That Was Us - It's Okay to Not Be Okay | "Déjà Vu" (S2E3) with special guest Lyric Ross

Episode Date: November 12, 2024

Join us as we revisit the episode where Jack takes a brave step toward recovery, Randall embarks on a journey to find his birth mother, and Deja adjusts to life with the Pearsons. We'll discuss the emotional challenges of working on a deeply moving show like This Is Us and how the cast and crew navigate those intense moments on set. Plus, we'll delve into Deja's story and the power of finding your place in a new family (specifically the Pearson family!). And guess who's joining us? The amazing Lyric Ross (Deja herself)! Lyric shares her incredible audition experience, including a memorable encounter with Sterling K. Brown, and opens up about her emotions when she learned about Deja's transformative haircut. This episode also features a touching message from a listener named Jennifer, who shares how This Is Us helped her cope with the loss of her father. This conversation was filled with heartwarming moments, insightful reflections, and the reminder that "it's okay to not be okay." That Was Us is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Follow That Was Us on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Threads, and X! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode of That Was Us, we will be discussing season two, episode three, Dejave, Randall and Beth's foster child arrives, and a film shoot with his father's favorite movie star brings up long-buried emotions for Kevin. What I am? Hello, friends. How you doing, Mandy Moore? I'm well, how are you? I'm doing quite well, Christopher Sullivan. How's it going, sir?

I'm doing it very well. I'm glad to hear. Thank you for asking. Glad to hear it. We got a new character. We're introducing a new character into the This Is Us world. One of my favorites, played brilliantly by lyric Nicole Ross, who will be joining us later in the show, Deja, who seems like she's been there from the beginning, and it pretty

much is the beginning. So from the beginning of season two, she's a part of it. And I will reiterate the fact that I did not know that Deja's character was introduced this early in the show. It just was surprising rewatching, you know. There are always revelations for us, and this was one for me. Like, wow, there she is. Let's just jump right to that storyline because you sort of see Randall trying to dot every eye and cross every T in preparation for her. coming to the house like they they it's been three weeks i believe since they've been approved

to foster and he's just sort of patiently been waiting patiently not patient no thank you very much absolutely not he doesn't know how to do that i also like that in this episode we have a landline which i don't know how many people actually quick landline there anybody no no what do you mean grow up with one no no not growing up with one but mom in day do you have a landline right now i have one i have one just in case of like earthquakes, emergency and stuff, but I use it, no, especially if somebody calls on a landline, it means you don't know who I am. I'm not. I was like, do you know the number to your left? Exactly. It says home in my cell phone. Do me a favor just because I'm curious. Go home and see if you can get an operator. Call home if I get an operator? Yeah, go home and get on

your landline. Can you still get, hello operator? Can you? Can you? Are there operators? I think so. I haven't tried it. We're going to need to know. That's a good question. You're the only one who can Tell us. Anyway, you see. I digress. Beth trying to calm him down and sort of like last time, the phone starts ringing, right? While they're in the middle, he's cooking his feelings. Yes.

She loves it when he cooks his feelings. Yes. Phone starts ringing. She said, look, the last time this happened, it wasn't anything, no big deal. She's like, woman, will you please answer the dead-gum phone? Yes. Turns out that it is the foster child. She's going to be coming soon.

And he's very excited, nervous, et cetera. You know, he's read all these things about, you know, best ways to make you people feel at home, make sure you say your name, repeat it several times that they can hear it. And then Debra Joe Rupp, right? Yes. Yes. Is our social worker who is from that 70s show. That's right.

Also sort of populating the world of familiar faces that we've grown up with in our lives. And she drops Deja off. Now, there's a shot before we get to this of Deja from the back. I think just exiting, I don't know if it's the courthouse or whether it's the foster care facility, what have you. And then they show another back shot of her as she enters into the house. And they sort of swiveling around her face. And she's my little baby with her little cheeks. Yes.

And so cute. And her hair is just long. And you know what I'm saying? And I'm like, hi, I'm Randall. And you hear Beth, I'm Beth. And everybody's sort of introducing it. And then she says, like, well, I'm sleepy. I want to go to bed.

Yeah. And they're like, yeah. Yeah, we can do that. No problem. Later on, I think that, do we have her in the kids? kitchen. And we're trying to show her, like, where she can get food and all these sort of things. I think that maybe that's when she says she wants to go to bed. And great. Deborah Joe was about to leave social worker. And he's like, can I follow you out real quick? And she said, he says, like,

you know, everything that I've read about this, nothing seems to be working right now. Do you have any suggestions? Like, this seems like a lot harder than what I thought was going to be. She's like, yeah. Yeah, it's going to be harder. Yeah, yeah. Than what you thought it was going to be. Yeah. That's okay. Just take your time. Like, you're doing fine. Like, and, just be patient. And she says to him, she's like, that's not really your thing. He's like, no, but I'm working on it, right?

So, Deja's upstairs. She's going through her bag. Oh, Beth brings her a toothbrush. So she goes to brush her teeth. And Beth sees in this bag. She's got like a pack of cigarettes, right? Randall's talking to Tess and Annie. He's like, hey, guys, what are you thinking?

They want to give her back. Annie's like, can we give her back? And I'm like, no. You're like, okay, kik, kik, kik, she can be real. Hey, hey, hey, why would you want to do that? You know, she didn't laugh at any of our jokes. She didn't do this and that. I said, listen, this is brand new for her, too.

She's meeting all new people, it's a new family, like, give it some time. The same advice that the social worker gave him, he's trying to give to his daughters. Yeah. He hears a kerfuffle of sorts. Yes. And there's a bit of a row. I said, I guess that's redundant. But between Beth and Deja, and we hear, I think, for the first and only time on the show, like someone called bitch.

Yeah. I don't know if anybody gets called. I used to do it all the time in my head. Never voiced it. But never voiced it. She said, like, give me back my stuff, you bitch. And, like, Randall perks up, you know, so it goes into the room to settle like, hey, guys, calm down. Yeah.

What's happening as he moves towards Deja. She flinches. She flinches. She, like, covers her face. Protectively, yeah. Like, she's about to get hit. Now, Randall was raised by white people. He has no idea what, like, hitting.

It's not, like, there's no corporal punishment with his kids. Like, later on, she asked, like, what... They didn't not beat you because they were white. This is true. This is true. I bet if Jack didn't have Rebecca, he may have broke out the belt. Hot take! That is a hot take.

What take? Sterling thinks Jack would have hit his children, said Rebecca not. My mama used the belt. My mama loved me. I have nothing but love for my mama. It's just how she disciplined. But the modern day Black Pearson's do things in a different way. And I think Randall is just like, oh, he's saying to Beth later.

