The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being

What if one of the most powerful acts of courage isn't something extraordinary—but simply choosing to live another day?

In this deeply personal episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with nurse educator, entrepreneur, and mental health advocate Pakesta Washington for an honest conversation about living with bipolar disorder, breaking stigma, and finding hope after a lifetime of struggle.

Pakesta's story begins in childhood, growing up with a mother who also lived with untreated bipolar disorder. Witnessing suicide attempts and mental illness at an early age shaped her decision to become a...

How do we lose ourselves? Usually, not all at once.

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with brand strategist and mindfulness coach Cassidy Smith for a fascinating conversation about identity, authenticity, mindfulness, neuroscience, and the quiet ways we drift away from who we really are.

Cassidy describes that process as an accumulation of “small moments of quiet self-betrayal.”

We barely notice the drift—until one day we look in the mirror and wonder:

Where did I go?

Cassidy knows that experience personally. After findin...

What if resilience isn't something you build for the end of the world—but for everyday life?

In this thoughtful episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with bestselling author, martial artist, homesteader, and entrepreneur Sara Hathaway for a conversation about choosing a life that looks radically different from the one our culture often celebrates.

From her family's homestead in the piney forests of East Texas, Sara has intentionally embraced a life centered on self-reliance, meaningful work, strong relationships, and a deep connection to nature. While many know her through her bestselling Ch...

There comes a point in life when you realize you've become the person who gets excited about birds.

Not stock prices. Not college football scores. Not the latest headline engineered to spike your blood pressure.

Birds.

In this solo episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison reflects on an unexpected morning ritual: sitting on the back porch with coffee, binoculars, a backyard bird feeder, and his late father's worn copy of the Audubon bird book.

What begins as a humorous admission about becoming a "backyard bird person" becomes a meditation...

What if the worst day of your life became the beginning of your life's true calling?

In this inspiring episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with musician, author, and transformational teacher Michele Blood to explore an extraordinary journey of resilience, healing, and hope.

Before she became known around the world for her affirmation music, Michele was living her dream as a successful rock singer in Australia. Then, in an instant, everything changed. A devastating car accident nearly took her life, leaving her with severe injuries and an uncertain future.

...

What if history isn't really about the past?

What if it's about learning to see one another more clearly in the present?

In this compelling episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with journalist and novelist, Frank Joseph for a conversation that spans decades of American history while asking timeless questions about identity, prejudice, memory, and our shared humanity.

As a young reporter, Frank covered some of the most turbulent moments of the 1960s, including the riots in Chicago and Detroit. Those experiences placed him on the front lines of...

What do you do when life burns everything to the ground?

You keep climbing.

In this inspiring episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with musician, author, entrepreneur, husband, and father Ben Barbic for a conversation about resilience, purpose, and the quiet decision to keep moving forward—even when life refuses to go according to plan.

Ben's story begins with profound loss. As a young boy, his family's home and business were destroyed by a devastating California wildfire, leaving them to rebuild their lives from a donated trailer in the mo...

What does it really mean to leave one home and build another?

In this heartfelt episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with wellness entrepreneur Dasha Grankina for a conversation that begins with ancient Russian healing traditions but grows into something much deeper—a reflection on identity, family, belonging, and what we carry with us when we cross borders.

Growing up in Russia, Dasha was surrounded by traditions that weren't considered "wellness trends." They were simply everyday life. From steam baths and herbal practices to the rhythms of family and community, these cu...

What if the stories we've inherited about history—and about each other—are incomplete?

In this thought-provoking episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with historian, veteran, and author Roger Persaud for a conversation that begins with history but ultimately becomes an exploration of what it means to be human.

Growing up in British Guiana (now Guyana) without electricity or running water, Roger's journey would take him from the Caribbean to New York City, through military service in the U.S. Air Force, into a lifelong passion for uncovering overlooked chapters of hist...

What if grief isn't something we "get over," but something we learn to carry with love?

In this deeply moving episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with author, speaker, and resilience advocate Tony Stewart to explore how profound loss can become a catalyst for purpose rather than despair.

Tony shares the heartbreaking story of losing his wife, Lynn, to cancer after a remarkable 35-year marriage, and how that experience transformed his understanding of love, grief, gratitude, and what it means to truly live. Rather than offering clichés about "moving on," T...

After several weeks away, The Story of Us returns with the premiere of Season Three.

In this personal opening episode, host Jeff Ellison reflects on a season of profound life transitions—from becoming an empty nester and preparing for his son's wedding to traveling through Europe and rediscovering the value of slowing down. Along the way, he shares how these experiences reshaped his understanding of the podcast and reinforced its central mission: exploring what it means to be fully human.

