1 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:09,639 Speaker 1: You're listening too, I'm Amama podcast. You know, I brought 2 00:00:09,640 --> 00:00:12,080 Speaker 1: this up with my husband. I was like, Okay, look, 3 00:00:12,640 --> 00:00:16,720 Speaker 1: you know we're here, we're young, we're reasonably hot. We 4 00:00:16,759 --> 00:00:19,239 Speaker 1: should go and try these things while we still got it. 5 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:23,599 Speaker 1: And his response, of course, coming from where he was 6 00:00:23,639 --> 00:00:27,639 Speaker 1: coming from with his family contact and you know how 7 00:00:27,639 --> 00:00:30,440 Speaker 1: he'd been raising, he's like, decent people don't do this, 8 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:34,559 Speaker 1: Decent married people don't do this, and definitely, you, as 9 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:37,479 Speaker 1: a decent married woman, should not even be thinking about this. 10 00:00:43,840 --> 00:00:48,360 Speaker 2: Hello, and welcome to No Filter. I'm Kitline Brook. It 11 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:53,280 Speaker 2: feels like everyone is suddenly talking about open marriage, partly 12 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 2: because of Lily Allen, who revealed on her latest album 13 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:00,120 Speaker 2: that she and her husband David Harbor had opened their 14 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:05,840 Speaker 2: marriage and that it went very, very badly. Her songs 15 00:01:06,039 --> 00:01:09,960 Speaker 2: paint this picture of hurt and resentment and the kind 16 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 2: of emotional fallout that instantly makes you think, well. 17 00:01:13,840 --> 00:01:15,280 Speaker 3: That's why you shouldn't do it. 18 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:19,960 Speaker 2: But that's only one version of the experience, and today 19 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:25,000 Speaker 2: we're bringing you another, a very different one deeper. Paul 20 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:28,200 Speaker 2: has been in an open marriage for almost a decade. 21 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:30,320 Speaker 2: She's married to Marcus. 22 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,640 Speaker 3: She also has a boyfriend who she loves. 23 00:01:35,760 --> 00:01:39,080 Speaker 2: They share a child, a home, and a life that 24 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:44,039 Speaker 2: is unconventional but deeply considered. And for Deeper and Marcus, 25 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:48,800 Speaker 2: opening their marriage didn't destroy them. It made them stronger. 26 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 2: People are endlessly curious about how it works. They want 27 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:57,120 Speaker 2: to know the rules, the boundaries, the jealousy, the logistics, 28 00:01:57,160 --> 00:02:01,200 Speaker 2: the emotional math of loving more than one person. So 29 00:02:01,400 --> 00:02:06,000 Speaker 2: today I ask Deeper the questions people always want to ask, 30 00:02:06,600 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 2: but never feel brave enough to say out loud, or 31 00:02:10,519 --> 00:02:14,840 Speaker 2: never have the opportunity. This is one woman's honest account 32 00:02:14,920 --> 00:02:18,480 Speaker 2: of being a wife, a mother, and a girlfriend all 33 00:02:18,520 --> 00:02:22,720 Speaker 2: at the same time. And why for her letting go 34 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:27,000 Speaker 2: of monogamy wasn't the end of her marriage. It was 35 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:36,400 Speaker 2: the beginning of a different kind of love story. Deeper, Paul, 36 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:40,960 Speaker 2: welcome to No Filter. You've written this book, Ask me 37 00:02:41,080 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 2: how it works. It's the story of you, a woman 38 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:49,000 Speaker 2: who has a husband and a boyfriend right. 39 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:53,359 Speaker 3: And a child and a job. 40 00:02:55,040 --> 00:03:03,440 Speaker 2: But you are a most unexpected person for me anyway, 41 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 2: because when you talk to people who are swingers or 42 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:13,040 Speaker 2: who are polyamorous or whatever, they tend in my experience 43 00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:17,440 Speaker 2: to be kind of a bit racy. But you are 44 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:23,880 Speaker 2: not those things. You're cute, like unexpectedly cute. 45 00:03:24,240 --> 00:03:25,160 Speaker 1: Thank you. 46 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:31,840 Speaker 2: You are of Philippina and Indian heritage, correct, which is. 47 00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 3: Of such a conservative culture. 48 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:36,120 Speaker 1: On both sides. Yeah. True. 49 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:38,440 Speaker 3: So you grew up in the Philippines. 50 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:41,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, I was born in Manila, so my father was 51 00:03:41,560 --> 00:03:44,600 Speaker 1: Indian and my mum is Filipina. I grew up there, 52 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:48,240 Speaker 1: went to a Catholic all girls' school for the first 53 00:03:48,280 --> 00:03:50,000 Speaker 1: seventeen years of my life. 54 00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:56,040 Speaker 2: Okay, so Catholic, right, So I'm very conservative in a 55 00:03:56,120 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 2: conservative country. 