Making Connections

Nearest And Dearest Podcast is my hope that maybe, my stories will resonate with you! I still believe today, that if any of my content connects with you personally, it's priceless! 🫶 It's a testament to the strength of our shared human experience, one that even caught the attention of alcoholfree.com, where my stories provide solace to those embracing an alcohol-free lifestyle.
I'm humbled when I receive text messages, emails, reviews or even chats from you! S3E2 Making Connections is a shout out 📣 🤩 to you! I believe the magic 🪄comes from making human connections through sharing life experiences all across the world! 🌎
I'm grateful & blessed to have you experience yours with me. ❤️
LINKS!
🚨SEND ME AN EMAIL 📧 🚨Any suggestions, or share your own story 👉 julierogers@nearestanddearestpodcast.com

https://www.alcoholfree.com/  Dive into their website full of articles, videos & podcasts. 

Transcript

Making Connections Through Personal Stories

Julie Rogers 0:05

No one ever said life is easy , but I believe by giving yourself permission , you will find you have more control over your life than you realize . I'm Julie . I hope you will join me by taking responsibility for yourself , by only controlling the things you can and letting go of the things that you can't . By doing this , you will have discovered the secret to having happy , healthy and more fulfilling relationships . This is Nearest and Dearest Podcast . I'm Julie Rogers and you are listening to Season 3 , episode 2 , making Connections .

Julie Rogers 0:48

When I decided to put this podcast together three years ago , I felt the need to share my personal story . I really didn't know how that was going to look . I had navigated through so much in my life up to that point , but I was in a very good headspace . I had clarity . I felt a compelling urge to put my voice out there and share what I have experienced . My family and friends know a lot of the details , the good and the bad . This podcast was my hope that maybe , just maybe , my stories will resonate with you . I still believe today that if any of my content connects with you personally , it's priceless . I'm humbled when I receive text messages , emails , reviews or even chats from you . I received my first written five-star review from jrcomins1 through PodChaser . For those of you who don't know what PodChaser is , it's just another platform for people to check out podcasts like Apple Podcasts , spotify or Amazon Music any of these platforms you can listen to Nearest and Dearest Podcast . This is what she said . Quote "love your podcast . Owning my truth . Check out your podcast from Facebook . And it is the first time I have ever listened to any podcast .

Julie Rogers 2:26

I can relate that I had a similar experience with Ancestry . com when I received an email from my daughter asking if an email she received was true . A young man had sent her an email saying he was a DNA match to her family . The email made me recall past family details I had not recalled in years . Indeed , my daughter , Jaimie , was related to the young man and , in fact , he was my nephew and my sister's son , whom she had given up for adoption many years ago . Short story my sister and her son finally connected and we now have another branch to the family we had never thought existed . Very happy we took a DNA test and established a connection my sister and her son had secretly hoped to find for many years . Very happy , you were able to connect to your birth father . May God bless us all . "

Julie Rogers 3:40

This next connection came from a co-worker who worked with my brother , Steve . I have never met Mary Ellen before , but we had corresponded in the past about her husband's delicious honey, he raises honeybees that I was introduced to her . My brother Steve brought me home a jar when I was looking for honey to help me with my allergies and anyways , she sent me this wonderful email . Hi , Julie , Steve and I were chatting last night and somehow got on the topic of podcasts and he mentioned you had one . I listened a bit last night and again this morning and I just loved it . Honestly , you had me in tears talking about your mom's illness . Of course , I know a lot of the story from Steve and the heartbreak you all endured . You are such a good storyteller and I look forward to hearing more . Mary Ellen .

Julie Rogers 4:44

Linda R , another listener who reached out to me this past fall , asked me if I would share some more information about my trip to Italy that I shared last June and July . Remember Discovering My Italian Roots , part one through four . Linda sent me this email Hello Julie , my husband and I will be traveling to visit Italy next year . My dad's family came from Guardia , Piemontese in 1921 and I'm having difficulty finding places to stay while we are visiting this area/ village . Sadly , my dad and grandparents are deceased . It would be wonderful if you could provide any insight to places we can stay . Our time in Guardia Piemontese is October 8th through the 10th 2024 . Sincerely Linda R . I was delighted to assist her by sharing the details where we stayed in Guardia . I gave her some more insights that might help her as well . She followed up with me with another thoughtful email . Hello , Julie . Thanks so much for sharing your Italy , Guardia Piemontese information with me . It truly helps as we make the arrangements of our final day in Italy .

Julie Rogers 6:11

Knowing that this area in Italy is not as popular as other northern and coastal areas , I have enrolled in Babbel to learn Italian thinking . That way , within a year time frame , I should be able to communicate somewhat effectively with the locals . Fingers crossed , I will also go to AAA , as you suggested , for maps etc . As we are also AAA members too . Being a second generation American , I am excited to walk the streets and see the area where my paternal grandparents and all my previous Italian ancestors lived . Again , thanks for your invaluable information . Sincerely, L inda R . Making connections shouldn't be limited .

Julie Rogers 7:09

Another purpose for Nearest And Dearest Podcast is finding connections that transcends cultures . Very recently I found a website , alcoholfree . com , that is listing my own episodes on their website platform . Not sure how they found my little podcast , but they have found value in my show . I was not expecting another website , especially one that I didn't even know existed wanted to share my content with their customers . Some info I learned when I wanted to know more . It was co-founded by John Risby , who stopped drinking alcohol in 2004 . He was searching for more choices in what to drink . He came up with the idea of an online shop dedicated to all things alcohol-free . By 2006 , after a year of research and planning , the alcohol-free shop was launched in England .

Julie Rogers 8:18

The more I delved into this organized website , the more I realized that they aren" just selling non-alcohol beverages to their customers . They understand the dynamics their customers are experiencing in their lives . So I go to their search browsers . It's quite a list . I go to listen and I click on it . The headline is Podcasts to Help you Smash your Goals and it goes on to say choosing to reduce or stop drinking alcohol can feel like entering unknown territory . It's common to feel isolated and even afraid . Podcasts let us learn , connect and feel inspired by people with similar experiences .

Julie Rogers 9:11

I kept scrolling down and the next headline read Not Only Alcohol Free . So I wondered what does that mean ? So I kept reading . Here's what it said . We know alcohol isn't the only issue and it rarely exists in isolation . It goes on to say you'll also find podcasts on related subjects such as mental health , diet , finance and more . So at this point I saw the search engine and I decided to put in Nearest And Dearest Podcast . And guess what ? There it was . I believe the magic comes from making human connections through sharing life experiences all across the world , and I'm grateful and blessed to have you experience yours with me . The views and opinions expressed by Nearest And Dearest Podcast are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nearest And Dearest Podcast . Any content provided by Julie Rogers or any other authors are of their opinion . They are not intended to malign any religion , ethnic group , club , organization , company , individual or anyone or anything . Thank you .