DISCLAIMER: This conversation gets into some tender, taboo, and controversial terrain — sibling rivalry, single motherhood, faith, politics, and posturing (both spiritual and masculine). Nothing here is life advice; these are lived experiences, opinions, and real talk. Use your discernment.Welcome back once again to Good Women!First up– I didn’t realize how much my skirt would ride up and that the angle would make me look like I wasn’t wearing pants– apologies! Notes taken for future podcast attire. This week, things get a bit wild: I sit down with my not-a-woman, last-minute guest, my brother, Ben Kelly, fresh off the plane from Bali — and we dive deep into the messy, loving, endlessly nuanced world of family, identity, and culture. We get real about growing up as siblings — different worldviews under the same roof, agnostic vs. Christ-follower, marriage vs. living in Bali with a partner — and how those childhood roles ("man of the house," "eldest daughter") shape our adult relationships, sense of obligation, and emotional patterns.In this two part special, we talk about: Sibling dynamics: endless arguments, respect, and the “biff” that always ends in loveDifferent faiths & worldviews: agnosticism, Christ-following, marriage, independence, and family obligationBreaking free from inherited duty and learning to prioritize your own life, while still loving your origin storyLessons from single motherhood: resource scarcity, emotional resilience, and making safety out of thin airHow environment breeds hyper-vigilance, “performative masculinity,” and the strategy of surviving suburbiaThe reality of trauma, why not everything has to be “big T” (and why some people get stuck in victimhood for social currency)Why online “cancel culture,” entitled followers, and virtue signalling don't actually make you more righteous (or happy)The art of changing your mind publicly & privately, and how being curious is the doorway to growthNavigating social pressure: when everyone wants you to talk about every issue, do you owe them your voice?How giving (and living) without performance is its own virtue — no need to convince anyone you’re a "good" personFor more of Peta Kelly: @petajean_ and @goodwomenshow on Instagram, plus the Substack: www.likehoneycomb.com Email: hello@goodwomenshow.comFollow Ben at @__benjames_ on Instagram and threads (two underscores at the front, one underscore at the back). Take his quiz at www.decodingdesire.comStay tuned for Part 2 — more real talk, more nuance, more truth, and probably a few more laughs.