56 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:01,440 Speaker 1: Yeah. Fun fact. You know, the Philippines is one of 57 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:04,480 Speaker 1: two remaining countries in the world where divorce is ill 58 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:08,480 Speaker 1: ego and the other one is Vatican City. Not a 59 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 1: lot of people getting married there, I can. Yeah. So, 60 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:18,360 Speaker 1: population eight hundred and sixty years as well, so Maine mostly. Yeah. 61 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:21,479 Speaker 1: So growing up in the Philippines, you know, it was 62 00:04:21,560 --> 00:04:28,880 Speaker 1: extremely conservative, extremely extremely religious, and extremely Catholic. And all 63 00:04:28,920 --> 00:04:31,840 Speaker 1: of the messages that I grew up with around you know, 64 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 1: love and commitment and intimacy, relationships and sex were extremely 65 00:04:38,480 --> 00:04:42,920 Speaker 1: loaded with shame, you know, in secrecy and this kind 66 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:46,640 Speaker 1: of I mean there was so there's so much to 67 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:50,080 Speaker 1: unpack from being raised as a Catholic school girl, you know, 68 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:53,760 Speaker 1: being told that sex was bad. If you liked it, 69 00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:57,680 Speaker 1: we're curious about it, you were also bad. But then 70 00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:02,320 Speaker 1: somehow men receiving a totally different message from what I 71 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:05,720 Speaker 1: was growing up with. So yeah, that's how I grew up. 72 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:10,880 Speaker 2: But yet you did always know from when you were 73 00:05:11,480 --> 00:05:15,960 Speaker 2: how old that you had. Obviously there was the degree 74 00:05:16,040 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 2: of innocence bestowed and preserved on the behalf of children, 75 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:22,200 Speaker 2: as it should be, but even then you had the 76 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:25,920 Speaker 2: inkling of what a curiosity about it? 77 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 3: About sex? 78 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:30,200 Speaker 1: It wasn't about sex per se. It was about how 79 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:36,479 Speaker 1: people approached relationships and love. So in the Philippines, you know, 80 00:05:36,480 --> 00:05:38,040 Speaker 1: when I was growing up, I don't know how much 81 00:05:38,080 --> 00:05:41,839 Speaker 1: it's changed. I left about sixteen or seventeen years ago. 82 00:05:42,600 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: There was no dating. We didn't date like there was 83 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:50,000 Speaker 1: a very formalized kind of form of courtship where you know, 84 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:52,640 Speaker 1: a boy or like a man would put his best 85 00:05:52,640 --> 00:05:56,120 Speaker 1: foot forward and be really clear about I am now 86 00:05:56,200 --> 00:05:59,919 Speaker 1: courting you, and you are wife's material and the woman's 87 00:05:59,960 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: you know, the girl's job was to keep him at 88 00:06:02,040 --> 00:06:04,720 Speaker 1: arm's length, and so's there. It was this kind kind 89 00:06:04,720 --> 00:06:10,800 Speaker 1: of elaborate game where the woman's virtue was always you know, 90 00:06:10,839 --> 00:06:13,159 Speaker 1: you were somehow a better woman if you managed to 91 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:18,120 Speaker 1: put him off or you know, find ways around keeping him, yeah, 92 00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:21,279 Speaker 1: at arm's length. And I would just wonder, but what 93 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:23,640 Speaker 1: about love? Like, where is the love in all of this? 94 00:06:23,760 --> 00:06:27,280 Speaker 1: If you feel something for somebody, what is this elaborate 95 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:32,320 Speaker 1: game about? And this kind of extended into marriage where 96 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:36,960 Speaker 1: you were supposed to be married for life, and you know, 97 00:06:37,080 --> 00:06:41,360 Speaker 1: loyalty and fidelity was promised to each other, but secretly, 98 00:06:41,640 --> 00:06:43,920 Speaker 1: you know, it was an open secret that men had 99 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:47,040 Speaker 1: affairs and the woman was supposed to put up with it. 100 00:06:47,360 --> 00:06:49,640 Speaker 3: In fact, in your family that was the case. 101 00:06:49,800 --> 00:06:54,120 Speaker 2: Was it not that your mom, who was Philippina, had 102 00:06:54,200 --> 00:06:58,599 Speaker 2: married your dad, who was the Indian half of the equation, right, 103 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:01,719 Speaker 2: and he had numerous. 