Did you see how she just sort of backed away, like, you know, when she saw me approach? And he winds up telling her, you know, everybody always tells me that things are going to be difficult. say that, they really aren't that difficult, you know, whether it's, you know, tests in college, whether it's training for a marathon, what have you, like, I just do it and it happens. And I feel like this is the first thing that's actually going to be as difficult as people say what it's going to be. Because it's another person outside of his control. And so you see what she kind of represents for him and his life is like he is necessarily going to have to relinquish what he thinks is control in order to allow this woman to move at her own groove and her own pace and her own time.

With a child who is trying to grasp at whatever little control she has in this world, which at this point is a plastic shopping bag of what appears to be all the belonging she has. Yeah. Yeah. And so later in the episode, it's really sweet because Beth leaves a bit. baby monitor in the girls' room, in Tess and Annie's room, just to make sure that they feel good. And she's like, you didn't even do a baby monitor when William came. She's like, I didn't.

She's like, bro, please, please believe, I'm covering all your bases. You're just making moves, bringing people into my house. I'm going to know what's happening. And she overhears a conversation when Deja walks into the girls. And she's like, okay, who's in charge here? Right? And she's like, well, you know, they make decisions together and everything. And then they look at each other and they're like, Mom, right?

which is my kids would probably say the exact same thing. You know what I'm saying? And they go like, so, you know, if you do something to get in trouble, what's going to happen? That's what Daisy says. And she's like, well, you know, they're really going to talk to you. You get a really long talking to. And you're probably going to lose iPad privileges. So she's like, y'all have iPads?

Yeah. And they're like, yeah. And she's like, this house is crazy. And then... We cut too. to one of the best scenes I forgot about in this show. There's a scene between Annie and William that we flashback to. I completely forgot about this scene.

I did too. And his faith and Ron Seafis Jones. And you catch William trying to sneak out. It's his first night. It's his first night. And he's sort of feeling uncomfortable and like, you know, kind of a fish out of water, what have you. And she says, if you open that door, the alarm's going to go off. And he's like, well, I, you know, I've slept in my own bed for such a long time.

And I'm just kind of feel, yeah, it's quiet here, and I just need something else. And she's like, you know, I went to a sleepover one time, and I got a little scared. And my mom and dad had to come pick me up. I like to think that if I had stayed, I might have actually had fun. And she says, you should stay. You might have fun. You might have fun, right? And she recognized, she's so good in this scene.

So good. She's a little baby. She's eight, nine. Yeah, yeah. You know what I'm saying? But acting her adorable little face off Faith Herman. Yeah. And you see her settle him and recognize Vee.

And then she says to Deja, when we cut back, she said, you can sleep in here if you're scared. Yeah. And Desla, I'm not scared. Yeah. But, yeah, I could second story. You know what I'm saying? I'll go ahead and stay in here. And then you cut to Beth and Randall.

hearing it over the baby monitor and sort of like allowing themselves to rest. Yeah, some relief. Can I also say I loved how Ron was like your dad sure seems like the best kind of work friend ever which was just like a little tiny detail that like Taylor, my husband and I

were watching and we both giggled at like because it hadn't been revealed yet. Had been revealed yet like who he really was and I was like they were really supposed to believe that this man was someone you worked with like it was just it was so silly. Anyway, it tickled it tickled me. That's a big swing for the writers to hand a scene like that to an eight-year-old.

I talked to Dan about it. I remember. And he's like, no, I want to give her something. And I think it's the right message to have someone comfort who seems like they should be the one to be comforted. Right? But it could have been faith. It could have been. It could have been heiress.

Yeah, absolutely. But I think there's something about the innocence of her. Yeah. Because most of the time, faith is strict. strategically deployed as like the button of something. Sure. Right? Like she has like these great one-liners like throughout the course of the show that are just hysterical.

And she's got great timing and everything. But this was a gorgeous, simple, sweet scene. Yeah, and really turned the tide for William. He could have left. He could have left. Had that alarm not been set? Yeah, who knows what could have happened, but she helped put a stop to it. She helped put a stop to it.

What's the next storyline? Let's jump into Kevin. to Kevin on the set of his film. Yes. Oh yeah, another new character in the This Is Us world. Cannon. What's his name? Sylvester Stallone. Oh, you know him. A young upstart.

Sly Stallone as himself. He was solid. I thought he was good. He was really good. He's going places. He's going places. He might have a career ahead of him. We come to find out that Kevin, this this Ron Howard movie that he is doing

is he is starring alongside Sylvester Stallone in some kind of war. Hill 400. Hill 400. Right. But behind the scenes, we called it War Lama. Yes. Remember that? Yeah, where'd that come from? It was some joke about like... We did?

Yeah, there were T-shirts made. It said War Lama. It was a joke. But, yeah, Hill 400 was the name of the movie. Yeah. And we come to find out that Kevin shooting this movie with Sly and Ron Howard, and that Sylvester Stallone was Jack's favorite actor. Yeah.

Now, that's also a little nod to the fact that Milo Ventimilia played Rocky's son. Yes. You know what I'm saying? So they're, you know, close in that kind of way. And Sylvester Stallone is obviously a legend, but he is also incredible, like, as I think we hear with most, like, not actors, not famous people, but. movie stars. They know how to move through the world and make people comfortable. Yeah. And he- The good ones. The good ones. Yeah. And because they know people are

taken with them, like, because we have so much history invested in their stories. Yeah. And I remember being in the makeup trailer with, because I came just to visit. I wasn't, yeah, yeah, yeah. I was like, I got to see this. First of all, there's There's going to be explosions and this, that, and the other thing. And I was like, and also I want to watch Chrissy and Sly do these scenes. And I'm in the makeup trailer with Chrissy. She's getting her makeup on, and Justin's there, and we're all chatting. And he walks in, and he is the most jovial. He knows all of our names without us having to introduce ourselves.

And he goes, Chris, taser face. No! Did he really? Because he was in that movie with me. That's right. And, and, but he had never met me. out of makeup. We had only ever talked when I was in that makeup. No way. And he had done or had he had done, he knew who we were. What a guy. And showed up and put everybody in like a

jovial mood. And I got to watch them work. And you can see it in the scenes with him and Chrissy. They're just like, bosom buddies. Yeah, there is like an electricity. I mean, there's something that he brings out in Chrissy, in Kate. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That like is so delightful to She, her first sort of interaction of just being starstruck, and then, like, she can't, like, move, and then Kevin lifts her arm up so she can shake his hand. Yeah. It's great. Yeah.

So they have this wonderful interaction. She tells him that, you know, she has all of Rocky memorized and then, like, proceeds to, like, start at the beginning of the movie. And he's like, wow. Like, I can't believe. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then she also lets him know that, like, you know, you're, you wear my. dad's favorite. You were his hero. Yeah. Like, no matter how sick he was or sick, we were, like, we would put on one of your

films and just, like, be transported and we would feel better immediately. Yeah. Even before Sly's introduced, Kate is in the trailer with Kevin, and she's talking about how proud dad would be that this is happening. So there's a lot of Jack. Yes, and you get that sense. Right from the beginning, like Kev diverts that conversation almost immediately. No, yeah, yeah. Right? So then Kate winds up telling all this stuff to Sly. And Kev is working on his lines. He's got a big monologue that he's working on.

