“[Grief] breaks us open, which we may not expect. There's some allowing that has to happen. I'm going to allow this to break me open, to grow a new heart, to connect with people in a more meaningful way, to live a life that's more authentic. I think the breaking open, while it can be hard and scary, speaks to grief as a generative force and the ways it can deepen and enrich your life.”
- Naila Francis

In this week’s episode, our season finale, we reflect on our conversation with Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist Nnenna Freelon. We look at a moment that landed very differently for each of us during that conversation, sharing our takes on why we thought her candid retelling of her husband’s final days should and shouldn’t have been cut. We have fun recalling some of the signs our dads send us to let us know they’re near, including the songs that bring them closer to us — don’t worry, we spare you the actual singing of them. And appreciating Nnenna’s affirmation of each griever’s unique experience, no matter her own wisdom from walking the path, we talk about what was most helpful to us in the immediate aftermath of our losses. We also unwrap what her phrase “Anger doesn’t store well” means to both of us and the place anger has in the spectrum of grief. And given that this is our season finale, we do look back on the podcast’s evolution and the conversations that have brought greater depth to the season. We hope you agree, and that as usual, you find room for your own story as you listen in.

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About Nnenna Freelon

Nnenna Freelon is a six-time GRAMMY® Award nominee and a proud Durham resident. She’s a live performer, recording artist, arts educator and activist. The loss of her soulmate and husband, renowned architect Phil Freelon, in 2019 to ALS, followed by the loss of her sister Debbie in 2020 to cancer, have reshaped her way of being in the world — inspiring both her Grammy-nominated recording “Time Traveler" and her award-winning Podcast, Great grief with Nnenna Freelon. She is also the founder, with her late husband Phil, of NorthStar Church of the Arts, a sacred space for creative expression, spiritual exploration and cross-cultural collaboration in Durham, N.C.

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