104 00:07:01,320 --> 00:07:04,680 Speaker 1: Afays well he it wasn't the case that she was 105 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:07,159 Speaker 1: expected to put up with it. I think they both 106 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:09,160 Speaker 1: went into it, you know, they were married. I think 107 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:12,720 Speaker 1: in their early twenties. They both went into marriage thinking, Okay, 108 00:07:13,040 --> 00:07:15,240 Speaker 1: you know, this is a team effort. We're doing this 109 00:07:15,280 --> 00:07:18,440 Speaker 1: as a team. And I think he kind of fell 110 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:21,840 Speaker 1: into the trap of, oh, this is kind of expected 111 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:24,800 Speaker 1: of me, you know, I'm successful, I'm young. Is this 112 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:28,600 Speaker 1: something I you know, there are different expectations for men 113 00:07:28,640 --> 00:07:31,560 Speaker 1: than for women. But then kind of the twist with 114 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: their marriage was he was like, oh, well, this is 115 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:35,560 Speaker 1: not what it's cut out to be. You know, I 116 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:39,360 Speaker 1: need to get out of this situation. Whoever, I got 117 00:07:39,400 --> 00:07:44,000 Speaker 1: on my side, and it was my mom. So with them, 118 00:07:44,040 --> 00:07:46,440 Speaker 1: there were no secrets in a way, which was very 119 00:07:46,520 --> 00:07:50,360 Speaker 1: unusual for a couple of their time, like in the seventies, 120 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:53,320 Speaker 1: I think like late seventies, early eighties, coming from both 121 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:57,040 Speaker 1: their cultures, but they had this understanding that we're in 122 00:07:57,240 --> 00:07:59,120 Speaker 1: you know, we're in a team, We're in this together. 123 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:02,280 Speaker 1: It was never really a thing that caused my mom 124 00:08:02,320 --> 00:08:03,840 Speaker 1: a lot of grief or anger. She was like, no, 125 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:05,920 Speaker 1: you know it out, then I would get him out. 126 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 1: If you couldn't do it himself, then I would get 127 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:08,280 Speaker 1: him out of it. 128 00:08:08,600 --> 00:08:10,560 Speaker 2: So as a child there was you and your sister. 129 00:08:11,360 --> 00:08:16,160 Speaker 2: Were you aware of these tensions within your parents' marriage. 130 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: No, because my father died when I was three, so 131 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:22,800 Speaker 1: that wasn't really something that I grew up being aware of. 132 00:08:23,200 --> 00:08:25,400 Speaker 1: But my mom would tell me stories as I was 133 00:08:25,440 --> 00:08:29,400 Speaker 1: growing up, and I suppose when I started hearing about 134 00:08:29,400 --> 00:08:31,600 Speaker 1: these things when I was maybe you know, in my 135 00:08:31,640 --> 00:08:34,719 Speaker 1: early teens, and she was very open with me about them. 136 00:08:35,160 --> 00:08:38,480 Speaker 1: But what radiated the most from her stories was the 137 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:41,959 Speaker 1: sense of her and my dad, you know, kind of 138 00:08:42,959 --> 00:08:48,439 Speaker 1: playing by rules that she knew were different from everyone 139 00:08:48,439 --> 00:08:49,240 Speaker 1: else's doing. 140 00:08:49,439 --> 00:08:52,719 Speaker 2: Yeah, this is my cue society. You the apple doesn't 141 00:08:52,719 --> 00:08:53,920 Speaker 2: fall far from the trade. 142 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:56,760 Speaker 1: No, I think not. I think our relationship, you know, 143 00:08:56,800 --> 00:09:00,240 Speaker 1: our view towards relationships and love and intimacy is so 144 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:03,439 Speaker 1: shaped by what we grew up with, right, yes, yes, 145 00:09:03,599 --> 00:09:05,400 Speaker 1: by our context, which. 146 00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:10,520 Speaker 2: Is so interesting because your husband, the man you love 147 00:09:10,599 --> 00:09:14,160 Speaker 2: or one of the men you love, was also from 148 00:09:14,199 --> 00:09:18,239 Speaker 2: the Philippines. You met at Uni. So he was your 149 00:09:18,400 --> 00:09:19,679 Speaker 2: first boyfriend. 150 00:09:19,920 --> 00:09:21,959 Speaker 1: He was my second. I had a high school sweetheart, 151 00:09:22,079 --> 00:09:22,679 Speaker 1: our second. 152 00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:28,199 Speaker 2: But he was very much a product of his upbringing, 153 00:09:28,280 --> 00:09:31,520 Speaker 2: which was that marriage is a sacred. 154 00:09:31,199 --> 00:09:33,319 Speaker 3: Union and you you. 155 00:09:33,280 --> 00:09:38,439 Speaker 2: Know, forswear any others. He was very conservative in his approach. 156 00:09:39,479 --> 00:09:42,760 Speaker 2: And so were you initially or did you always have 157 00:09:42,959 --> 00:09:47,000 Speaker 2: that fluttering of the bird against the cage? 158 00:09:47,439 --> 00:09:50,319 Speaker 1: I think what I always had, kid was a curiosity 159 00:09:50,439 --> 00:09:54,640 Speaker 1: at why. You know, my parents clearly loved each other, 160 00:09:54,679 --> 00:10:01,200 Speaker 1: and our family was a very tight knit, close loving one, 161 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:05,080 Speaker 1: and I always had this curiosity about why it seemed 162 00:10:05,079 --> 00:10:08,160 Speaker 1: that within their marriage the rules of love could be 163 00:10:08,280 --> 00:10:11,360 Speaker 1: different than what I saw outside in the world, you know, 164 00:10:11,400 --> 00:10:14,400 Speaker 1: as I grew up, became a teenager, started you know, 165 00:10:14,439 --> 00:10:17,880 Speaker 1: hanging out with my friends and their families and their parents. 166 00:10:17,880 --> 00:10:21,640 Speaker 1: It just seeing how marriage was in the conservative Catholic 167 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:25,159 Speaker 1: society that I grew up in, and I saw that disconnect, 168 00:10:25,679 --> 00:10:28,760 Speaker 1: and I thought, Okay, there must be another way. You know, 169 00:10:29,359 --> 00:10:32,239 Speaker 1: are there other people, you know, playing by different rules? 170 00:10:32,400 --> 00:10:36,920 Speaker 1: What does it mean to actually negotiate love in marriage 171 00:10:36,959 --> 00:10:40,839 Speaker 1: and commitment, you know, on terms that not everyone may understand. 