You see him working on by himself. It feels like he nailed it. Like he's in the groove. He's in the zone. He's ready to go out, shoot this damn thing, right? And Sly and Kate are talking tells Kevin, you got a great sister there and she really cares about you and whatnot. And your old man sounds like he was a great guy.

No one must be tough, him not being here or whatnot. Let's go ahead and shoot this. this thing, and we'll do this one for your dad, right? It's like, you could just see, Kevin, it's like not in it. It's such a beautiful monologue from Sylvester's. Yeah, he says something along the lines that memories, memories that mean something and those that don't, like, I wish I hadn't. Oh, well, I wrote it down.

Oh, okay, I was like, I wrote down like a truncated version of it. There's no big ones and no, yeah. In my experience, Kevin, there's no such thing as a long time ago. There's only memories that mean something and memories the don't there we go yeah that's a bar it's a bar he just like and it was so beautiful and it's like the poor guy really didn't know what he was stepping into with kevin when he was like let's do one for your old man came up with out on his own improvised that that's what i heard um there is then there's a so in the middle of kev trying to deliver this monologue there's a bit

of a montage that transpires from the past and we see a flash to pilgrim rick yeah so he's You see Kev's thinking about his dad. You see the dog pile from 102, where everybody sort of piles in on each other or whatnot. And he can't get this damn thing together. And it's also one of the actors' nightmares of just like not being, I don't know if you guys have this one ever. Like just freaking out, they're like,

I don't remember a single word of what I'm supposed to be saying and people are standing around. You want to know how mine goes? Tell me. I am sitting in a theater with a crowd of people watching a show that's about to start. And the show starts and they're waiting for an actor to come on. And I realize it's supposed to be me. Oh, God.

That I've, that I'm, oh, shoot. Do you wake up in a cold sweat? Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Well, what about this actually ever happening in person? Has this happened to you guys? It's happened to me before. You've been thrown like this? Yes.

Do tell. I mean, I can't. It's hard to remember. It's definitely happened. happen more than once. Yeah. And maybe you find a way to get it back together, but there's definitely like a time where you're just walking confidently into something,

like, I know how it's going to go, and you have a certain expectation. And then for whatever reason, some element throws you off and you just can't recalibrate and find your way back to like the beginning of the thread. You don't know your words. And it's just like everything starts to unravel. Like I definitely could relate to Kevin in this moment. Like, I've been, I mean, I can't, I'm sure that for sure happened over the course of six seasons on this show. It's like there's so much expectation we have of ourselves.

And it's, and, you know, as actors, we're asked like to bring so much of our own lives to characters, to experiences, imbueing, you know, our own colors to whatever work that we're supposed to be doing. and you know for someone like kevin we're starting to understand like he is just he is so locked up about his dad this is something that he like and we find out later in the episode kate's like you just don't ever talk about it like you you have to talk about it some some way because otherwise it's going to manifest itself like this yeah a lot of these uh stories that you hear about actors and people people they get taken out of context and it makes it actors look crazy. It makes actors look, you know, we've all seen heard audio of actors flipping

out on set, losing their minds. It's distracting. But what you're not seeing is like someone is trying to cry over the dead body of their wife and somebody is eating potato chips or like whatever the thing is. Obviously, there's no excuse to mistreat people. But in context, there are these things that certain actors do that they do to protect themselves when they're trying to get to a place and I know there's a very famous Broadway I won't say who, very famous Broadway Dame

who has a taped out square on the floor in the wings that if she is standing in it you do not speak to her because if you're not there's costumes is fixing thing and makeup is fixing things but if I'm standing in this square

I love that I am brilliant just know that this is it, I'm getting ready to do something. Yes. And I need a minute. That's great. I think, oh. But if you take it out of context, people look at it as some ego, ego move.

Right, right, right. It's like, no, no, no, this is my spot. And it's just clear communication and a literal boundary. Yeah. Literal boundary. Yeah, the emotional focus that is required from time to time on set can be immense, right? And sort of like, you know, people who come in and they want to, so many people, like, you You guys know what this is, like in between takes,

you gotta refresh the makeup, you gotta make sure the wardroves together, did the microphone move. Like, you know, people are poking at it, and they're all doing their job. Yep, correct. But they're touching your face. And your job is to maintain this moment

that you have to go right back to after it, right? And so those things don't always like fit like hand in love. Yeah, it might seem eccentric, but those actors who stay in character, the entirety of a shoot. It's just for emotional preservation. Sure. Because it would take so much energy

to bounce in and out of this character. You know, I'm just going to stay here. This is so much easier. Totally. And so Kevin, of course, after being thrown by all of this talk, finds out that Kate has told Sylvester Stallone about their dad and they go back to his trailer.

Why would he do that? Why did you tell Sylvester Stallone about that? And kind of lays into her. Yeah, he lays into her. He says, he winds up saying, something to the fact like there's nothing for me to let out because she says like you never talk about him you never like let it out and he says i'm not like you i don't need to walk around being sad and damaged just because you are i wrote that down too yeah yeah i was like oof man we hurt

the ones we love the most yeah she is out yeah yeah and she's like okay that's that's enough of that i tried to be here for you yep you know what i'm saying it's not like i ain't trying to pursue my own singing career bye bye bye i'm here for you yep and then i believe the this part of the story ends with him coming back to set, doing a take of a scene where he then proceeds to really hurt himself. Yeah. He hurts his knee. There's the big war scene, what have you, and he's running through, ditches trying to get somebody,

lands on his knee. And also there is the montage. We see Football Kev back in the day. We see Jack taking off a necklace, I believe, Leaving it on him. Putting it on him or what happened. Is there anything else in that part? It's the first time we've ever seen that, which we'll come back later. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. When I see the little steps and things that we do to set things up for later, I'm like, you, Mickey Fikis are really orchestrating the shit. Mickey Fickers, I like that. Mickey Fickees is what I was trying to say. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I like it. And so, yeah, they're setting some things up with regards to that.

Kevin Ingers himself. The wind-up of the storyline in this episode is we not only see them fight, we not only see them say extremely injurious things, injurious things. But the makeup between the two of them we see as well, right? The makeup phone call, or is that in the next episode? I believe that's the next episode? No, no, Kev calls Kate and apologize. Yeah, and all he says is twin fight.

And she says, yeah. Yeah. He says, twin makeup. Something like that. And she says, okay. And they move on. Like, it's just a little glimpse into their dynamic. She also says, she looks at the urn, and she goes, he's just like you.

Just like you. And that's, you see him take a pill for the pain at the end of the end. Right. Oh. Spaghetti. Spaghetti. I'm getting 203 and 204. Yeah.

