] This was a really funny moment.

[00:34:59] Just last night, Phillip, my husband, and I were talking about the remaining schedule for

[00:35:05] different teams for the year.

[00:35:07] And he said, well, you know, the last game is always an interstate game.

[00:35:13] And I was like, oh.

[00:35:15] Because of Thanksgiving.

[00:35:16] Is it?

[00:35:17] Really?

[00:35:17] And he said, yeah, I learned that on a podcast.

[00:35:19] And I was like, what podcast?

[00:35:22] Me talking.

[00:35:23] He goes, your podcast.

[00:35:25] So there are some things that I haven't learned, even though I've sat here and had a conversation

[00:35:32] with you.

[00:35:33] Not everything sticks.

[00:35:35] Not it can all stick.

[00:35:36] You've heard me yapping, yapping about a lot of topics.

[00:35:39] But yeah, that is true.

[00:35:40] True.

[00:35:41] Well, I would say also in thinking through the football thing.

[00:35:47] First of all, it's an all day affair in the South.

[00:35:50] Like we tailgate next level.

[00:35:52] Right.

[00:35:52] That's why I said our love of the game and pregame.

[00:35:54] Yes.

[00:35:55] Because you say pregame.

[00:35:56] It's the same.

[00:35:57] Yeah.

[00:35:57] Tailgate.

[00:35:58] Yeah.

[00:35:59] We said tailgate and pre-party.

[00:36:01] Yeah.

[00:36:02] Depending on what the scenario was.

[00:36:03] But I'm going to make a statement that a few Big Ten people are not going to like.

[00:36:11] But this year, well, let me just say this.

[00:36:16] SEC is next level in football.

[00:36:19] And I know that some Big Ten are like, oh, we're just as good.

[00:36:22] I would beg to differ.

[00:36:23] But when I looked at the AP college poll for this week, because I just wanted to see for

[00:36:29] this week, top 25 schools, 14 of them are in the South.

[00:36:35] Nine of them are in the SEC.

[00:36:37] Yeah.

[00:36:37] So mic drop on that.

[00:36:40] That it's just different here.

[00:36:43] Football is just different.

[00:36:44] I'm not saying there's not good teams in every other state, but the ones they're playing aren't

[00:36:49] as hard.

[00:36:50] Exactly.

[00:36:51] That's what I'm saying.

[00:36:51] I know.

[00:36:52] Trying to get across.

[00:36:53] It's frustrating to see teams in other conferences climb up those polls when you're like, well,

[00:36:59] you play Georgia and Alabama.

[00:37:01] Right.

[00:37:02] You play them.

[00:37:03] And Texas is now in our conference.

[00:37:05] Darn it.

[00:37:07] They're really good.

[00:37:08] Yeah.

[00:37:09] They got a Manning too.

[00:37:12] Anyhow.

[00:37:13] Yeah.

[00:37:14] Yeah.

[00:37:14] I've had several people that are like, I just love listening to y'all talk about college

[00:37:18] football because I just smile.

[00:37:20] Even there are people that don't even have any skin in the game.

[00:37:23] Apparently they just giggle.

[00:37:25] Well, if the SEC network needs another female, I'm available for their podcast.

[00:37:30] Game day.

[00:37:32] Game day.

[00:37:32] And I'll even make snacks for the tailgate.

[00:37:35] I'm good at that too.

[00:37:38] Oh, goodness.

[00:37:39] What else did I learn?

[00:37:40] I mean, I just, I wanted to just kind of hit highlights because there's, there's a lot.

[00:37:45] Oh my gosh.

[00:37:46] We couldn't say everything we've learned.

[00:37:48] Oh, I mean, this just shows kind of how much of a bubble that sometimes we live in.

[00:37:54] Right.

[00:37:54] I learned that there's people living in New York that are Southern and Christian.

[00:38:01] I'm kidding.

[00:38:02] Elizabeth Passarella.

[00:38:04] We see you.

[00:38:05] I'm only sort of kidding.

[00:38:06] Yes.

[00:38:07] Elizabeth Passarella joined us on two episodes.

[00:38:10] Love her.

[00:38:10] She's an author of books and regularly writes for Southern Living and Real Simple Magazine.

[00:38:17] And she.

[00:38:19] Just a delight.

[00:38:20] And yes, I do want you to help plan my funeral.

[00:38:25] I mean, the first interview that we had with her, she was sharing about her book where she

[00:38:30] described what it was like as a Southern evangelical living in New York.