172 00:10:41,359 --> 00:10:43,600 Speaker 1: So with my husband, he grew up in a really, 173 00:10:43,599 --> 00:10:47,079 Speaker 1: really conservative and you know, very strictly Catholic family. 174 00:10:47,800 --> 00:10:51,640 Speaker 2: If I was going to embark on a sexually liberated journey, 175 00:10:52,199 --> 00:10:55,400 Speaker 2: there's no better city in the world to do that 176 00:10:55,599 --> 00:11:00,439 Speaker 2: in than Amsterdam, which is where you and Marcus moved to. 177 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:04,160 Speaker 2: And initially I gather from your book that you were 178 00:11:04,199 --> 00:11:07,720 Speaker 2: kind of driver of that. Not that I'm saying once 179 00:11:07,760 --> 00:11:11,160 Speaker 2: again it wasn't an overt motivation, but do you think 180 00:11:11,199 --> 00:11:15,040 Speaker 2: that there was a hunger for new experiences because this 181 00:11:15,199 --> 00:11:18,679 Speaker 2: was before you had started to really explore things sexually. 182 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:21,800 Speaker 1: Absolutely. I mean I've always been a really curious person 183 00:11:21,920 --> 00:11:23,719 Speaker 1: and I probably of the two of us, the more 184 00:11:23,760 --> 00:11:28,239 Speaker 1: adventurous one. So there was definitely a hunger for new experiences, 185 00:11:28,280 --> 00:11:32,000 Speaker 1: and travel was usually appealing. It was at the time 186 00:11:32,119 --> 00:11:34,640 Speaker 1: when I don't know if you remember this kind of 187 00:11:34,679 --> 00:11:37,239 Speaker 1: in the early you know, in the early odds where 188 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:40,439 Speaker 1: travel blogging was exploding. You know, you were seeing people 189 00:11:40,479 --> 00:11:43,879 Speaker 1: going on around the world trips funded by these elaborate 190 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:47,199 Speaker 1: credit card point systems. Yeah, and I was I was 191 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:49,679 Speaker 1: just a bit like, okay, well, how do we get 192 00:11:49,719 --> 00:11:52,720 Speaker 1: some of this action? So, yeah, there's always I've always 193 00:11:52,880 --> 00:11:55,920 Speaker 1: been somebody who's had a lot of stuff going on, 194 00:11:56,239 --> 00:11:59,839 Speaker 1: always wants new stuff going on. And I have a real, 195 00:12:00,439 --> 00:12:02,719 Speaker 1: you know, kind of adventurous spirit in that way. 196 00:12:02,679 --> 00:12:07,400 Speaker 2: Which has been both in certain aspects of blessing and 197 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:12,640 Speaker 2: a curse to your husband who's ended up living a 198 00:12:12,679 --> 00:12:15,840 Speaker 2: life that he never would have imagined for himself. And 199 00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 2: some points was really reluctant to follow your laid on things. 200 00:12:22,119 --> 00:12:25,199 Speaker 2: When did your sexual exploration start? That was with the 201 00:12:25,239 --> 00:12:26,960 Speaker 2: craigs listings. 202 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:29,879 Speaker 1: Right, did you ever have Craigslist in Australia. 203 00:12:30,079 --> 00:12:32,240 Speaker 2: Was this a thing, No, it's an American thing, but 204 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:36,280 Speaker 2: we're very familiar with all things American in Australia as. 205 00:12:36,079 --> 00:12:38,839 Speaker 1: We are here. Yes. So when I was moving, when 206 00:12:38,839 --> 00:12:41,520 Speaker 1: we were moving from Singapore to Amsterdam, I was selling 207 00:12:41,599 --> 00:12:46,199 Speaker 1: furniture on Craigslist, and you know, I was randomly clicking 208 00:12:46,239 --> 00:12:49,240 Speaker 1: around the site and I kind of fell into this 209 00:12:49,319 --> 00:12:53,080 Speaker 1: Internet rabbit hole, which was a Craigslist personal ad, and 210 00:12:54,000 --> 00:12:57,480 Speaker 1: coming out of this, you know, very conservative culture where 211 00:12:57,520 --> 00:13:01,599 Speaker 1: nobody talked about sex, suddenly seeing all of these different 212 00:13:01,640 --> 00:13:04,519 Speaker 1: desires that people had. I mean it was quite a chronuclopia. 213 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:10,160 Speaker 1: You know, people were looking for threesomes, stockings, and I 214 00:13:10,319 --> 00:13:12,720 Speaker 1: was a bit like, what is going on here? What 215 00:13:12,800 --> 00:13:16,439 Speaker 1: are these things and why do people find them so exciting? 216 00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 1: I've never heard of ninety percent of this, So for me, 217 00:13:20,439 --> 00:13:24,920 Speaker 1: the Craigslist personals were kind of like a self refreshing 218 00:13:26,119 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 1: romance novel, you know how people pick up romance novels 219 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,959 Speaker 1: and kind of you let your brain explore and whether 220 00:13:33,000 --> 00:13:38,879 Speaker 1: it's with you know, swashbucking pirates or vampire were wolves. 221 00:13:38,920 --> 00:13:42,559 Speaker 1: I mean, there is like this kind of erotic fantasy element, 222 00:13:42,640 --> 00:13:44,920 Speaker 1: and to me, I found that online, so I would 223 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:47,479 Speaker 1: read and just be curious about you know, I would 224 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:49,319 Speaker 1: go out into the street and think, oh my gosh, 225 00:13:49,319 --> 00:13:52,080 Speaker 1: do all these people want these things? And are you know, 226 00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:55,239 Speaker 1: are just not talking about them? And they exist on 227 00:13:55,280 --> 00:13:57,759 Speaker 1: some corner of the Internet that I've somehow stumbled into. 228 00:13:58,479 --> 00:14:02,599 Speaker 1: So we moved to holland sold the furniture successfully. I'm 229 00:14:02,599 --> 00:14:09,239 Speaker 1: craigelists moved to Amsterdam, and when I got there, I, 230 00:14:09,319 --> 00:14:11,239 Speaker 1: you know, I would continue to look and Amsterdam was 231 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:14,719 Speaker 1: even more sizzling in terms of what it was offering online. 