There are seasons when everything feels a bit undone. A marriage ends. A child grows up. A job shifts. And suddenly, we’re no longer who we were…and not yet who we’ll become.

Melinda French Gates has lived through some of life’s biggest transitions. In this conversation, she reflects on what it means to stay open when life is changing—quietly or all at once. To hold your own hand when everything feels uncertain. To lean on the people who tell you the truth. And to remember that good enough is more than just survival—it can be a way forward.

If you’re in the middle of something—grief, reinvention, or a season that feels like wandering—this conversation is a soft place to land.

In this conversation, Kate and Melinda discuss:

• Why transitions—chosen or not—ask us to be braver than we feel
• How to listen to the inner voice that won’t go quiet
• The beauty of being a “good enough” parent, partner, or person
• Why our friendships might be the most sacred thing we have
• What it means to be held—by community, by love, by something even bigger

If you liked this episode, you’ll also love:

• Nicholas Kristof, "Hope is a Muscle"
• Sharon McMahon, "Drops Make an Ocean"
• Gregory Boyle, "The Case for Hope"

Watch clips from this conversation, read the full transcript, and access discussion questions by clicking here or visiting katebowler.com/podcasts.

Follow Kate on Instagram, Facebook, or X (formerly known as Twitter)—@katecbowler. Links to social pages and more available at linktr.ee/katecbowler.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when the faith that once held you starts to unravel? When the certainty you clung to turns to dust? Sarah Bessey knows what it’s like to watch faith fall apart—and somehow find something more honest, more spacious, more real on the other side. In this Holy Week conversation, Kate and Sarah talk about what it means to sit in the wilderness of uncertainty, to be in the company of unanswered prayers, and to discover that faith was never about having it all figured out. If you’ve ever felt like you don’t belong in the faith you once knew, if you’ve ever wondered whether there’s still room for you here—this conversation is for you. In this conversation, Kate and Sarah discuss:

• Why faith is meant to evolve–and why certainty was never the goal
• The grief of spiritual disillusionment and what comes after
• The beauty (and cost) of trying to be faithful together
• Why God is not just in the light, but in the dark, too.
  
  

Watch clips from this conversation, read the full transcript, and access discussion questions by clicking here or visiting katebowler.com/podcasts.

Follow Kate on Instagram, Facebook, or X (formerly known as Twitter)—@katecbowler. Links to social pages and more available at linktr.ee/katecbowler.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when the person you love is called to something that takes them away? Again and again and again. Journalist Simone Gorrindo never expected to become a military wife. Raised in a liberal anti-war family, she had her whole life mapped out–until she fell in love. And love, as it turns out, isn’t just about saying yes. Sometimes it asks for waiting. For loneliness. For a life built around someone else’s calling. For making a home inside a world you never planned for.

In this episode, Kate and Simone talk about:

• What it means to build a life that constantly asks for more—more patience, more sacrifice, more resilience than you ever thought you had.
• When your partner’s job becomes an identity—and you’re expected to adapt.
• The loneliness of waiting, the friendships that save us, and the pressure to be “strong.”

If you liked this episode, you may also love:

• Cindy McCain
• Willie Jennings
• Priya Parker
  
  

Watch clips from this conversation, read the full transcript, and access discussion questions by clicking here or visiting katebowler.com/podcasts.

Follow Kate on Instagram, Facebook, or X (formerly known as Twitter)—@katecbowler. Links to social pages and more available at linktr.ee/katecbowler.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.