What began as a series of interviews has evolved into something much larger—a tapestry of c...

What if the feeling you call “God” was never meant to be contained inside a building?

In this Season 2 finale of The Story of Us, Jeff reflects on the moments that leave us speechless—the overwhelming awe of standing beneath the vaulted ceilings of Notre-Dame, the impossible beauty of La Sagrada Familia, the silence of a mountain range, the pull of a night sky filled with stars.

Part travel reflection… part philosophical exploration… part deeply personal letter…

this episode explores the human tendency to build institutions around mystery—and what may be lost when we outsou...

What happens when an entire people are forced to hide who they are… for generations?

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Yaffah Batya daCosta—educator, speaker, and advocate for the descendants of the “Secret Jews,” families who were forced to convert during the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisitions while quietly preserving pieces of their identity in secret.

But this conversation is about much more than history.

It’s about memory. Identity. Belonging. And the human need to understand where we come from.

Together, they explore the story of t...

What does it really mean to raise a “good” human?

Not a high achiever. Not a perfectly behaved child. But someone who is kind, grounded, resilient… and emotionally aware.

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with educator, consultant, and author Rosemary Olender—who has spent decades working inside classrooms, schools, and family systems—to explore what actually shapes a child.

This conversation goes beyond parenting advice.

It’s about the everyday moments… the conversations we have… the behaviors we model…

and how those small things quietly sha...

What does it actually feel like…to stand at the edge of your life…and try to figure out who you’re going to become?

In this special NextGen episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Max McGuire—recent University of Tennessee graduate, adventurer, artist, and someone stepping into adulthood in real time.

This conversation is a little different.

Max isn’t just a guest—he’s someone Jeff knows personally (yeah, it's his daughters BOYFRIEND). Which makes this episode feel less like an interview… and more like a real, honest conversat...

Episode Title

She Sold Everything to Sail the World… Here’s What She Found | Alison Gieschen

Episode Description

What happens when you walk away from everything you’ve built…

and choose a life most people only dream about?

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Alison Gieschen—author, storyteller, and global sailor—who made a bold decision alongside her husband to sell everything they owned and circumnavigate the world by sailboat.

Since then, they’ve traveled across five continents, visited over 50 countries, and lived a li...

Some lives don't follow a script. They follow a feeling — an inexplicable something that whispers just loud enough to be heard over the noise of the ordinary. Calvin Schwartz has been listening to that whisper his whole life, and what it's led him to is nothing short of extraordinary.

Calvin joins us today as the host of We the Species, a podcast over 700 conversations deep that explores the big, beautiful, unanswerable questions about humanity, connection, and what it means to be alive. If you haven't found it yet, consider this your sign.

In this episode, Ca...

What does it actually mean to be a “tough guy”?

Lately, that definition feels… off. Somewhere along the way, toughness has been confused with anger. Strength with cruelty. Confidence with tearing other people down.

In this solo episode of The Story of Us, Jeff steps back and challenges that idea.

This one is personal.

Through the lens of his son Brady—a welder, diesel mechanic, and what most would call a “man’s man”—Jeff explores the difference between being disciplined, resilient, and capable… versus being closed off, hateful, or divisive.

Because those...

Something feels… off.

The world we thought we understood doesn’t quite make sense anymore. Institutions feel shaky. The rules seem unclear. And underneath it all, there’s this quiet, persistent question:

Is everything falling apart… or are we being pushed into something new?

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Scott Paradis—retired U.S. Army Colonel, Congressional Fellow, and National Security Fellow at Harvard—to explore one of the most important questions of our time.

Drawing from decades inside systems of power, Scott offers a bold persp...

From Big Bang to Space Colonies (13.8 Billion Years in Under 90 Minutes) | with Richard Anderson

What if the story of your life didn't begin when you were born — but 13.8 billion years ago in a single flash of energy that contained, quite literally, everything?

In this episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, we sit down with Richard Anderson — molecular biologist, clinical scientist, and author of The Evolution of Life, Big Bang to Space Colonies — for a conversation that begins at the beginning and somehow still manages to feel personal by the...

This episode carries a different weight—one built not on tragedy alone, but on quiet, relentless strength.

Jeff sits down with Shannon Carmichael Crawford, a Louisville native, former record-breaking swimmer, teacher, mother, and now fierce advocate. Her story moves from a joyful childhood and deep-rooted friendships to a life reshaped by profound challenges—and purpose.

Shannon and her late husband Scott built a life centered on family, raising their daughter Caitlin and son Chase. When Chase was diagnosed with profound autism, everything changed. What followed was a relentless journey through therapies, medical systems, and uncertainty—naviga...

You've changed. More than you know. More than you're probably comfortable admitting.