[00:38:34] And it was just hilarious.

[00:38:36] That was hilarious.

[00:38:37] So it was a good expanding of my mind to know that somebody that grew up right here in Tennessee

[00:38:44] has made her home in New York and is choosing to stay there.

[00:38:49] Like.

[00:38:49] Well, and was it Elizabeth Passarella or Richard Langham, the interior decorator we had on that

[00:38:56] talked about that the New Yorkers there find each, I mean, the, the Southerners in

[00:39:00] New York find each other.

[00:39:02] I think it was Richard Keith Langham.

[00:39:04] Yeah.

[00:39:04] Okay.

[00:39:04] Yeah.

[00:39:04] He was saying like they.

[00:39:06] Yeah.

[00:39:07] Enjoy each other's homes because of the way they decorate.

[00:39:10] Yes.

[00:39:10] I think it was him.

[00:39:10] They enjoy each other's personalities.

[00:39:11] He was like, we just find each other.

[00:39:14] Isn't that hilarious?

[00:39:15] We hear each other out in public.

[00:39:17] And then we.

[00:39:17] Yeah.

[00:39:18] That was really funny.

[00:39:19] But yes.

[00:39:20] Thank you, Elizabeth, for reminding us that Southerners are spread across the country.

[00:39:25] Yes.

[00:39:26] Living in different regions, but still Southern.

[00:39:29] And I want to come see your apartment when it's done, Elizabeth.

[00:39:32] Oh my gosh.

[00:39:32] Please, please, please.

[00:39:33] Yes.

[00:39:33] I know it's going to be epic.

[00:39:35] Do you have any other sort of learnings?

[00:39:38] Well, this isn't necessarily a learning so much as kind of a charge.

[00:39:43] Do you want me to do that?

[00:39:44] Yeah.

[00:39:45] Go for it.

[00:39:45] I was just thinking, become and create what you wish you had when you were younger.

[00:39:52] And I just think that that's a good thing to think about.

[00:39:55] It's like, what's a need that you had or that kind of thing where you can feel that for people.

[00:40:02] Yeah.

[00:40:02] And I always wanted to have a peaceful home and beautiful friendships and lots of traditions.

[00:40:09] Mm-hmm.

[00:40:11] And those weren't necessarily always prevalent in my life growing up.

[00:40:18] And so I'm like, this is how I want it to look.

[00:40:20] This is, you know, we didn't, we had a few traditions, but I feel like we've gotten a lot more because we kind of cultivated that.

[00:40:29] Right.

[00:40:29] You know?

[00:40:30] So anyway, whatever hand you've been dealt, you can still make your own traditions.

[00:40:36] We've talked about that on this podcast before.

[00:40:39] And I also just always wanted to have a lasting impact on the world.

[00:40:45] Yeah.

[00:40:46] By bringing about God's kingdom on earth.

[00:40:50] And I had my own ideas of what I thought that was going to look like.

[00:40:54] And it hasn't looked the way I thought it was going to look.

[00:40:57] Mm-hmm.

[00:40:58] But maybe someday I'll understand, but God's plans are higher than mine.

[00:41:05] Yeah.

[00:41:06] And I don't know if all of that's making sense.

[00:41:09] It does.

[00:41:10] But I just really believe we can lean into God and to some degree create, cultivate, like cultivate the garden of beauty that we want.

[00:41:24] That's so good.

[00:41:25] That's so good.

[00:41:26] Yeah.

[00:41:26] Yeah.

[00:41:27] Yeah.

[00:41:27] There's people listening.

[00:41:28] They're like, I'm not Southern.

[00:41:29] I didn't grow up Southern.

[00:41:30] I wish I had been.

[00:41:31] I wish I had this or that in my family.

[00:41:34] Make it.

[00:41:34] Make those traditions in your home.

[00:41:37] Yeah.

[00:41:37] In.

[00:41:37] Yeah.

[00:41:39] Do it.

[00:41:40] Yeah.

[00:41:40] Yeah.

[00:41:40] Be Southern up in DC.

[00:41:42] I don't know.

[00:41:44] And the other thing I would just say is stay curious and explore and ask questions.

[00:41:53] Yeah.

[00:41:53] Because there is so much to learn.

[00:41:56] I think I'm naturally a curious person.

[00:41:59] Mm-hmm.

[00:41:59] I'm always reading.

[00:42:00] I'm always asking questions.

