The Hinge

Jake Esman and Noel O'Driscoll
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Hosted by Noel and Jake. Two friends lean into topics such as beauty, solitude, tenderness, and encounter. The presenters share reflections where grace came disguised as disaster and their belief that reality is more than generous. The Hinge is a playful and serious, vulnerable space that affirms the precious uniqueness of us all, exploring how we can creatively respond to our lives and the world. A contemplative meander on the mystery of being human. The Hinge Podcast: Bread For the Week Ahead! Edited and Co Produced by Ger Kellett

Episodes

  1. 8. Solitude

    6D AGO

    8. Solitude

    Jake and Noel discuss Herman Hesse’s perspective on creation as a  discharge of the living soul and the human need to make our mark, connecting creation to the desire to communicate the incommunicable and so feel less alone. They explore the distinction between loneliness and solitude on the spiritual path.  Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Show notes: In its origin a poem is something completely unequivocal. It is a discharge, a call, a cry, a sigh, a gesture, a reaction by which the living soul seeks to defend itself from or to become aware of an emotion, an experience. In this first spontaneous most important function no poem can be judged. It speaks first of all simply to the poet himself, it is his cry, his scream, his dream, his smile, his whirling fists. (by Hermann Hesse) Loneliness is the pain of being alone Solitude is the glory of being alone (John Moriarty) The pain of being alone is not being able to share your ideas with other people  (John Moriarty) FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW Instagram Patreon YouTube Write to us at - thehingepodcast@gmail.com

    50 min
  2. 7. Listening (The Ear of the Heart)

    MAR 30

    7. Listening (The Ear of the Heart)

    Noel and Jake exchange on the transformative nature of listening, defining it as an empathetic and tender act requiring presence and a willingness to be changed by the other person, citing Jake's reflection on an encounter with Henk and Noel’s reference to King Solomon's request for a listening heart. Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Listening Listening is a form of worship,  but you don't have to kneel  on the floor with folded hands  or mouth the perfect prayer.  Just open the door of yourself  to another, become the space they step through to show  you who they are. This is holiness: two people seated  together on the pew of a park  bench, or the altar of a  kitchen table. Even if no one  says a word for a while,  receive the silence until it's  like a new language only the  two of you can speak.    (by James Crews) FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW Instagram Patreon YouTube Write to us at - thehingepodcast@gmail.com

    52 min
  3. 6. Desire Unnamed

    MAR 23

    6. Desire Unnamed

    Noel and Jake explore the profound power of words, emphasizing their role in liberation, recognition, and connection, leading to the choice of The Hinge as the name for the podcast. Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Words There are places inside me  For which I have no words, And these are the places I write from . . . Words are like stones That I gathered in my pocket That anchored me to this place . . . Words are a needle and thread To my tornness (by Noel O’Driscoll) FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW⁠Instagram⁠Patreon ⁠YouTubeWrite to us at - thehingepodcast@gmailcom

    51 min
  4. 5. Endings

    MAR 16

    5. Endings

    How do we let go of docility, so we stop participating in known falsehoods? Can we embrace the agency that arises from confronting fear and the rupture of the world as we know it? Is this a time for stepping away from what no longer serves us, ending individualistic pursuits and reorientating towards community as a new beginning? Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett References:— Speech Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada at 2026 World Economic Forum, ’Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing.’ (John Stuart Mill) FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW Instagram Patreon YouTube Write to us at --- thehingepodcast@gmail.com

    51 min
  5. 4. Encounter

    MAR 9

    4. Encounter

    Jake describes an encounter with a man named Luigi during a flight, which leads to conversations about life, faith, and the importance of remaining open despite initial judgments. Noel recounts an unexpected stopover in Charlotte, illustrating the spirituality of interruption. . . Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Show notes --- Yesterday, I got up at four. I shower standing on the fold-down bathroom  seat for fear of athlete's foot. It works. I drop my suitcase and go through security. I order a coffee and drink it with distaste. Shall I take it back? Too much trouble. I read my book on Solitude until the gate is called — Gate 34. I walk down the stairs overtaking people on the escalator alongside. One of them is an older man in a blue chequered, woolen suit. His white hair flowing, long and wavy.  I think to myself I’d like to sit next to someone like him on a flight. I walk past fashion, book, sports, and toy stores. There is an empty free newspaper stand. A young couple rifle through a backpack in the middle of the corridor. A tall woman nearly trips on an empty plastic bottle. It’s six a.m. . . . (by Jake Esman) FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW Instagram Patreon YouTube

    47 min
  6. 3. Beauty

    MAR 2

    3. Beauty

    Noel and Jake discuss the concept of beauty as a powerful, inescapable force that ‘hunts everyone.’ Noel introduces the poetry of Andrea Gibson and Jake speaks of beauty as an ‘apparition of God.’ They share their personal experiences of encountering beauty and its place, constancy and necessity for our lives. Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Show notes - Acceptance Speech After Setting the World Record in Goosebumps by Andrea Gibson ‘…Of course beauty hunted me. It hunts everyone… There is no escaping the magic now. Beauty caught me and never let me go…’ Write to us: Can you think of a time when you were struck by beauty? thehingepodcast@gmail.com FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE SHOW Instagram Patreon Youtube

    48 min
  7. 2. Gratitude

    FEB 22

    2. Gratitude

    Noel and Jake discuss the many faces of gratitude. Noel reads a  poem  "A grateful heart” emphasizing spontaneous thanks for life, the importance of context beyond negative events, and the connection between gratitude and grace. They explore the place of gratitude amidst and even for difficult experiences, including loss and addiction. Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Show notes - A Grateful Heart by Noel O’Driscoll Upon waking Immediate prayer A simple thanks From my lips For the breath in my body For life, longing and love For every birth and death For you My Beloved I bow With a grateful heart Alanis Morisette - Thank U FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE PODCAST Instagram Patreon Youtube

    43 min
  8. 1. Tenderness

    FEB 17

    1. Tenderness

    Jake and Noel explore the theme of tenderness through poetry, personal anecdotes, and conversations about ordinariness and care, beginning with Raymond Carver's poem "Still looking out for number one". They discuss how tenderness is found in the economy of words and the beauty of the ordinary. Podcast Editor - Ger Kellett Show notes - Looking out for number one, by Raymond Carver FOOTWASHING, by Jake Esman she had loved her father like any daughter valued his advice his kindness, his company yet she wouldn’t say they were close then, in his mid-eighties his memory went and with it his personality — partly he needed her care and she gave it willingly they were intimate months when nothing is private and all physical needs require assistance and that’s just how it goes she was not the first to experience that great sense of closeness of tender mutuality those days when she washed his feet and clipped his toenails FOLLOW AND SUPPORT THE PODCAST Instagram Patreon Youtube

    49 min
  • 8 Episodes

About

Hosted by Noel and Jake. Two friends lean into topics such as beauty, solitude, tenderness, and encounter. The presenters share reflections where grace came disguised as disaster and their belief that reality is more than generous. The Hinge is a playful and serious, vulnerable space that affirms the precious uniqueness of us all, exploring how we can creatively respond to our lives and the world. A contemplative meander on the mystery of being human. The Hinge Podcast: Bread For the Week Ahead! Edited and Co Produced by Ger Kellett

Information

  • Creator
    Jake Esman and Noel O'Driscoll
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Jake Esman and Noel O'Driscoll
  • Show Website
    The Hinge