Crossing wires there, because I watch them at the same time. But. Well, let's talk about the past. Let's talk about the past. What's going on with Rebecca and Jack back in the day? He goes to the AA meeting. Yep. And he's talking about recognizing that he's kept too much to himself.

Yeah. Right. But it's not easy sharing. Right. And so that's kind of like the step from after having talked to his daughter now he's talking here. I think he says something. I think you get extra points for crying or what have you. Yeah.

But it's not. And it's interesting. It's something I think that when we chatted with Milo recently, we alluded to the fact that, like, Jack is just from a different time. He's from a different generation where bearing his soul, being vulnerable, talking about his emotions, not keeping things close to the vest is just not an option. And that different time can also be today. It's a different, when you show vulnerability, if you come from a certain place

or you live in a certain environment, will get you killed. Yes. Yeah. It's dangerous. Absolutely. It will get you beaten. It will get you ostracized, whatever the thing is. Yes, sir.

You're right. You're right. It's not just a different time. It's happening today. But no, you're right. It's like the time when that was the way it was for all men. Correct. But you're right.

It is still the same for many, many, many people. Your peers will, will ostracize you. Your father will abuse you. Your, your, if you're in a foreign world, if you take a second to stop and feel, you're dead. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's like, no time for you. No time.

Yeah, yeah. So he, we see him working the steps. Um, I think we actually, like after that, uh, back is wondering where he's not in bed, he's downstairs at the kitchen table still going through his steps, yeah, and just trying to figure out, like, how to do it. Yeah. You know, like, he reminds his, is, he has a great just look of concentration. of just like, all right, this is foreign, this is unfamiliar,

and I know it's necessary. So I'm going to stay at it. And he's really doing things a different way than the cold turkey hanging on for dear life of, you know, when the kids were eight or nine. And Rebecca told him he needed to get it together and he did quit drinking for a good period of time. This is different.

This is like, okay, I'm really going to do something about this. Yeah. Right. And so you're right. It's like there is a, there's a discomfort in the, like, total foreign worlds that he's sort of been plopped in the middle of. And in the same way that we talk about our therapeutic processes, right, whether it's therapy or whatever the thing is. I think it's talk space. The idea that things that have gone unaddressed, you don't just start addressing them, that there are like tools. And there's a problem. Yeah. And there are steps available. And there's, there's things that you can do to structure the, um, the processing of those things because it's very, it's difficult, it's a difficult thing to do. Yeah. Yeah. And it's, and if you've been stuffing it for so long, you have no idea where to start. Yeah. Yeah, man. Yeah, man. There's, um, there's a scene later just like in the kitchen and everything just feels like nobody's talking to each other. Yeah. Right. I think Jack walks in and whatnot, and Kate sort of clocks. They're like, everything just looks tense. It's off, right? And it's not sequential, you guys help me out.

But you go and you have a conversation with Miguel's ex. With Shelley. With Shelley. How are things since the fight? And then she sort of like really puts it out there. When's the last time you had sex? Yeah. And she's like, I, you know, I can't remember exactly.

No one's really in the mood for that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, it would work for any man other than Jack Pearson. Listen, because it's the beginning, she said it's the beginning, it was the beginning of the end for me and Miguel. And I remember, I wrote down, I said, I don't remember this at all. Because like, I've had this conversation with many a married couple. Let's speak in a heteronormative sort of way or whatnot.

Like for most, like you just said, besides Jack Pearson, We need to have sex. Yeah. Real talk. Yeah. Straight up. Like when it goes for an elongated period of time, what have you. And like one person is acting like, oh, everything's fine, right?

And it's like, no. It's been, I know how long it's been. One week said you looked at me. Therapist telling me years ago, she said when the sex goes, it's like when the bees go, the relationship is like on. There goes the honey. Yeah. Exactly. It's on its outs.

Like on its. way out. Like, it is a very, that level of intimacy is a very important part of. Yeah, because it's not just a physical thing. It is the most, it is the most intimate that we can be with each other in terms of sharing ourselves and our lives. And this is a neurochemical connection that happens that bonds people. Correct. Together and helps wash the brain of negativity, of resentment, it's literally getting high, man. Tell them Toby Lama. Come on that oxytocin. Come on. Toby Lama. Come on, tell him, Toby Lama. It is, okay, so then she picks up the method because she says, you know,

it's normally my husband that sort of goes with the grand romantic gestures. And Shelley's like, come on, you got to do something. So she's, you decide to take him on a date. To Jack Pearson him. You said to Jack Pearson him, sort of hijack him, and you can tell he's sort of in his head. But, you know, it's my favorite person. We can go hang out. You go to a place where you went on an earlier date.

On an earlier date. Was that the Rose Bowl? It was a green screen. Was it really? Yeah, it was a green screen. Because it was supposed to be Three River Stadium. I believe that's the name of it. That is the name of it in Pittsburgh.

Yes. And it was, you know, a location of a previous date early in their courtship that they didn't end up making because things got a little hot and heavy. There you go. So she gets burgers. Yeah. She starts to put the moves on him and he stopped. He's right. Oh, but can we just take it to?

And it's all right. Like, I've only been in that situation a couple of times in my life. And I always wonder, like, with kid gloves, for the woman, like, sort of being kept at arm's length. Like, I always feel like, oh, gosh, I know I'm not supposed to be doing this right now. And I'm not trying to hurt your ego in any kind of way. But, like, I just not in that space. And I'm so curious, like, what that was like for you to, like, live through if you have any recollection. Of that particular.

On the show. Yeah. On the show. On the show. On the show. It never happened to Mandy Moore. life. Let me tell you that. Yeah, right. When Taylor's just not into it, how does that feel? That rejection is soul-crushing. It's, yeah, it was, it was really defeating, I think, for Rebecca, because this is a big move to put herself out there in this way.

Go ahead tell all the ladies listening right now how defeating it was. Just so everybody aware of just how much it hurts. So defeating. When you put yourself out there, that like that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, again, I think, like, their connection is so, it's so immediate, it's so intrinsic. Like, it's, I feel like the sort of, let's, for lack of a better word, like, their physicality with one another is probably something that's never been an issue for them. Sure. And they've obviously kept their distance these last couple weeks because of everything that's gone on and no one's necessarily.

been in the mood to think about that level of intimacy with one another and sharing themselves like that. But I imagine this kind of rejection for lack of a better word from her husband is the first time she's experienced it. And it's confusing and confounding. And it leads to them having a larger conversation that she's like, got it. They leave. They go back home. They have a conversation outside of their house and which leads to they are getting a connection. Genuine connection. They get out of the car and then he's like, you know what? I'm getting back in the car because like the night's not over. I'm not ready. Talking to one of my favorite people and I don't want it to end. I don't want it to end. I'm not ready to be done talking with you yet.

