MY FIRST YEAR

SOPHIA MEDIA

CREATING HUMAN CONNECTIONS, ONE EPISODE AT A TIME. MY FIRST YEAR podcast series explores the human experience through conversations with every-day people about their major life transitions, from first time becoming a parent, to first year on the job to first time losing a loved one.   Each My First Year episode weaves together human connections through heart-felt, embodied story-telling. When we feel a visceral connection to someone else’s story, we realize we’re not alone. That recognition – that our experiences echo in others – is where healing and understanding begin for all of us.  Creator, Executive Producer and Host: Sophia Senior Producers: Gabbie Watts, Samira Tazari, Rosabelle Heine  Creative Director: Shareen Anderson Co-hosts: Gabbie Watts, Samira Tazari, Rosabelle Heine, Adoley Ammah-Tagoe, A.C. Valdez, Shareen Anderson and Casey Georgi Theme Music: Nana Simopoulos

  1. Oct 9

    My First Year Living Abroad - Moving to Denmark for Love: Finding Belonging, Safety, and Music in Copenhagen | MacKenzie Kermoade

    In this episode of My First Year, hosts Sophia and Shareen interview Washington native MacKenzie Kermoade, an international environmental governance professional and musician (Mack Marcel) living in Copenhagen.  MacKenzie traces her path from a nature-centered childhood near Seattle to studying environmental policy and global climate law, ultimately leading to her role as coordinating officer at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. She describes falling in love with Daniel, whom she met when he was a Danish exchange student at her high school. She also recounts the family reunification process that brought her to Denmark in March 2022, and how COVID-era job uncertainty and Brexit shaped their decision to move. MacKenzie shares first impressions of Denmark’s cleanliness, biking culture, safety, and social insularity, plus challenges learning Danish and adapting to norms like janteloven and collectivism. She found community through Copenhagen’s open-mic scene, forming the Mack Marcel project and completing a debut EP, while reflecting on homesickness, identity, and the importance of approaching life abroad with humility and curiosity. 🌐Follow the series wherever you listen to podcasts and join our growing community at sophiamedia.co. ▶️ www.youtube.com/@MyFirstYearSeries ❤️ Subscribe for more conversations about life's biggest transitions. Email info@sophiamedia.co and share your own transformative first year with us.

    My First Year Living Abroad - Moving to Denmark for Love: Finding Belonging, Safety, and Music in Copenhagen | MacKenzie Kermoade
  2. Oct 3

    Weekly Spotlight - Signal Award Finalist: Thomas Greene on Fatherhood, Storytelling, and Grief After Losing a Child

    🎙️ A Special Encore Episode — And We Need Your Vote! We’re revisiting one of the most moving conversations from My First Year as a Father. SOPHIA and A.C. Valdez sit down with acclaimed novelist and essayist Thomas Greene for an intimate conversation about fatherhood and unimaginable loss. Thomas reflects on becoming a father to his daughters, Sarah and Jane, how caring for Sarah and creating bedtime stories helped him become a “dad,” and Jane’s premature birth and six months in the NICU. He also speaks candidly about grief and how losing a child shaped his family, his writing, and his understanding of fatherhood. This is a conversation about fatherhood, storytelling, caregiving, grief, resilience, and the relationships that remain with us through every chapter of life. 🏆 My First Year as a Father is a 2026 Signal Awards Finalist in the Family & Child-Raising category! If this conversation—or the stories we share throughout the series—has meant something to you, we would be grateful for your vote. 🗳️ Vote for My First Year as a Father here: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2026/individual-episodes/genre/family-child-raising Voting only takes a moment, and every vote helps more people discover these honest conversations about what the first year of fatherhood really feels like. 🌐Follow the series wherever you listen to podcasts and join our growing community at sophiamedia.co. ▶️ www.youtube.com/@MyFirstYearSeries ❤️ Subscribe for more conversations about life's biggest transitions. Email info@sophiamedia.co and share your own transformative first year with us.