232 00:14:14,719 --> 00:14:17,999 Speaker 1: And I was just honestly mind blown at the kind 233 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:22,640 Speaker 1: of variety, of an openness also with which people share 234 00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:26,320 Speaker 1: these desires. And then at some point, you know, I 235 00:14:26,359 --> 00:14:29,359 Speaker 1: brought this up with my husband. I was like, Okay, look, 236 00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:34,040 Speaker 1: you know, we're here, we're young, we're reasonably hot. We 237 00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:36,560 Speaker 1: should go and try these things while we still got it. 238 00:14:37,440 --> 00:14:41,520 Speaker 1: And his response, of course, coming from where he was 239 00:14:41,560 --> 00:14:45,560 Speaker 1: coming from, with his family context and you know how 240 00:14:45,600 --> 00:14:48,360 Speaker 1: he'd been raising, He's like, decent people don't do this, 241 00:14:49,119 --> 00:14:52,640 Speaker 1: Decent married people don't do this, and definitely, you, as 242 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:55,480 Speaker 1: a decent married woman, should not even be thinking about this. 243 00:14:56,359 --> 00:14:59,200 Speaker 1: So we ran into our first conflict where my desire 244 00:14:59,239 --> 00:15:04,000 Speaker 1: for adventure in terms of sexual exploration and variety ran 245 00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:09,920 Speaker 1: into his kind of need for stability and security, and 246 00:15:10,040 --> 00:15:11,999 Speaker 1: just you know, for him, this was just no. 247 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:15,840 Speaker 2: This is interesting because this was at the point at 248 00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:21,680 Speaker 2: which you started to explore things covertly, mainly through emails 249 00:15:21,760 --> 00:15:24,320 Speaker 2: or whatever at the start, and then you had some 250 00:15:24,359 --> 00:15:29,880 Speaker 2: physical encounters. But it's unusual for you because one of 251 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:33,120 Speaker 2: the disarming things about the book is how open you 252 00:15:33,160 --> 00:15:37,880 Speaker 2: are and that you really are very much committed to 253 00:15:37,920 --> 00:15:41,640 Speaker 2: the pursuit of honesty in your relationship with Marcus, and 254 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:45,720 Speaker 2: in this instance you weren't and it ended up being disastrous, 255 00:15:45,760 --> 00:15:46,200 Speaker 2: did it not? 256 00:15:46,920 --> 00:15:47,640 Speaker 3: Or could have been? 257 00:15:47,920 --> 00:15:49,920 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's really interesting that you picked up on that 258 00:15:50,080 --> 00:15:56,040 Speaker 1: kit because having come from a situation where the rejection 259 00:15:56,479 --> 00:16:00,320 Speaker 1: and shame I felt around my husband's reaction to my 260 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:06,200 Speaker 1: desires and like this very kind of real, sincere kind 261 00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:09,400 Speaker 1: of desire to explore these things with him, that shame 262 00:16:09,479 --> 00:16:14,080 Speaker 1: and rejection drove me to hide and keep secrets. And 263 00:16:14,119 --> 00:16:17,519 Speaker 1: if there's anything that drives people to keep secrets, it's shame. 264 00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:22,080 Speaker 1: So my commitment to being honest in the book is 265 00:16:22,119 --> 00:16:25,920 Speaker 1: because I've been on the flip side where shame made 266 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:31,080 Speaker 1: me feel like I had to hide something, and the 267 00:16:31,440 --> 00:16:39,520 Speaker 1: difference between that person who was hiding something about herself 268 00:16:40,600 --> 00:16:44,040 Speaker 1: and the person now who is open about being you know, 269 00:16:44,119 --> 00:16:47,960 Speaker 1: having made mistakes and stands by those mistakes as part 270 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:53,240 Speaker 1: of my journey is night and day. And having experienced 271 00:16:53,359 --> 00:16:56,960 Speaker 1: what it's like to live openly and honestly about myself 272 00:16:57,160 --> 00:17:00,520 Speaker 1: screw ups and all, just makes me think I would 273 00:17:00,520 --> 00:17:05,200 Speaker 1: never go back there, like I would never live as 274 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:08,760 Speaker 1: this woman who was hiding things about herself that were 275 00:17:08,840 --> 00:17:10,119 Speaker 1: not necessarily bad. 276 00:17:10,840 --> 00:17:16,679 Speaker 2: What do you think was your driver at the time? 277 00:17:17,639 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 3: What were you wanting? 278 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:24,520 Speaker 2: Was it the affirmation of being desired by somebody else? 279 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:30,400 Speaker 2: Was it a feeling of wanting a foreign touch? What 280 00:17:30,520 --> 00:17:33,160 Speaker 2: was it that you wanted? I, at that point didn't understand, 281 00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:36,279 Speaker 2: much like your husband Marcus didn't understand what you wanted. 282 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:41,800 Speaker 1: I wanted a variety of experiences and to understand why 283 00:17:41,960 --> 00:17:46,119 Speaker 1: people find some things exciting and hot. You know, why 284 00:17:46,159 --> 00:17:50,520 Speaker 1: do people find threesomes hot? Why do people find being 285 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:56,879 Speaker 1: submissive exciting? Why do some people find dominating? You know, 286 00:17:57,080 --> 00:18:00,840 Speaker 1: men thrilling and powerful, and so of all of the 287 00:18:00,919 --> 00:18:04,040 Speaker 1: sexual experiences, you know, we can have in the world. 