He tells you, he says this is harder than I thought it was going to be. Right? It's harder than I thought AA slash talking to you. Yeah. Right. Like what a that's vulnerability. Father and son. Yeah, we're both going through. Going through something that is harder than they thought. And speaking of vulnerability, he ends up admitting to her when they were pregnant. He went to his own father. Yeah.

And asked his father for help to help buy their house. Yep. So he's starting to open up and share a side of him. I'm sure things that would never have crossed Rebecca's mind. And there is something really funny. I wrote Pixie Cut Season 6. He alludes to the fact that I cut my hair into a pixie. Like Peter Pan.

And I'm like, these writers, this is season two, episode three. Like the fact that that's... The cut, it happened. Yes. In an episode later in season 6. I do remember! I get a silly haircut and I was like... Yes!

I hadn't even thought about that. I was like, wow, someone really kept track of that one little tiny detail. and infused it in an episode that, like, it wasn't a big plot line. It was part of this one episode. It was a silly sort of storyline. But I just, I clocked that. It was like, whoa, that came to fruition. That's really wild that they, someone acknowledged that.

Wow. That's pretty awesome. Yeah, yeah, that little Easter egg. You see you guys laughing in the car after he invites you back and you guys are cracking up. And he talks about borrowing the money from dad. And he says, like, there's other stuff. There's a lot of other stuff, too. Yeah.

I'll tell you eventually. I'm working on it, right? And I think that allows, like, okay, boots. Boots can now be knocked, knocked. Proceed. You know what I'm saying. Get back in the car. Wait, can we also, is this when the dog gets introduced?

The next episode. Is the next episode? Right? Or no. Because I believe the food. Yeah, they're eating the burgers. And the dog, because Rebecca throws the bag of food kind of behind her and they go to saunter back to the car. And they come back and they're like,

who's this cute little dog that's eating our? yeah leftover burgers yeah and that dog yeah becomes a family dog dog he becomes a part of the fire it's a whole other can of worms that we are we blending stuff no no no i i believe that's they find a dog yeah yeah that's two or three also we we fail to mention randall yes reaching out to look for his birth mother randall's looking for his birth mother and it's crazy yeah and he gets a letter back early saying that like you know you found me i can't believe you found me and you looking for me? Can we meet at this park at a certain time? And he's talking to his brother and sister. I think he asks him who's hotter, Brandy or Mariah Carey. I love when my white brother

asked me like about two black chicks who he thinks is the hottest. So it's like, why are you asking me, dog? I'm thinking about who's my mama. Yeah. My brain's not there. And so they actually wind up going with him, which I think was really sweet, that they recognized the gravity of what he was actually attempting to do. And they go with him. And my man sits on. this bench and this white lady who is clearly strung out on something says like i see you looking at me as just your father was really dark and you told me that you didn't need money so i thought my son must be doing really well and you get immediate that you know she needs money and this poor dude is just sitting there like i cannot believe that this is what came of me trying to find a part

of myself yeah and just gets up and walks away and he goes it's not her Let's just go. Just how scary and impossible, something like that must have been in the pre-internet days. You know what I mean? Like now it might be a little easier. It's still obviously a daunting task and a vulnerable thing to do. But like, that's like the Wild West, man. Meeting some lady in a park.

Not telling your parents about it. Obviously wanting to keep all of that close to the best is. Yeah. It's a lot. It's a lot for a young person. And it's interesting because it allows him to connect. with Dajanaway because while there's situations aren't the same he's like I know what it's like to feel sort of disconnected he talks about when I was younger I felt sort of split yeah into I was the family that I loved and that I knew that there was this other family this other part of me that I was constantly trying to find but you know in bringing me into this family I now have this big beautiful life yeah right and if I see when I see you I see the potential for that sort of big beautiful life as well if you can open yourself up to that possibility.

And you see her sort of like, lean in a little bit more than what she had when she first came into the house. Message received. Yeah. Should we talk to lyric? Let's do that. I would love to do that. Let's talk to lyric. We'll be back right after these words from our sponsors.

More, that was us, after this short break. As the days get shorter and the temperature drops, I have my chilly weather routine. Down to a science. Cozy blankets, check. Okay. Family activities for colder days, check. Fall fashion, obviously. You know it?

You know what I do tend to forget, though? My workouts. Thankfully, Peloton has my back. Whether I'm feeling motivated to crush a fitness goal or just need a few minutes for a peaceful meditation, Peloton has everything I need for workouts of all kinds. Guys, they really do. I'm going to be honest with you.

Listen, I've got the treadmill. I've got the bike. I've got some instructors who I go to all the time. Jess Sims has these incredible boot camps that kick my butt up and down. If I want to do an arm workout with Tunday, I get super jacked. Toussaint, AT, Adrian Williams, like, whatever you want to do, if you want to do bar method, if you want to do yoga, like, there's something for everybody on this app. You want to throw out your screen name, boost your fan base?

I think it's just Sterling KV. You can follow me. Yeah, check them out. That's me. The great thing about Peloton, it's there for you no matter the season. They've got instructors leading everything from Pilates to Box. marathon training, strength, boot camps, yoga. You name it. I named a bunch.

You try and name it. They've got it. And it doesn't matter if you've got 10 minutes or a whole hour. Peloton is ready when you are. You never feel like you're racing the clock. I just got a Peloton tread. Even though I'm really brand new to it, it's totally accessible to me. And it fits into my life and my routine whenever I have time for a workout and I have a new baby.

Yes, man. This was the thing that I was like, you know what? I'm adding this into the home to make sure that. like I'm getting my steps in. And I love the fact that you can just do a 10-minute workout. If that's all you have time for, you can pat yourself on the back for just moving. You can jog while you're breastfeeding. Yeah, that's true.

Though I would not recommend it, okay? Neither just Peloton. Some days, I'm all about competing in those live classes, trying to crest that leaderboard. But for others, especially when it's to cool out, right? A simple time, I just go on a walk. That's all I need to clear my mind. With Peloton, your workout adjusts to you. Whether you're feeling the burn or taking it slow.

So it's all on your terms. So focus on yourself and let Peloton meet you right where you are. Find your push. Find your power with Peloton at OnePeloton.com. Hey. Hi. Lyric. Oh, look at her.

She got her face done, hair done. Everything did. Go on show them, girl. Stunt. Stunt. Let them know. Lyric, you have the world's greatest smile. She does. You always have. That's true.

Yeah, we could say that right here on the podcast. Right now. One of my favorite people in the world is joining us to talk a little bit of deja vu. It is Deja Herself, the one, the only, Lyric Nicole Ron. Hello, hello. How you doing, ma'am?

I'm doing really good. How are you doing? I'm great. You're looking real grown over here in these streets. Beautiful. When we met, I saw Lyric the other day, and she reminded me, I believe she was 13 years old. Wow. When we met, and on September 30th of 2024, how old will you be, ma'am?

She's 21. Oh, wow. She's grown, y'all. She growled up in these streets. That is wild. We were just talking not too long ago. Mandy was saying, like, she's like, I didn't realize that Deja was in so soon.