[00:42:03] You're very curious.

[00:42:03] Yes.

[00:42:04] I'm such a curious person, but it really does make for deeper understanding.

[00:42:12] Right.

[00:42:12] Yeah.

[00:42:13] You know.

[00:42:13] You can empathize with something that you have a little more understanding about.

[00:42:18] Yeah.

[00:42:18] Yeah.

[00:42:18] But you have to ask questions.

[00:42:19] And I really hope that this podcast has increased our listeners' hunger for discovering and savoring

[00:42:25] this region, but wherever you are.

[00:42:28] Yeah.

[00:42:28] Truly.

[00:42:29] And finding those small towns and wonderful people.

[00:42:35] Yeah.

[00:42:36] Need to be discovered.

[00:42:37] And I'm certainly grieving the end of this project.

[00:42:43] But I also feel like, oh, I feel the tears.

[00:42:47] I'm grieving a lot, y'all.

[00:42:50] But I know God wants some new beginnings.

[00:42:54] Yeah.

[00:42:55] And the time feels right.

[00:42:57] It's just hard.

[00:42:58] Yeah.

[00:42:59] Because this has brought me a lot of joy.

[00:43:02] Yeah.

[00:43:02] So I would just ask our listeners to pray for Laura Beth and pray for me.

[00:43:10] Because we want to step into where God wants us next.

[00:43:14] That's right.

[00:43:14] Making the space.

[00:43:16] We wrote an email out earlier last week and sent it out.

[00:43:20] And we don't even know what all is.

[00:43:23] It's not that we're just transitioning to something.

[00:43:26] But you have to have the space to have even something new come in.

[00:43:32] Yeah.

[00:43:33] God did open some fun doors through this.

[00:43:36] I think about even the comment with the connector.

[00:43:41] I introduced you to Sean of the South as a, not, I didn't know him, but as a like, have you ever heard of Sean of the South?

[00:43:50] As an author.

[00:43:51] And then Laura Beth thought we could partner and have him come up to do our event that we did at our Franklin Theater here.

[00:44:00] And boy, did that birth some fun things.

[00:44:03] You never know.

[00:44:05] So my husband and I are basically managing him now.

[00:44:08] We're doing shows with him, like for him, promoting shows for him.

[00:44:12] And getting him set up to go to cities he's never been to.

[00:44:16] And doing marketing for him.

[00:44:19] And yeah, just helping him along.

[00:44:22] You just never know what doors will open and where.

[00:44:26] But yeah, I would just ask our listeners to pray for both of us.

[00:44:30] Because we're seeking the what's next.

[00:44:32] And especially me.

[00:44:34] I think even more than you in the question marks of what's next.

[00:44:40] But we've got a lot of question marks in my house too.

[00:44:43] Okay.

[00:44:43] Yeah.

[00:44:44] It's a necessary close to be able to make room.

[00:44:49] Make room for more.

[00:44:49] Yeah.

[00:44:50] Yeah.

[00:44:50] Or maybe not more, but different.

[00:44:53] Yes.

[00:44:53] Yes.

[00:44:54] A pivot.

[00:44:55] That's right.

[00:44:56] Yeah.

[00:44:57] And the timing, we both knew the timing felt right.

[00:44:59] So I'm sure going to miss this.

[00:45:02] Well, now we get to have sister time though and just not have to check mics before.

[00:45:07] Because now we'll still have sister time.

[00:45:09] But not have to take notes.

[00:45:12] Like be able to talk about it in such an eloquent way.

[00:45:17] Or give links to things that we're learning.

[00:45:20] We just get to go through life and be sisters.

[00:45:23] So we have counted it a blessing to be able to do this.

[00:45:29] And I just honor you, sis.

[00:45:33] Learned.

[00:45:34] I learned that you are smarter even than I've.

[00:45:37] And retain things even better than I thought you did.

[00:45:40] Being able to recall things in this show and just things you've learned along the way.

[00:45:46] So.

[00:45:47] Well, it would not have been possible without your tech savvy smarts.

[00:45:52] Well.

[00:45:52] She's just YouTube, guys.

[00:45:55] It's a great resource.

[00:45:56] It's available to all.

[00:45:58] So.

[00:45:59] We have to do our typical sign off.

[00:46:02] Do I say it to you first?

[00:46:04] Yeah.

[00:46:05] Okay.

[00:46:07] Peace be with you, Lainey.

[00:46:08] And also with y'all.