288 00:18:04,639 --> 00:18:08,439 Speaker 1: I wanted to try them and see, Okay, but what 289 00:18:08,560 --> 00:18:11,320 Speaker 1: is this really like? What is exciting about this? Is this? 290 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:14,519 Speaker 1: For me? Is this part of something that I could 291 00:18:14,600 --> 00:18:18,119 Speaker 1: consider my sexuality, which I've never had this space to explore. 292 00:18:18,960 --> 00:18:24,399 Speaker 1: So it wasn't really about particular people or being desired. 293 00:18:24,679 --> 00:18:27,680 Speaker 1: It was the variety of experiences that are out there. 294 00:18:29,119 --> 00:18:33,160 Speaker 2: After this short break, Deeper reveals how a sexual encounter 295 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:36,320 Speaker 2: with a man she met on Craig's List changed the 296 00:18:36,359 --> 00:18:42,480 Speaker 2: way she felt about her postpartum body. One of your 297 00:18:42,800 --> 00:18:46,400 Speaker 2: first encounters. I found this amazing because you just had 298 00:18:46,440 --> 00:18:50,439 Speaker 2: your daughter, right and the may I've had four children, 299 00:18:50,520 --> 00:18:54,080 Speaker 2: and postpartum is not a period in your life if 300 00:18:54,119 --> 00:18:55,959 Speaker 2: you're very sexy. 301 00:18:55,359 --> 00:18:56,800 Speaker 3: Yes, exactly. 302 00:18:57,359 --> 00:19:02,560 Speaker 2: But you went out and had this amazing encounter with 303 00:19:03,520 --> 00:19:05,879 Speaker 2: a man who was well. 304 00:19:06,520 --> 00:19:07,560 Speaker 3: You also signed the book. 305 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:12,640 Speaker 2: It's very easy for a woman to find men, easier 306 00:19:12,639 --> 00:19:15,719 Speaker 2: than it is for men to find women. But you 307 00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:18,879 Speaker 2: found a man who was so mad for you that 308 00:19:18,960 --> 00:19:23,200 Speaker 2: it made you rethink yourself in terms of your own desirability. 309 00:19:23,760 --> 00:19:26,800 Speaker 1: What was really, you know, mind blowing for me with 310 00:19:26,879 --> 00:19:28,959 Speaker 1: this encounter that we referenced in the book. It this 311 00:19:29,040 --> 00:19:31,560 Speaker 1: with a man named Thomas that I met in Berlin. 312 00:19:32,760 --> 00:19:35,080 Speaker 1: My husband was on a business trip and I joined 313 00:19:35,159 --> 00:19:37,280 Speaker 1: him and I had the one night off, you know, 314 00:19:37,399 --> 00:19:41,279 Speaker 1: babysitter was found and I kind of had this one 315 00:19:41,399 --> 00:19:43,600 Speaker 1: night and I went back to Craigslist and I saw 316 00:19:43,639 --> 00:19:48,119 Speaker 1: this headline that said very handsome man looking for a 317 00:19:48,159 --> 00:19:52,119 Speaker 1: woman with a big belly. I mean postparton, right, you know, 318 00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:55,760 Speaker 1: I still had this exactly. I said, well, I don't 319 00:19:55,800 --> 00:19:58,040 Speaker 1: have much going on right now, but I certainly have this. 320 00:19:58,919 --> 00:20:02,560 Speaker 1: And I again that curiosity of why would anyone find 321 00:20:02,600 --> 00:20:05,560 Speaker 1: this sexy? What is you know, what is it about 322 00:20:05,679 --> 00:20:08,959 Speaker 1: this that someone would find hot? When I've been told 323 00:20:09,000 --> 00:20:11,040 Speaker 1: my whole life that my big belly is something that 324 00:20:11,080 --> 00:20:14,119 Speaker 1: I have to hide, you know, I have to starve myself, 325 00:20:14,240 --> 00:20:17,239 Speaker 1: go to the gym and be super skinny, which you 326 00:20:17,240 --> 00:20:20,240 Speaker 1: know I was never and will never be. What about 327 00:20:20,280 --> 00:20:22,639 Speaker 1: this is attractive? So I went to meet him out 328 00:20:22,679 --> 00:20:28,600 Speaker 1: of curiosity, and the way that he responded to you know, 329 00:20:28,720 --> 00:20:31,239 Speaker 1: the fact of me is showing up and my body 330 00:20:31,359 --> 00:20:34,520 Speaker 1: was really changed the way I saw myself. You know, 331 00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:37,279 Speaker 1: there was a very strict standard of beauty in the Philippines, 332 00:20:37,320 --> 00:20:42,639 Speaker 1: where it's like skinny peteeth, you know, long straight black hair, 333 00:20:43,919 --> 00:20:47,680 Speaker 1: very sweet, you know, doesn't really laugh loudly or eat 334 00:20:47,720 --> 00:20:48,680 Speaker 1: too much, not just. 335 00:20:48,639 --> 00:20:49,600 Speaker 3: In the Philippines. 336 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:51,840 Speaker 1: On I thought maybe we have just the long black hair. 337 00:20:51,960 --> 00:20:54,159 Speaker 1: You know. It was real, dly, skinny and petite was 338 00:20:54,159 --> 00:20:58,879 Speaker 1: the thing. And having never been this kind of woman, 339 00:20:59,679 --> 00:21:03,639 Speaker 1: I suddenly realized, oh wait, you know, there is something 340 00:21:03,679 --> 00:21:07,040 Speaker 1: about me, that about this body that I've been taught 341 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:11,239 Speaker 1: to hate all my life, that is actually beautiful and 342 00:21:11,320 --> 00:21:16,600 Speaker 1: attractive and desirable and sexy. I mean, sexy was a 343 00:21:16,639 --> 00:21:18,719 Speaker 1: word that I'd never used to apply to myself. But 344 00:21:18,800 --> 00:21:24,160 Speaker 1: here I was a new mother suddenly realizing that this 345 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:27,520 Speaker 1: word could apply to me as well. And it wasn't 346 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:32,760 Speaker 1: just the domain of skinny, perfect, petique women. And that opened, 347 00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:38,800 Speaker 1: you know, so many doors like Pandora's box, Pandora's box, 348 00:21:39,240 --> 00:21:41,600 Speaker 1: but also just this confidence that I'd never been able 349 00:21:41,639 --> 00:21:43,920 Speaker 1: to access, you know, growing up. 350 00:21:44,919 --> 00:21:47,960 