She's like, I thought it was like season three maybe or something like that. But by episode 203, you are a part of the Pearson family on through to the end of the show. And what we want to know right now, is how did this come to you? I know a little bit because I came to one of your auditions, but tell us about how you first got the audition, how it came across, and first steps, that's all.

If you can remember that far back. Yeah, I know, we've grown now, so it's a long time ago. I think it came to me through my agent at the time. And I think they had a different name for Deja. It was like Lisa or something, and it was this monologue that they get to me for the first self-tape. I auditioned for it twice. Okay.

So I did the first self-tape and sent it in, and about a week later, the agent wanted me to try it again for some reason. So I did another self-tape. A couple of days after that, I think she was the one to tell me that the producers saw the first self-tape and they loved me and they wanted to fly. me out to L.A. Right. Where were you coming from? Chicago. That's right. From the shy.

Okay. Okay. And that was my first time in L.A. So everything was new. The whole Hollywood sign, the Paramount Studios, all of that. What a way to arrive. Was it exciting, intimidating? Like, what was the vibe that was going on in your soul?

I was trying not to get too deep into it because I had an audition to. Yeah. to take care of. I didn't, I'm going to get too distracted. So, you know, my parents, of course, they wanted to sightsee and all of that, but I was a little nervous to. You're like, I got to work.

You're like, what do you remember about that audition in L.A? I remember there being two other girls there in that building. I believe this was a countrywide search. So I didn't know that they knew. narrowed it down to three of us already. It was super quiet. I remember seeing you and Susan walk past me and my parents. And my dad was going crazy.

He was like, oh, my God, that's Susan, that's Susan. That's Susan, not Sterling. No, no, everybody goes crazy for Sue. I get it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But so now I'm shaking in my boots and all of that. I'm the last one to go in. I think the other two girls went in before me.

And I walk in, everybody's there, right? It's you, Susan, Faith, Ares. Wow. No pressure. Geez. The whole family. Yeah, it was a lot. But you were super nice, Sterling.

You were very nice to me. You kind of looked at me like you, I don't want to say this in a cocky way, but you looked at me almost like we were already going to be doing this for a long time. So that kind of made me feel a little more comfortable. Yeah. Yeah, the nerves were definitely kicking in. Sterling has still never looked at me like that.

No. No. Reserved just for you, Lyric. Hey, hey, hey, look. Oh, there it is. Oh, there it is. There you go. All right, cool.

There you go. I will say this, and this is all respect to all people who are at the audition. But Sue and I, after you read, we were like, this is her. We're done? This is Deja, right? And it's interesting too, because we went and told Dan and we're like, Dan, there's no question. Like this young lady is special, right? Yeah.

I stand by that. I know you grown now. Can I still call you a young lady? You grown, but you're a young lady. Yeah. She's special. Yeah. And as I was re-watching deja vu and remembering just meeting you for the first time,

because everything, like you said, was brand new for her. Yeah. Like we would be on set and we'd be having, like, you know, prop breakfast. And she'd say, ooh, these real strawberries. oh i like these strong and you know she's very quiet you know what i'm saying you know she's getting her adult on right now but even at 13 she's like oh they got real syrup for these pancakes oh let me ask you this lyric what was going on in chicago because i'm not from chicago but essentially i kicked my career off in chicago um were you

were you acting a lot there theater film and television commercials anything like that it wasn't a lot happening other than like chicago fire p.d all those things i did a couple years before um i was supposed to be on this show called the shy uh-huh yeah that's out right now and um they kind of scrapped the entire first cast and I had to re-audition a couple years later and then that point I had developed all right so they dropped me from that and from then on it was it was really hard for me to to get anything else until T.R. You came and are you're in Chicago now or are you still in LA? I just moved back. Oh, you just moved back. Awesome. She moves back. She comes out to LA to take meetings, you know what I'm sure?

from time to time. I love Chicago. She's very fancy. I love Chicago. Is there what, I mean, what was your experience on the show like? Like you got the job, you're on the set. I remember, well, I'm going to ask you about one thing in particular. I'm going to ask you about the cutting of your hair.

Okay, now look at the face that she makes. Because I remember this young lady, she's very attached to her hair as natural. Sure. And they told her that she had to cut it off. And boy, was there. I mean, there was some tears. That was a tough time. Talk to me a little bit about that scene and like them talking to you about it.

I was thinking about that the other day. Yeah. When I found out that, you know, I was going to be flying to L.A. to start working on the show. My mom set me up an appointment to get my hair done. So I'm in the salon chair and I'm happy. I'm excited. My flight is the next day. And as soon as my hairstylist was done, my mom comes up to me saying that she got an email saying that they, you know, you need to be willing to cut your hair.

They don't know how short, but, you know, just be willing. And so that was at that point, I just wanted to work so bad. I did not care. I'm like if they wanted to do a little bob okay cool yeah no idea yeah what was coming yeah um so we got there um I didn't know that they were gonna shave a little plug in my head so that was a little like okay fine if they can hide it sure cool yeah I thought that was an insert I didn't realize that was real was that yeah that was her oh man Gosh, lyric. Yeah. Yeah. And once that scene came, before we got into it, I remember you, Sterling, you came into the room. I mean, a lot of people were in there, so you kind of, I don't know, snuck your way in, and you just kept looking at me.

And I look back at you and you were like, you really want to do this, don't you? I say, yes, sir. Yes, I do. And you had this nod of a boo-bo, and you just left. And then we started. You can see that, you can see that on your face the first time you appear on this show. Like you, your character drops with so much gravitas before you even open your mouth. Yeah. Like it's just when it's on the back of your head. I was like, oh, this is someone to pay attention to. That's right. That's right. You. demanded it. There is a rhythm that you have, El Buggy, that's like, you don't let anybody else sort of dictate your rhythm. Like, you're like, I know my rhythm and I'm going to move at that pace

and then people have to sort of get in where you are, which I think is like incredibly strong. Like, and I know you probably don't view it in that same sort of way, but like, it's like, you are this magnet that's sort of like, okay, if you want to get to where I am, then just do that. in that way. And you changed like the dynamic of our family in such an incredible way. And the writer saw it and just started writing more and more things.

Like you got to fall in love and have like this beautiful relationship that played out over time. And then in the future, even though you didn't get to do the future, you gave me a grandson, which I'm really, really thankful for us. But I'm curious, like, what is the big takeaway from your whole experience? on the show. Man, I'm realizing how spoiled I was just because of that experience.

I've gotten a chance to do a couple more things after TIU ended. And there are things that I'm experiencing, that I'm witnessing that I had no idea was in this industry, you know what I mean? I had a lot of good and genuine things to take from the people I've worked with. I think this is the only project so far that I've been on, and I actually had a second family. So this was that level of love and support. I didn't even ask for, you know, I came in and you embraced me without even knowing how long

I was going to be here. I had two, three episodes guaranteed. Right. It was just the fact that there is that out there, I mean, I don't know if I'll be able to have it again because it seems very rare. But, yeah, to have something real like what I did on the show. Man, we all cross our fingers and hope that it's possible. They're looking at me right now, El Boog, because I'm crying because I love you.