Not gradually. Not just a little. Fundamentally. Repeatedly. And you're not done yet.

In this rare and deeply personal solo episode, host Jeff Ellison steps away from the guest chair and turns the microphone — and the mirror — on himself. What begins with an ordinary Tuesday morning and a steamed-up bathroom mirror becomes something far more searching: a raw, honest, and at times uncomfortably beautiful meditation on identity, impermanence, and what it means to keep becoming someone new while carrying everything you've already been.

What if the world's great wisdom traditions aren't competing with one another — but have been quietly agreeing for thousands of years?

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Chris Morehouse, author of the remarkable book Legacy: Wisdom of African Traditions and the Bible — a seven-year labor of love that places nearly 300 African proverbs alongside biblical scripture, not to blur their differences, but to illuminate their profound and often stunning similarities.

Chris grew up in suburban Philadelphia, the son of theater people, raised with an open mind and a restless curiosity that...

What happens when the hardest moments of life become the seed for a lifelong mission?

In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with Jill Chalsty, founder of the global life-skills initiative Overcoming Obstacles and author of Packets of Hope. Jill shares the remarkable journey that began with childhood bullying and evolved into a curriculum that has reached over 180 million students in nearly 200 countries.

Her story takes a powerful turn after the loss of her husband and her own battles with cancer. Facing grief and uncertainty, Jill embarked on a 107-day...

Jack Hager joins Jeff Ellison for a raw, wide-ranging conversation tracing his journey from a transient military childhood and early addiction, to combat in Vietnam, involvement in smuggling and organized crime, and a 10-year prison sentence. In a Texas jail cell—through boredom, books, and an unexpected encounter with the Gospels—Jack experiences a faith conversion that reshapes his worldview and sets him on a decades-long path of prison ministry.

Along the way, Jack returns again and again to personal responsibility: “You make your choices, then your choices make you.” The episode explores war’s moral complexity, the scars...

What if becoming stronger has less to do with pushing harder… and more to do with yielding?

In this conversation, Jeff Ellison sits down with Jeff Patterson—martial artist, meditation teacher, and author of The Yielding Warrior—to explore the surprising intersection of combat and consciousness.

With 36+ years of training (and black belt equivalencies across multiple disciplines), Jeff could absolutely toss most of us like a beach towel in a hurricane… but he’s devoted his life to something quieter and far more powerful: breath, awareness, regulation, and intelligent response.

You’ll learn why distract...

In this special solo episode of The Story of Us, Jeff reflects on a truth many of us have forgotten:

We are not machines.

On the heels of his conversation with Melanie Love (Let It Be Enough), Jeff explores the deeper cultural and biological forces that keep us overworked, overstimulated, and overwhelmed.

Why do we treat ourselves like devices — charging overnight, powering through daylight, running task after task until something inside us glitches?

Why does modern life feel like an endless treadmill set a few speeds too high?

This ep...

In this Valentine’s Day episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Melanie Love — a former investment manager turned chronic pain advocate and founder of (un)block — for a deeply honest conversation about reinvention, healing, and embodiment.

Jeff first met Melanie at an event hosted by Season 1 guest Molly Jones. What began as an organic connection around chronic pain and shared purpose turned into a powerful dialogue recorded at Jeff’s kitchen table.

Melanie shares her journey growing up in Calgary, Canada, the influence of her grandparents, and her impressive career in internat...

What if travel isn’t about where we go — but about who we become along the way?

In this episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, Jeff Ellison is joined by Doug Brouwer, Presbyterian pastor, author, and lifelong traveler, for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like a shared walk on a winding path.

Doug has spent more than four decades in ministry, serving congregations across the United States and Europe, learning new languages later in life, leading pilgrimages, and listening deeply — in sanctuaries, prison...

Welcome back to The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being.

In this opening episode of Season Two, I want to slow things down for a moment and let you into the why behind this project—how it started, what Season One taught me, and why we’re continuing the journey together.

This episode is part reflection, part gratitude, part gentle nudge forward.

I share how turning 50, navigating chronic pain, watching my kids grow up and move outward, and feeling my own body push back forced me to finally open...

We’re wrapping Season 1 of The Story of Us—and closing the book on 2025—with a cup of coffee (maybe the 12th), a little laughter, and a lot of heart.

From an imperfect first recording around a kitchen table to conversations about pain, compassion, mental health, faith, and the sacred “middle lane” of life, Season 1 was about learning to listen—and remembering why stories matter.

In this finale, Jeff shares his biggest takeaway from 2025: we may not get an Easy Button for life… but we can press what he calls the Easier Button—the practice of loosening our...

“Some people become like a sunrise; others like a storm over the ocean. Both are beautiful in their own way.”

