Monday Morning Muse

(faith) fully funny

Hannah Trav [https://hannahtrav.com/], Esq. is a stand-up comedian, writer, and lawyer based in Philadelphia. We helped grow each other up by sharing church life in the 90’s and early 2000’s. Hannah is witty, winsome, and dynamic on stage. As a kid she made up sketch comedy with friends. We both remember her hilarious turn as Abednego in the kazoo-wielding Biblical musical It’s Cool in the Furnace. In this conversation Hannah celebrates her dynamic family, shouts out her undergrad philosophy professor Cheryl Foster, and is candid about the anxiety she’s experienced since youth. From the importance of changing the toilet paper roll to our shared preference for listening to full albums, this conversation gets musical, social, and just plain silly. Hannah chose two songs in the lightning round, Liability by Lorde [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtvJaNeELic&list=RDBtvJaNeELic&start_radio=1] and Cool Girl by Tove Lo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsFneCExrCQ&list=RDXsFneCExrCQ&start_radio=1]. Keep up with Hannah Trav on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/wandacheeseburger?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==] or on her website [https://hannahtrav.com/]. I’m looking forward to catching her live the next time I’m in Philadelphia. Thanks for being here. Like all creative endeavors, Monday Morning Muse thrives when you keep showing up! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe [https://mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Inherent dignity & hope: Monday Morning Muse Live with Hannah Lynn Mell

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raised on musicals

Bob and I go way back: I posted about his kidney transplant [https://mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/p/bob-needs-a-kidney?r=53aj9r] 14 months ago, but we met c. 2008 at Stoneridge Children’s Montessori School, where I taught two of his four children and we shared the effervescence of early childhood magic. I had the good fortune of coaching Bob as a singer 2018-2020; in this video we reference musicals like Big River [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_River_(musical)] and Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat]. Bob shares about his trip to ancestral grounds in Italy while we discuss creativity, empathy, and what is fueling our engines of delight at a time of global anxiety. Bob talks about the consumerist societal mandate: “fill your role and feed the monster.” I want to hold onto this snippet as an invitation to deep soul-diving. Perhaps a future guest will want to reflect on their own ways of evading the monster. Two final notes: * The novel I talk about in this episode is Percival Everett’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel James [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/173754979-james]. * Here’s the Wikipedia entry on the interstitium [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstitium], the anatomical space that currently fascinates me. Monday Morning Muse thrives when its listeners drive. To receive new posts & help steer future collaborations, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe [https://mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Live with Hannah Lynn Mell

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objects I've (unintentionally) stolen & advice I've ignored

Five-year-old me pipes up to begin this episode. While aspects of the memory are blurry, I’ll never forget the feelings of indignation that came when I was accused of stealing a toy. While I recently took a roll of painter’s tape from a workday at Windhover Performing Arts Center [https://windhover.org], I confessed it in an email to my friends there within 24 hours. My confessional streak - childlike at times - makes sense for a person who has always worked with children and families. I’ve learned some of my best lessons from wide-eyed writers like Annie Dillard [https://www.anniedillard.com] and Rumi [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumi], whose line “unfold your own myth” I bring up (& misattribute) in this episode. I’m grateful to all who offer truth with love and respect: case in point, the luminous John Hicks, a fellow music educator who works in Gloucester, Massachusetts and keeps in touch with students & friends from around the world. I hope to bring John on the podcast eventually, but I especially love eating tacos & sharing time with him. John gives sound advice (pun intended), but it’s his presence that is a transmission of lovingkindness. May we all offer our communities compassion and courage in the here-and-now. Thanks for checking out Monday Morning Muse! This post is public so feel free to share it. Next week I plan to post a conversation with another brilliant poet; stay tuned. Keep an eye on my YouTube channel [https://www.youtube.com/@HannahLynnMell] (@HannahLynnMell) for some live Zoom conversations about music making. Monday Morning Muse is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe [https://mondaymorningmuse.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]