Ep 385 Young Loves, Strong Roots

Marriage Therapy Radio

MTR

Self-improvement, Society & Culture, Therapy, Health & Fitness, Marriage, Relationships, Mental Health, Education

4.6 • 690 Ratings

🗓️ 12 August 2025

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Zach talks with Sarah Rhoades and her boyfriend Grady, a young couple navigating the first year of their relationship. They share how a chance meeting at Grady’s backyard open mic, where he held a microphone for Sarah’s banjo, turned into an unexpected connection built on shared values, openness, and adventure. Sarah and Grady reflect on blending friend groups, learning from divorced parents, and building a “tree trunk” foundation strong enough to handle differences in interests. They discuss the balance between independence and togetherness, the role of transparency, and their approach to the looming challenge of Sarah heading to college. With humor and thoughtfulness, they explore what it means to be intentional about connection, no matter your age. Shared values beat shared hobbies: They connect on deeper principles and character rather than just liking the same activities. Integration matters: Early on, they made intentional efforts to include each other in separate friend groups, creating a unified social circle. Independence strengthens the unit: Inspired by Sarah’s grandparents, they value being able to live individual lives while staying connected as a couple. Radical honesty as a reaction to secrecy: Grady’s experience with passive-aggressive family dynamics led him to favor openness and directness. Parents notice the positive impact: Both sets of parents appreciate how the relationship brings out the best in them. Facing change together: They’re preparing for the shift when Sarah leaves for college, focusing on communication and balance over fear. Resisting cultural shortcuts: Despite living in a hookup culture, they see commitment as natural once you find the right person. Sarah RhoadesA recent high school graduate and musician, Sarah plays banjo and values independence, adventure, and intentional connection. GradyA high school senior who runs a backyard open mic, Grady brings openness, curiosity, and a commitment to honesty into the relationship. Key TakeawaysGuest Info Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Piroets and power chords, high lips and heavy metal.
0:06.0	Following a sold-out season in 2023, Birmingham Royal Ballets Black Sabbath, The Ballet,
0:12.0	returns to Sadler's Wells Theatre from the 22nd to the 25th of October.
0:18.0	A celebration of the music of Black Sabbath, matched by the incredible power of Birmingham
0:24.5	Royal Ballet.
0:26.5	Book your tickets now at saddlerswells.com.
0:30.3	Hi, I'm Albie Manzo, and I am the host of an advice podcast called Dear Albi with my brother
0:34.7	Chris.
0:35.2	I'm Chris Manzo.
0:36.0	My brother hosts an advice show called Dear Alby.
0:38.4	Dear Alby.
0:39.1	I knew having you on the ad was going to be a bad idea. Listen to Dear Alby on the IHeart app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, everybody. Welcome. And thank you for listening to this episode of Marriage Therapy Radio. My name is Zach Brittle. this is a cool one because I got an email from a listener
0:55.3	as you know I've been asking if you dear listeners would like to come on the podcast and share
1:00.6	your story this one one listener wrote and said I'm not interested in coming on but my kids might
1:05.7	be how about you talk to them and so I was like you bet so Sarah Rhodes and Grady have come on the podcast. They are young.
1:12.7	Sarah Rhodes just graduated from high school. Grady is going to be a senior. They've been dating
1:15.7	for about seven months. And I really just wanted to know, like, what is that like? You know,
1:20.5	I have so many couples tell me they sort of wish they could go back to the beginning. And so I thought,
1:26.3	maybe it'll be cool to talk to people at the
1:28.0	beginning. And these guys have some wisdom that is really intriguing to hear about. And I'm rooting
1:34.1	for them. I have no idea if they'll stay together forever or if they will. I don't know. I don't
1:40.0	know. But like I said, I'm rooting for them. And I think you'll enjoy hearing from them. I want to remind you that Marriage Therapy Radio is sponsored by the app called Paired, which is a great way to connect to your partner on a daily basis around different kinds of games and questions. If that's of interest to you, go to Paired.com slash mTR and download that app. It's important to use that code MTR so that they know that you heard about
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