Messy Middlescence

Podcast by Tara (Conti) Bansal and Christina (Conti) Donovan

Messy Middlescence

Like adolescence – "Middlescence" is a time of tremendous change touching most aspects of our lives. There are the physical and hormonal changes but also many of the rhythms, relationships and frameworks that have dominated our lives for decades all start to shift in ways that are unbalancing at best – seismic at worst. Our podcast will explore the challenges and opportunities of these unique “middle” years. However – ours will be different because it is one of sharing, exploring and figuring things out together. It is "messy" because we do not have answers but we hope to discover some. We hope to motivate and / or guide listeners to actively change both their perspective and day-to-day reality of this unique time. We also aim to create a supportive connected community of listeners with similar struggles and questions. We truly hope you will join us!

Latest episodes

17 December 2024

2024 Book Recommendations

The end of every calendar year sees “best of” lists for just about every cultural category imaginable. But “best” is not easily defined when it comes to art and culture — especially when used by critics. Most of the culture that Tara and Tina consume comes from reading and as a result they are continually searching for book recommendations.

Although critics’ lists are sometimes helpful, Tina and Tara have found that those books recommended by family and friends usually resonate far more than those on the critics’ lists. It is with this mindset that they chose to do their own “best of” episode as 2024 comes to a close.

For Tara and Tina, “best of” means the books they enjoyed reading the most this past year. In this episode they discuss their favorite fiction and non-fiction books of this past year. They hope some of these titles make their way into your reading future. They would also love to hear some of your favorite books of 2024!

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03 December 2024

A Few Kind Words with Tracey Willis Gates

Is kindness overrated? We don’t think so. Maybe it is our age, maybe it is the world we currently live in – but it seems, if anything, that kindness is vastly underrated and something our society and communities could use more of.

Cue Tracey Willis Gates – self-proclaimed “kindness ambassador” and author of the book “The Power of A Few Kind Words: Create a More Meaningful Life, One Letter at a Time” which shows how important, how easy, and how meaningful kindness can be.

Gates’ book documents her transformational journey of writing a handwritten, unexpected letter of appreciation to a different person every day for one year. Tara and Tina both read Tracey’s book and feel this is a book everyone should read and can benefit from. We were so thrilled to speak with Tracey after reading her book and she does not disappoint.

Tracey is not advocating everyone imitate the impressive and daunting challenge she gave herself. Rather, she shows and shares through her journey the powerful impact of 1) being observant to the gifts and things we appreciate in the people we interact with and 2) the simple way that acknowledging these things through words can have.

We love her assertion that kindness is both a superpower AND a learned behavior. Our ability to be kind is strengthened and improved with practice - making kindness something we can all work on incorporating more intentionally into our daily life. But this is just one part of Tracey’s story. There are so many positive and inspirational messages in her book. Tracey’s challenge to herself, which transformed her life in so many ways, occurred during her middlescence years and she is a prime example that it is never too late to find your purpose. She passionately advocates for all the good things that happen as you age. And she demonstrates that a small series of seemingly unrelated steps can often lead to a serendipitous journey with unexpected and fulfilling results.

As we move into the holiday and gift-giving season, we hope Tracey’s many messages will inspire you to take the time to make connections and be more present to those around you and to practice your own small acts of kindness. They are free. And as Tracey’s stories show – a powerful medicine for both the giver and the recipient.

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20 November 2024

Radical Empathy: Some Thanksgiving Thoughts

The Thanksgiving holiday is just around the corner. We know some people for whom this is their absolute favorite holiday — full of food, friends, and family without the financial and commercial concerns of Christmas or Hanukkah. Similarly, we also know people who dread Thanksgiving because it highlights family division and dysfunction and/or creates a difficult environment for those struggling with weight issues or addiction. We, along with most people, fall somewhere in between.

We love the idea of a day devoted to giving thanks but it is easy to lose sight of the true meaning of the day with the emphasis on food and the stress that often comes with traveling and large groups. No matter where you are on the Thanksgiving spectrum, we hope you will join us as we discuss ideas and suggestions to emphasize gratitude and giving thanks this holiday.