And I love you, too. Such a beautiful human being. I remember we won the SAG Award one year for Best Ensemble. And I think you were up on stage, and you were just looking out. And you were like, because Elwood keeps things close to the vest, right? She doesn't like to, like, get too emotional in front of people. But, like, she was feeling it, which made me feel it even more. And we just hugged each other and I kissed her on the forehead.

And we got to share that moment together. And hopefully we get a chance to share a few more things like that. We should put the photo of that, that cast photo from that. Yeah. We have a great photo of all of us from the Sagg Wars. We should put that in here. Can I ask you, too, Lyric? Do you keep up with Faith and Eris?

because like my kids on the show all sort of bonded in such a really deep way. And I know the three of you did as well. You were truly sisters. And it was so being around you, being around that energy, like you guys championed each other and supported each other and loved each other. And it was just so palpable, like on camera and off camera. And I'm just curious if you guys are still in touch. Yeah, I'll reach out to faith from time to time. She's very low-key.

Yes, she says very low-key. With Aries, I really don't have to reach out to her because she calls me all the time. That's great. She will not leave me away. Like a real sister. Yeah. Yeah. That's amazing.

Well, thank you for joining us. Obviously, we're going to have a lot more episodes of your story to watch. And hopefully you'll come back and talk to us. Please. And maybe next time you're in Los Angeles, if it works out, we can all do this together in person. In person, come through. Can you tell our listeners where they can find you online, follow you, keep up to date with what's going on? You can follow me on Instagram at Lyric Nicole Ross, even though it's been like three years since I've posted.

Good for you. Listen, when stuff comes up, I'm sure you'll post and people can, you know. Yeah, yeah, yeah. People just want to support and follow, yeah. Do they have an air date for your Ironheart, for your project? Not yet. Not yet. Not yet.

We're hearing different things right now, so it's up in the air. Okay. Follow the next year, spring. Post about it when you know. Yeah. So we know. We love you. We love you, lyric.

Thank you so much for taking the time. More that was us after these words from our sponsors. So the holidays are officially right around the corner, the best time of year, the most exciting time of year. I'm sure all of you guys have travel plans. People be traveling at the holidays. I'm going to go see my family. I'm looking forward to. I'm excited.

Yeah, I've been traveling a lot, actually, back and forth to Toronto for this new gig, and I'm checking out the entire city with Airbnb. I get a different apartment every time I go in a different part of the city. Oh, what a great way. to get to know a city. I love that. Mandy, nobody knows Toronto better than I do. You'll have to be our tour guide next time. Listen, like many of you, we're getting into the swing of holiday planning. Whether you want to or not, it's the season for figuring out who is traveling where, who is

arriving when, and is the dog coming? And for all these reasons, we rely on Airbnb. I have been using Airbnb for years, and it's become my go-to for finding places that feel like home, no matter where I am in the world. It's also a wonderful way to share my own space with travel. offering them the comfort of a home away from home. We've done so many renovations on our house. I've been thinking these renovations are too good.

I have to share them with the world. Hosting just makes sense. Come on. And it might be for you as well. Yes. Hosting on Airbnb is a smart way to utilize your unused space. And getting started with hosting has never been easier. It's a great way to earn a little extra and can help subsidize the busy holiday travel season.

You know, I can always use a little extra money in my pocket. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at Airbnb.com slash host. Okay, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back, and we are back with another installment of the emotional support hotline. Gang, we've said it before. We'll say it again. This is probably our favorite segment of the show when we get to talk to you, our listeners. Pretty much.

So let's go ahead and call. somebody back. Yeah, we're going to listen to the voicemail first, man. You don't just don't jump the gun. Don't jump the gun. I don't know who we're calling. Because the script tells you to jump the gun. Who's the voicemail from?

It is from someone who was so nervous when she called that she forgot to leave her name and number. And luckily, our producer, Sarah, was able to find her so we could call her back. Her name is Jennifer. And here is her message. Wow. Hello, you three. I'm so happy that this podcast is back around. I'm listening to it religiously and I can't get enough.

I started watching This Is Us once I saw the trailer. I'm like, this could be a great show. I can't wait to watch it. And then as things started to unravel, and I understand, you know, how Milo's character was going to be, it threw me, and I almost couldn't watch. I lost my father when I was 20. A little bit older than the kids in the show,

but it was so life-shaping for me, my siblings, my mom, and those dynamics were so hard. The stuff I probably hasn't even really breathed him completely. So watching this show was so hard, but I stuck with it. And I think in some ways, like even seeing them get through it helped me get through it years later. So wow, how powerful that is. And how powerful every actor and storyline is in the show. It's just, it's such an amazing show.

So thank you all for everything you put into it, and I can't wait to listen to more. And I might even have to call back this hotline because the beginning intro just made me feel so good this morning. So thank you all. Oh, what a lovely message. Let's call her back. Jennifer, get ready. Get ready. To be called.

To be, never mind. Emotional support for us. You try. Don't work, right? It doesn't always worry. It's a sweet. Don't do that. Hello

Hey Jennifer I was wondering if you've been Thinking about Reupping your No Jennifer It's Chris Sullivan I can recognize it How are you?

I'm trying to shake In like my body Don't shake You take a deep breath And just We're thanking you for leaving Such a beautiful message For us

How are you doing today? I'm doing all right It's been a day, but I'm doing all right. This is, you know, a highlight of it, definitely. So we're happy to bring that to you. Absolutely. Absolutely. As someone who lost their pops when he was young as well, I was 10, my condolences on the passing of your father, and I know it was a while ago. But how are you moving through and dealing and living with grief at present? You know, it's, it's crazy. It's just like an ongoing thing. I don't think it's something you ever really deal with or not like you know get to a point where you are every

moments that just trigger it yeah um i mean my mom actually also passed away about five years ago so it's just you know oh thank you but like the father one i don't know why i mean because i was so young just hit me so hard and you know watching this is us just you know brought it back like i don't know if you ever saw the movie meet joe black i couldn't even watch that because no nope not happening i hear you um but you know i started watching this this is us and you get into it. And every story and every episode is so compelling and you can't stop watching. And then you find out that there's this monumental death. And I was like, no,

I'm done. I can't do it. I can't, I can't do it. But did you have to step away? Did you have to step away? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I think it was a good couple of episodes where I'm like, I don't know if I can do this, but the show is just so good. I'm like, I got to watch it. And so I did turn it back on. And, you know, I'm so glad that I did. Like, you know, you feel the stories that the kids are going through, even at a younger age and how they're all trying to cope, even when they're adults, you see that they're all still so struggling. And I'm like, I feel validated. Like, it's okay to struggle on that, too, and not know where I'm at with it. Yes, ma'am. Yeah. Absolutely.

