Welcome to Home of the Brave. I'm Scott Carrier.

This is an introduction to a story I've been working on where I interview people in my family about how they're coping with the pandemic. Some are doing

better than others. For me, the main consequence of the shutdown has been that I

can't get close enough to another person to hold a microphone

less than a foot from his or her face.

Holding the microphone close has to do with sound quality,

and it also has to do with trust.

Trust is important because nobody tells you anything

interesting until they trust you. We hide the truth, we hide ourselves. Getting the

microphone close is like pushing a needle into someone's arm. They say,

okay let's do this. I will tell you what it's like to be me.

This isn't going to happen now, at least not with strangers.

I could stand six feet away and talk to someone with a mask,

but there's no intimacy in it, no trust,

and I don't want to talk to someone who doesn't trust me.

So I was kind of stuck for a few weeks,

but then I realized I could interview people in my family.

They still trust me. I could pick on them. So I did and I've

been listening to the interviews and realize I need to take some time in editing. For me it's very emotional. It feels like I've

recorded my closest network or network is the wrong word.

It feels like I've recorded my heart and it's running a little scared.

I just need to take things one step at a time and try not to freak out.

...