#64 - Lori Odhner - Peel Back the Foil

<p>Many know Lori Odhner as the voice behind the songs that shaped their childhood, filling generations of church services and bedtime routines. Underneath that is a discipline she&#39;s practiced even longer: paying attention to the person in front of her.</p><p>In this conversation, Lori traces that listening thread from her father&#39;s example, through raising nine children, her marriage to John, a daily marriage column written for over a decade, and a lifetime of quilting, songwriting, and quiet caregiving.</p><p>She talks candidly about growing up with a mother who struggled with bipolar disorder, and how watching that struggle, echoed years later in raising her autistic son, Ben, taught her that suffering isn&#39;t a mistake. It&#39;s often the very thing that grows compassion in us.</p><p>That same conviction reshaped her marriage counseling work. She once believed it meant teaching people the formula for a good relationship: learn this, and you&#39;ll know how to do it. Instead, she found it was something else entirely: vulnerability, not judging your partner, and not trying to change them.</p><p>Ultimately, Lori makes a case for a different kind of giving: we don&#39;t always need to fix someone&#39;s problem. What&#39;s always important is simply being present. It&#39;s about seeking out the sweetness hiding in almost everyone you pass, if you&#39;re willing to peel back the foil.</p><p><br><strong>Check Out:</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1936665085?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback">Marriage Moats: 101 Thoughts to Inspire and Protect Your Marriage by Lori Odhner</a></p><p><a href="https://caringformarriage.org/blog/">https://caringformarriage.org/blog/</a></p><p><strong>Elevate the Experience</strong></p><p>Help bring better audio, video, and filmed episodes to life:<a href="https://www.venmo.com/u/TheEthanCLewinPodcast"> <u>Venmo</u></a>. I tithe 10% of all contributions—half to the<a href="https://allsecurefoundation.org/donate"> <u>All Secure Foundation</u></a> (supporting soldiers’ transition home) and half to the<a href="https://secure.qgiv.com/for/aotnc"> <u>Academy of the New Church High School</u></a>.</p><p><br></p>