Yeah. It is, it is okay to not be okay. Yeah. You can be okay with not being okay. Yes. And that's okay. There is actually a very good song by an artist named Nako. It's a song is I'm okay with not being okay. Absolutely. It's a great song. Absolutely. It's a good mantra.

Did you watch the show solo? Was it anybody in the family or friends that you watched it with? Or was this just you in front of the TV with your Kleenex and wine and popcorn or whatever? It was just me. And then, like, I was part of like a little mom group online and every now and then, like, who watched this episode? What are your thoughts? You know? So I would talk with them.

But it was mostly just a, it was my, my time, my little me time to watch it. Yeah. Yeah. Some self-care. Yes. And I'm mad at that. Is it a situation for you? Like you were saying that the show kind of helped you.

It just normalized the fact that you weren't alone and sort of dealing with that grief or what have you. Was it at any point in time, did it feel lighter in watching the episodes? Like a lot of people would talk about how they would step away from the show because it made them cry too hard. And sometimes we've had the conversation that through the tears, though, there was a lightning that could transpire. And I'm curious for you, was that your experience or was it just sort of overwhelmingly intense or like how did the tears, if and when you did have the emotions, yeah, yeah, leave you

at the end. I just like it was, but I think in time, you know, because there's so many tears in the show, but it definitely helped. Because I think, you know, being so young when your father passes, you're looking for someone to kind of fill that hole. Yeah. So you go, you know, your friend's parents that you kind of latch on to their dad a little bit. And I could see that where I would. And then even watching the show, I could kind of latch on Jack and be like, he feels like a little bit of a father figure to me.

Yeah. So, you know, so like when I got to grieve again and with it, it felt like it helped me grieve that a little better because I'm a little older. There's other people going through it helping me. Yeah. That's beautiful. You said that today's been a day. Do you want to talk about it with three of your closest friends? Yeah, yeah.

We're here. We're here. We're anonymous. Now this is an emotional support hotline. Nobody's listening. We're not licensed therapist. What's going on? No, I just, I have three children, seven, 12, and 19.

So every day is a day. And then my husband just came home from the hospital today from back surgery. Oh, my God. So he's laid up for. He's laid up in bed. I'm like, honey, I got to go. I'll be back in like 15 days. I'm like, I got to make this phone go.

Yeah. That's a lot. Sorry to take you away from that, but I mean, also just happy to give you a second to catch your breath. That's a lot on your plate, ma'am. That is a lot. That's right. He, he's take, I've had also had cancer in the past, so he's taken care of me, so we're switching roles, you know? So he just had to go get a back surgery just to get you back.

Yeah, exactly. You know, he had to be in the hospital a little longer to try to compete with me. You know, a little kid. But now he was excited for me. So he's like, go, go. Do what you have to do. We love that. Wait, I have a quick question before we let you go.

Because you said 7, 12, and 19. So you waited seven years and then you waited five years. Talk to me. Talk to me. My 19 year old is my stepson. So I've taken him in. And then I have had cancer. You know, I had cancer and didn't know if I could have children.

Luckily I was. So I had my one. And then we were like, let's wait a little bit. And then we're like, let's do it. And then we did it. And then I can't do it again. So it's just been like boom, boom, boom. But it's been kind of great.

You just keep doing it, Jennifer. Jennifer, you just are like. A powerhouse. Man, goodness. Percevering through life, pushing through. God bless you. Well, I have to say it's because of people like you guys, like I know, you're real, you're, you're, it's such a show. But you guys, just even in your real lives, you have so much positive.

out there when I follow you on social. It's just in the crazy world that it is today, it's so heartwarming to see that and we need that because we just need to be good to each other. And so I love when you guys just spread it. And even these talkbacks that you're doing, it's just, it's so nice that you're giving back in this way. So we really thank you for that. You're the best.

You just made our day. Like, truly, I have tears in my eyes. Like everything that you're going through and you're able to emanate such positivity. And yeah, you just brought this nice little slice of joy to. to our day as well. It's so appreciated. Jennifer, you're a survivor. You're a fighter. Like, God bless you. God bless your children. Your husband, as he makes his way out of back surgery. We're sending all the well wishes for his quick recovery. All that good stuff. Absolutely. No, thank you. No, thank you so much for this. And I, I know, I'll be listening every week

and catching up and I have an hour drive to work. So I listen to you guys, and it's a perfect. Oh, we love that. Thank you. Thanks for supporting. We're happy to accompany you on your way to work. Have a good rest of your day. Exactly. Yes, Mary. You too. Take care, Jennifer.

Bye. Bye. Bye. Rock stars. That's like. So our fans are rock stars is basically what we're learning through this process. That's right. My goodness.

Yeah. Baby cancer. Baby. Oh. Yeah. Yeah. Step child. Yeah.

Grieving both parents that are gone. Yeah. Yeah. It's like, yeah, you never know what is going on in people's lives. Never do. I feel like Jennifer is sort of the embodiment. Like, of the philosophy that I think undergirds the show, difficult things will transpire. For all of us.

Life continues to move forward. You try to make the most of what you have while you have it. And to enjoy, to thoroughly experience each moment as it comes. Like, this woman is living that. Thank you, Jennifer. Yeah, thanks for. That reminder, Jennifer. We want to talk to you.

So please, if you want to write us an email at That Was UsPod at gmail.com, you can send us a letter. Let us know how you relate to the show. Or you can call us at-1-2-201-3028. Any time. Leave messages like this. We will call you back and we will just pow-wow because we love you. We love to hear from you. We think that it's emotional support for you.

No, really. It's really for us. It's really for us. Totally. It truly is our favorite segment of the show for a reason. I'm always blown away. I'm like, what are we going to get this week? Blown away.

That was amazing. Golly. That concludes this episode of That was us. That's true. We'll see you next week. Thanks for joining us, friends. Bye, game. Bye.

Welcome back to another installment of the retread brought to you by Peloton. Find your push. Find your power with Peloton. Today we spoke to Lyric Ross and were reminded of what an incredible person and what an incredible actor she is playing the role of Dacia. We also gushed over Faith Herman, our little itty-bitty on the show in her incredible scene with Ron Cephas Jones. We were reminded that it is okay to not be okay by connecting with some fans in the emotional support hotline. And we reminded ourselves and our listeners of the power of good boundaries.

to maintain our energy on and offset. And, of course, we were left with an incredible line by the one and only, Sylvester Stallone. There is no such thing as a long time ago. There are only memories that mean something and memories that don't. Thanks for tuning in. This has been The Retread.

Brought to you by Peloton. That was us is filmed at The Crow and produced by Rabbit Grinn Productions and Sarah Warehunt. Music by Taylor Goldsmith and Griffin Goldsmith. Da da da da-da-da-dum, da-da-dum, that was us.