    Weekly Spotlight - Signal Award Finalist: Thomas Greene on Fatherhood, Storytelling, and Grief After Losing a Child
  3. Sep 12 ·  Bonus

    Weekly Spotlight - Shreya Sophie @ University of Georgia: Presence, Nostalgia and Seeing and Being Seen through Poetry

    For all the students arriving at college for the first time this week, hear from Shreya, a University of Georgia student, writer, poet, and founder of the autism advocacy nonprofit Color Me Blue. Shreya reflects on leaving behind the familiarity of home, adjusting to college as an introvert, and finding a group of friends who made her feel truly seen. She shares how poetry helped her process the transition, why she decided it was okay to “care too much,” and how stepping outside her comfort zone opened doors she never expected.   From choosing UGA over her dream of New York City to navigating homesickness, friendship, ambition, and what she calls “future nostalgia,” Shreya’s story is about learning that you don’t need to have your whole future figured out to embrace where you are right now. You can check out Shreya’s Substack: https://substack.com/@shreyasophie And her latest poetry book on Amazon📚 https://www.amazon.com/Stars-Puddles-Clouds-My-Eyes/dp/B0FPXRQJLK?ref_=ast_author_mpb And follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shreyasophie/  ❤️ Subscribe for more conversations about life's biggest transitions.  Learn more: https://sophiamedia.co/MyFirstYear 🌐Follow the series wherever you listen to podcasts and join our growing community at sophiamedia.co. ▶️ www.youtube.com/@MyFirstYearSeries ❤️ Subscribe for more conversations about life's biggest transitions. Email info@sophiamedia.co and share your own transformative first year with us.

    Weekly Spotlight - Shreya Sophie @ University of Georgia: Presence, Nostalgia and Seeing and Being Seen through Poetry
  4. Sep 11

    My First Year as a Widow - Nikki Darling: Love, Loss, and a Relationship That Continues

    Nikki lost her husband Rob to cancer when she was only 46. She talks about leaving her first marriage where she was a self-described tradwife and young mom of three, meeting Rob with whom she had a profoundly close bond and a beautiful marriage, losing Rob to colon cancer, working through grief and anger, and continuing embracing love and life following Rob's passing. Nikki met Rob when they were rival Speech and Debate coaches for two of the strongest teams in Oregon. They bonded over their shared love of literature and language and fell deeply in love. Together, they raised their son, Justus, and Nikki’s three daughters from her first marriage, and taught together in Oregon, Brazil, and across the world during their 20-year relationship. In 2022, Rob learned that he had stage-four colon cancer and was given about 11 months to live. During their remaining time together, Nikki and Rob were radically honest with each other and resolved to bond as much as they could before he passed. Under Brazilian law, Nikki had eight days of bereavement leave before she had to return to work. She describes what those first few weeks felt like: supporting their 12-year-old son, finding a widowhood community through writing, learning Rob’s guitar to honor his memory, and building a new home while keeping Rob present in her daily parenting and conversations. You can find Nikki on Substack: https://nikkidarling.substack.com/  And follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikitafeminista/  Be sure to check out other episodes in the My First Year series, wherever you get your podcasts. 🌐Follow the series wherever you listen to podcasts and join our growing community at sophiamedia.co. ▶️ www.youtube.com/@MyFirstYearSeries ❤️ Subscribe for more conversations about life's biggest transitions. Email info@sophiamedia.co and share your own transformative first year with us.

    My First Year as a Widow - Nikki Darling: Love, Loss, and a Relationship That Continues

Trailers

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CREATING HUMAN CONNECTIONS, ONE EPISODE AT A TIME. MY FIRST YEAR podcast series explores the human experience through conversations with every-day people about their major life transitions, from first time becoming a parent, to first year on the job to first time losing a loved one.   Each My First Year episode weaves together human connections through heart-felt, embodied story-telling. When we feel a visceral connection to someone else’s story, we realize we’re not alone. That recognition – that our experiences echo in others – is where healing and understanding begin for all of us.  Creator, Executive Producer and Host: Sophia Senior Producers: Gabbie Watts, Samira Tazari, Rosabelle Heine  Creative Director: Shareen Anderson Co-hosts: Gabbie Watts, Samira Tazari, Rosabelle Heine, Adoley Ammah-Tagoe, A.C. Valdez, Shareen Anderson and Casey Georgi Theme Music: Nana Simopoulos