In this deeply personal — and often hilarious — father-son conversation, Jeff sits down with his 23-year-old son, Brady Ellison, to reflect on the journey of becoming a man.

Brady opens up about growing up a camo-clad, Lego-scattering, ninja-star-crafting kid who could break an AC unit faster than most people could turn one on… and the outdoor adventures, mishaps, and long list of injuries that shaped him along the way. From early mornings in deer stands to legendary...

In this solo episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, Jeff Ellison pulls on his 1990 J-Town All-Stars gear, climbs into the time machine, and takes us from pay phones and Blockbuster late fees to the always-on, always-scrolling world we live in today.

Born in 1975—the same year as Microsoft, home Pong, and the Betamax—Jeff and his buddies have lived through more technological shifts in 50 years than any generation in human history. From paper maps and pagers to AOL dial-up, smartphones, and rage-bait algorithms, he unpacks what this “technology tsunami” is doing...

Recorded at Jeff's kitchen table on a cold, rainy late October night, this conversation traces a lineage of people helping people. Molly Cassaro Jones—daughter of Irish and Italian second-generation immigrant families—grew up watching her grandfather defend dispossessed renters in Depression-era New York, her mother choose integration in 1960s Florida (“because I can make this choice now”), and her father welcome Iranian students during the hostage crisis. That inheritance of courage met an unthinkable loss when one of Molly’s 5 children, her son Pete, a gifted, big-hearted twin, elected to take his own life by suicide at the age of 23...

Every now and then, a story steps out of the noise and reminds us what leadership really looks like. In this episode of The Story of Us, host Jeff Ellison sits down with Drake Ballard — a long time friend and former collegiate athlete whose life lessons on the baseball diamond have become a blueprint for compassion, grit, and human connection.

Drake’s journey takes us from Little League dugouts in Kentucky to the quiet triumphs of helping children with disabilities find independence, joy, and dignity. Together, Jeff and Drake explore how empathy and expectation can coexist — how joy gr...

Host Jeff Ellison sits down with longtime friend Paul Osting — athlete, engineer, entrepreneur, and founder of Peacemakers Elder Care — to explore faith, family, and the courage to “run to the roar.” Inspired by Mark Batterson’s Chase the Lion, Paul’s story reminds us that peace isn’t found in comfort, but in choosing to live with purpose and heart.

Together, Jeff and Paul explore the power of mentorship, legacy, and “running to the roar” — facing life’s fears head-on with love and conviction. It’s a story that captures what The Story of Us Project is all about: discovering t...

In this special episode, Jeff revisits the origins of The Story of Us—how a playful disagreement with his wife over the podcast name became a spark that revealed its deeper truth. What began as a title became a manifesto: an invitation to explore everything that connects us—from the birth of galaxies to the pulse of our shared humanity.

Through reflection and storytelling, Jeff traces the threads of influence that have shaped the project: ✨ the scientific wonder of Neil deGrasse Tyson and Carl Sagan, 🧘 the spiritual stillness of Eckhart Tolle and Thich Nhat Hanh, 🧠 the introspective language of...

In this heartfelt episode of The Story of Us, host Jeff Ellison sits down with longtime friend Todd Lanham—a father, husband, creative, and the mind behind the beloved Instagram account Lou Guru. But behind the food photos and Louisville adventures lies a story woven with resilience, loss, and redemption.

Todd opens up about growing up on a family farm in small-town Kentucky during the 1980s—where hardship, hope, and even the echoes of the Cornbread Mafia shaped his early years. He shares his unlikely journey from the tobacco fields of Springfield to the streets of London, from...

Some days it feels like our minds are stuck on an endless hamster wheel—spinning, sprinting, replaying mistakes, rehearsing problems, inventing battles that don’t even exist. We juggle roles—parent, partner, leader, friend—and each one feeds the wheel until it feels impossible to stop.

In this episode, Jeff explores the hidden scripts and unconscious patterns that keep us stuck in relentless motion. Drawing on the wisdom of Eckhart Tolle and Thich Nhat Hanh, he invites us to step off the wheel, if only for a moment, and reclaim presence.

What You’ll Hear in This Ep...

Today we mix the cosmic with the cozy. For the first time ever, The Story of Us is guest-hosted by Peyton Ellison, who puts her dad Jeff in the hot seat. They explore how mindfulness slows time, why softness is not weakness, and how forgiveness frees us to breathe again. Jeff shares “cheat codes” for staying calm (pause, observe, use fewer words, forgive quickly), reflects on raising a daughter and learning to revere women’s quiet strength, and tells a favorite memory: a sleepy walk to a Hilton Head shoreline where a sunrise became a tradition—and a metaphor. The epis...