The Moth Radio Hour: Defining Moments

The Moth

Performing Arts, Arts

4.6 • 25.6K Ratings

🗓️ 29 July 2025

⏱️ 52 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this hour, stories of turning points, decisions, and the moments that come to define us—from summer camp to nightclubs. This episode is hosted by Moth Director Jodi Powell. The Moth Radio Hour is produced by The Moth and Jay Allison of Atlantic Public Media. Storytellers: Jeff Birdsall leads a motley crew on a wilderness canoe trip. Lauren Allen really wants to be good at something. Madeline Pots's artist husband encases her in plaster of Paris. Jean Cardeño meets the man at the center of her failing relationship. Duncan Hills's septuagenarian father takes up clubbing. Errol McClendon receives some heartfelt gifts. Podcast # 930 To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is a Moth radio hour. I'm your host, Jodi Powell.
0:18.2	In this hour, we're hearing all about turning points. The moments when you make a
0:22.9	game-changing decision and decide who you're going to be right now or for the rest of your life.
0:30.0	Her first story comes from Jeff Birdsong. Jeff told this at a Seattle Story Islam where
0:35.4	KUOW is our radio partner.
0:40.3	In college, I led wilderness canoe trips in the Boundary Waters canoe area of Minnesota
0:45.3	at a camp Widgewagon. Try saying that three times quickly.
0:49.3	And as a novice, I quickly learned that carrying large canoes and Duluth packs across massive
0:57.2	portages between beautiful lakes required a lot of strength.
1:02.6	And so the desire to have a team of youth that were able to complete this task was highly
1:08.8	desired.
1:10.5	And right before a trip started you
1:12.4	gathered with the other staff and you got a packet of information about each of
1:16.5	the campers medical forms and parental notes and the guy next to me was opening up
1:21.4	his packet and he had every one of his youth like at 12 years old over six feet
1:27.3	tall could bench pass like 200 pounds he was ecstatic Every one of his youth, at 12 years old, over six feet tall,
1:28.3	could bench pass like 200 pounds.
1:30.3	He was ecstatic.
1:32.3	I opened up my pack, and I had the first one, Sam.
1:38.3	And Sam was, just had a hernia operation.
1:43.3	He was four foot two, and he wasn't allowed to carry more than 10 pounds.
1:48.0	My second camper Ben was allergic to most food groups
	...

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