Speaker 2: Where were you at this point with Marcus so when 351 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:51,640 Speaker 2: you had the night off in when you were in Berlin, 352 00:21:52,639 --> 00:21:55,799 Speaker 2: where were you at at that point in regards to 353 00:21:56,080 --> 00:21:58,119 Speaker 2: the conversation about opening up. 354 00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:02,520 Speaker 1: We completely pausitive since I became pregnant and in a 355 00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:05,760 Speaker 1: way I felt like it was something I was doing, 356 00:22:05,879 --> 00:22:09,440 Speaker 1: you know, exploring covertly through emails and reading Craig's list. 357 00:22:09,919 --> 00:22:11,679 Speaker 1: I felt like it was something I was doing to 358 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:14,359 Speaker 1: keep the peace at the same time. You know, a 359 00:22:14,879 --> 00:22:17,240 Speaker 1: lot of things can exist at the same time. Right, 360 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:20,840 Speaker 1: this was going on, but also, I mean, the pregnancy 361 00:22:20,879 --> 00:22:23,479 Speaker 1: was a magical experience for me. Yeah, it brought us 362 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,440 Speaker 1: closer in so many ways. I mean, you've gone through 363 00:22:26,480 --> 00:22:29,879 Speaker 1: this with your loved one, and just that little world 364 00:22:29,919 --> 00:22:32,840 Speaker 1: of especially when our daughter was born, just this wonder 365 00:22:32,840 --> 00:22:36,759 Speaker 1: and this joy what's there? Like it was present, but 366 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:38,840 Speaker 1: then there was also this kind of other thing in 367 00:22:38,879 --> 00:22:42,800 Speaker 1: the background that kept nagging at me. Yeah. So it 368 00:22:42,879 --> 00:22:46,399 Speaker 1: was a very complicated time, as new motherhood is, but 369 00:22:46,679 --> 00:22:49,399 Speaker 1: we were I mean I was also discovering what he 370 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:52,680 Speaker 1: was like as a father, which was amazing, like a revelation. 371 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:57,800 Speaker 1: So I knew that even if I had this, you know, 372 00:22:57,840 --> 00:23:00,280 Speaker 1: the conflict for me at the time was, this is 373 00:23:00,320 --> 00:23:01,959 Speaker 1: the man I love and I want to be with 374 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:03,520 Speaker 1: for the rest of my life, and now we have 375 00:23:03,560 --> 00:23:07,560 Speaker 1: this beautiful family. What am I going to do about 376 00:23:07,679 --> 00:23:11,680 Speaker 1: you know, this other thing which is me wanting to explore, 377 00:23:12,359 --> 00:23:15,080 Speaker 1: which is now growing stronger the more I try to 378 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,920 Speaker 1: suppress it. Okay, what am I going to do about that? 379 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:19,320 Speaker 3: What did you do? 380 00:23:19,960 --> 00:23:22,759 Speaker 1: Nothing? It's like the easiest thing to do, right, Like, 381 00:23:22,919 --> 00:23:25,639 Speaker 1: let you know, do nothing until you can think of something. 382 00:23:26,119 --> 00:23:26,359 Speaker 4: Yeah. 383 00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:30,760 Speaker 2: So Marcus found out and was absolutely devastated. 384 00:23:31,200 --> 00:23:36,359 Speaker 1: Rage I think was the you know, yeah, rage. 385 00:23:36,119 --> 00:23:39,399 Speaker 2: That was when you had your five that got temporarily physical. 386 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:40,480 Speaker 3: Is that then? 387 00:23:40,919 --> 00:23:44,560 Speaker 1: Well, you know, when he found out about my having 388 00:23:44,639 --> 00:23:49,799 Speaker 1: met Thomas from Berlin, he was absolutely furious and like 389 00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:53,480 Speaker 1: you said, devastated and shocked, and he was so you know, 390 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:57,280 Speaker 1: Marcus is the gentlest, sort of most caring man I've 391 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:01,679 Speaker 1: ever known, and for a moment he was just so 392 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:06,520 Speaker 1: outraged and just so hurt. You know, I thought he 393 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:09,400 Speaker 1: reached out me. I thought he was going to shake 394 00:24:09,480 --> 00:24:12,199 Speaker 1: me or something. He landed, you know, a punch in 395 00:24:12,200 --> 00:24:15,119 Speaker 1: the stomach, and then immediately he was at the look 396 00:24:15,119 --> 00:24:18,479 Speaker 1: of horror on his face, like horror at himself. And 397 00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:21,680 Speaker 1: then at the time, you know, I thought, oh my god, 398 00:24:21,720 --> 00:24:25,520 Speaker 1: this is my fault. But looking back now, I think, 399 00:24:26,080 --> 00:24:28,080 Speaker 1: you know, this was something that should have been addressed. 400 00:24:28,679 --> 00:24:32,119 Speaker 1: But we were yeah, I don't know, we were young, 401 00:24:32,280 --> 00:24:35,040 Speaker 1: new parents and we didn't have the tools to address. 402 00:24:34,679 --> 00:24:37,440 Speaker 3: This, so then you went to therapy together. 403 00:24:38,040 --> 00:24:40,159 Speaker 1: Yeah. What he asked for at the time was, you know, 404 00:24:40,639 --> 00:24:43,719 Speaker 1: to have a look at my why I was doing this, 405 00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:47,560 Speaker 1: why I had been you know, kind of covidly exploring, 406 00:24:47,679 --> 00:24:52,080 Speaker 1: and what were the reasons driving my sort of this 407 00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:55,160 Speaker 1: pattern of you know, keeping things secret and then now 408 00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:58,040 Speaker 1: having met somebody. And it was interesting because I didn't 409 00:24:58,080 --> 00:25:01,000 Speaker 1: choose therapy. Yes, he said, you know, do the work, 410 00:25:01,119 --> 00:25:05,479 Speaker 1: find something. And I went to a bunch of therapists, 411 00:25:05,879 --> 00:25:08,400 Speaker 1: you know, had my like kind of meetings and consultations 412 00:25:08,399 --> 00:25:11,439 Speaker 1: with them. But what I found most interesting actually was 413 00:25:12,320 --> 00:25:16,960 Speaker 1: a communications coach who did something called non violent communication. 