We talk about our family traditions, offer easy ways to integrate gratitude into your day, and make some humble recommendations about the holiday meal. We also discuss some of the challenges of celebrating Thanksgiving during middlescence.

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06 November 2024

Where I'm Meant to Be with Mary Carolyn Conti

We are thrilled to share our conversation with our sister-in-law, Mary Carolyn Conti. A true artist in every sense of the word, Mary Carolyn is a writer, singer, photographer and theater producer extraordinaire. And her joy and excitement about her middlescence years are downright palpable and, as a result, a bit contagious too. It is impossible not to get caught up in her energy and optimism as she talks about her plans and goals for her next phase.

In today’s episode we discuss with her:

how she has changed for the better as she has aged
the significance of life experiences to her work as an artist
cherishing these last years with her kids at home
the importance of having a partner who supports and help you achieve your goals
two pieces of theatre that inspire her own writing
the emergence of health issues for the first time
what she is most proud of
her courage in sharing her gifts with the world.

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22 October 2024

Being Able to Say Yes with Anne Conti

Last season we interviewed our sister-in-law, Anne Mielke Conti, in the episode “Taking the Leap” about her momentous life change of leaving her corporate job to be at home. We promised at the end of that episode to touch base with Anne again in the future to see where her “leap” had taken her. Today, we fulfill that promise by talking with Anne about the good, the bad, and much in between, that has occurred for her and her family in the last 16 months.

In “Being Able to Say Yes”, Anne recognizes how fortunate she is to have the opportunity and choice to make this change. As the title of this episode implies, this has been a positive change for her and her family and Anne emphasizes throughout our interview, “this is what is right for right now”. Anne imparts wisdom and insight into both the practicalities of everyday life as well as adjusting to a significant change.

In this episode we discuss the following with Anne:

The unique challenges of her home/family as her workplace – highlighting the similarities and differences between her corporate role and her role at home;
The “constant juggle” of parenting and work schedules which for many families is a continual struggle. Anne credits the lessening of this “juggle” and the ability to always say yes as the most important factor in her decreased stress levels;
The challenges of having no defined schedule and/or commitments but also being protective of this unscheduled time which allows Anne to take advantage of opportunities as they happen;
The joys of a free-time bucket list and the misery of meal planning
The need to find “me” time and setting boundaries when the tasks and days at home are seemingly endless;
The joys and struggles of changing seasons
The importance of doing your best to change the things you can when it comes to less-than-ideal tasks or the environment you might find yourself in;
The significance of using your core values to stay intentional with your time and choices.

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08 October 2024

Err on the Side of Presence

Season #2 of Messy Middlescence begins with a heavy and difficult topic: grief. It may seem like an odd choice for a season opener but Tina’s family and community experienced an unexpected and tragic loss just a few weeks ago. It was a personal reminder that these middlescence years are often full of painful and sorrowful events. We may encounter the loss of — not just older family members — but of friends, neighbors or colleagues. It caused us to think deeply and personally about how do we get through difficult times of grief and loss? How do we help people we care about who have suffered a devastating loss?

This past January, a guest essay was published in The New York Times titled, “Train Yourself to Always Show Up” by Rabbi Sharon Brous. This essay, which is excerpted from her book, The Amen Effect, made a profound impression on both Tara and Tina. It was an article and topic they had planned to discuss in the future, and in light of the recent personal circumstances, the timing felt right to begin the season with these topics.

In this episode, Tina and Tara discuss and explore the beautiful words and ideas from Rabbi Brous’s article, which can act as a guiding light for those in middlescence.

These include:

the importance of fighting the natural instinct to withdraw - regardless of whether you are the one grieving or the one trying to support someone grieving;
the need for community and bearing witness both in joy and in suffering;
how losing a friend differs from losing a family member;
the loss of rituals and traditions around grief in modern society and its implications for both individuals and communities.

This episode is the first of several that will attempt to tackle these difficult and painful topics.

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