Returning Home to Find Yourself

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Most Gen Zers and Millennials were living on their own before the pandemic, but almost a third moved back home as COVID struck for many reasons, and two-thirds of those who moved home are still there, trying to find a new normal between child and roommate. Today’s episode features Tanya Barrett, a first-generation Jamaican-American, who shares her wisdom on finding herself in the face of life's challenges. Tanya talks about recently moving back home, rebuilding relationships with her parents in her thirties, discovering new versions of herself, and healing old wounds. All this while also navigating the challenges of interpersonal conflicts and change in the workplace. This episode shows how storytelling creates space for us to tap into the transformative power of vulnerability and shared humanity while cultivating inclusive wisdom.

TOPICS

[8:15] Tanya’s “other” story
[20:55] Pressure to follow the path that’s prescribed to you and having agency
[32:50] Leaving situations that don’t serve us and creating your own reality
[43:30] Responding to coded language directed at you
[58:00] The power of sharing your story and how it shapes you

RELEVANT LINKS

Article: How dyslexia could help humans adapt to climate change

QUOTES

“Seeing myself as being part of a larger story, I think it makes me feel less alone.” - Tanya
“Speaking about myself, speaking about my experiences out loud — it makes me value myself, but it also makes me value the people around me a lot more because it's like a reminder that all of our stories carry a lot of significance. And it's important to hear it. It's important to ask questions. It's important to share ourselves with others because it's really easy to feel like you're on your own.” -Tanya
“I think my dad stopped understanding how to interact with us as we got older cuz we were very American children, you know, like we listened to rock music and we played video games” -Tanya
“If you keep running up against the same wall over and over and over again and you feel disempowered, then you're given the permission to look around and see if there's a different path.” -Nikki

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