414 00:25:17,399 --> 00:25:20,760 Speaker 1: She wasn't a therapist. She was someone who was going 415 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:25,359 Speaker 1: to teach us to identify and express our needs, to 416 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:28,840 Speaker 1: listen to each other without judgment, and to find a 417 00:25:28,879 --> 00:25:32,440 Speaker 1: way to compromise, you know, to reach a compromise where 418 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:35,880 Speaker 1: both sets of our needs would be honored. 419 00:25:36,080 --> 00:25:36,480 Speaker 3: Wow. 420 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:39,120 Speaker 1: And I was just thinking about this and yeah. 421 00:25:39,080 --> 00:25:43,080 Speaker 2: That Sam at that point impossible. 422 00:25:42,679 --> 00:25:46,800 Speaker 1: It seemed impossible. But I was really again this curiosity 423 00:25:46,800 --> 00:25:50,119 Speaker 1: of Okay, well this sounds amazing, How is this going 424 00:25:50,159 --> 00:25:53,520 Speaker 1: to happen? What really drew me to This approach of 425 00:25:53,600 --> 00:25:58,320 Speaker 1: non violent communication was like it was very non judgmental. 426 00:25:58,399 --> 00:26:02,200 Speaker 1: You know. I wasn't somebody to be fixed or cured. 427 00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:07,679 Speaker 1: There was no perpetrate or victim. We were seen as equals, 428 00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:11,000 Speaker 1: Marcus and I, my husband and I. We were seen 429 00:26:11,040 --> 00:26:14,600 Speaker 1: as equals with equal you know, and both of our 430 00:26:14,720 --> 00:26:19,359 Speaker 1: needs were valid and should be honored in some creative way. 431 00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:23,639 Speaker 1: And so when we reached the point of you know, 432 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:26,520 Speaker 1: it took practice. I mean, there was a lot of 433 00:26:26,560 --> 00:26:29,999 Speaker 1: anger on Marcus's side, a lot of guilt and shame 434 00:26:30,119 --> 00:26:33,000 Speaker 1: on my side. And these are kind of filters that 435 00:26:33,119 --> 00:26:35,520 Speaker 1: help you from you know, that stop you from listening 436 00:26:35,520 --> 00:26:38,520 Speaker 1: to each other. It was a lot of work to 437 00:26:38,600 --> 00:26:40,760 Speaker 1: kind of clear away those filters and learn to listen 438 00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:44,480 Speaker 1: to each other. And what was surprising, I think for 439 00:26:44,560 --> 00:26:49,359 Speaker 1: my husband was realizing that the way he'd reacted to 440 00:26:49,960 --> 00:26:53,399 Speaker 1: me bringing up my you know, my desire for sexual 441 00:26:53,480 --> 00:26:58,520 Speaker 1: variety and exploration was part of the reason that I 442 00:26:58,520 --> 00:27:01,639 Speaker 1: felt the shame that drove me underground. It's a very 443 00:27:01,840 --> 00:27:07,240 Speaker 1: very unusual and I think big thing to take responsibility 444 00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:10,879 Speaker 1: in a situation where you understand you are the victim. 445 00:27:11,879 --> 00:27:15,399 Speaker 1: And for me, it was a very big step to 446 00:27:15,440 --> 00:27:19,840 Speaker 1: look at those needs for variety and adventure and exploration 447 00:27:20,159 --> 00:27:23,640 Speaker 1: and discovery, to look at them and see, these are 448 00:27:23,639 --> 00:27:26,520 Speaker 1: not wrong, These are not bad, and I'm not wrong 449 00:27:26,639 --> 00:27:27,800 Speaker 1: or bad for having them. 450 00:27:28,119 --> 00:27:30,840 Speaker 2: And so then as a result of that, you found 451 00:27:30,879 --> 00:27:37,519 Speaker 2: a way in which you could proceed kind of renewing 452 00:27:37,560 --> 00:27:42,000 Speaker 2: your commitment to each other, embarking on a new way 453 00:27:42,040 --> 00:27:48,200 Speaker 2: of being together really which allowed you your freedom. Yeap, 454 00:27:49,119 --> 00:27:49,959 Speaker 2: how did that work? 455 00:27:50,359 --> 00:27:52,480 Speaker 1: You mean, how did it work in the beginning or 456 00:27:52,800 --> 00:27:53,879 Speaker 1: when we first set up? 457 00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:57,879 Speaker 2: Yeah? Yeah, because the whole thing is an evolution. Some 458 00:27:58,000 --> 00:28:01,480 Speaker 2: might say a gateway, a gateway because at every point, 459 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:04,160 Speaker 2: you know, one of the things in ask me how 460 00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:06,720 Speaker 2: it were, one of the questions is or the things 461 00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:08,960 Speaker 2: that people would always say to you, is what happens 462 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:11,639 Speaker 2: if you fall in love with someone? And we're going 463 00:28:11,720 --> 00:28:14,359 Speaker 2: to get to that, but at this point, you're just 464 00:28:14,960 --> 00:28:18,919 Speaker 2: you and Marcus reach a negotiation where you put some 465 00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:22,400 Speaker 2: boundaries in place, and what does it mean for you? 466 00:28:22,440 --> 00:28:23,480 Speaker 3: How does your weight law? 467 00:28:23,879 --> 00:28:27,240 Speaker 1: Lots of questions there. So let's start with, you know, 468 00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:32,400 Speaker 1: us embarking on this, and the idea was to explore together, 469 00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:35,320 Speaker 1: you know, So there were things I wanted to try 470 00:28:35,679 --> 00:28:38,360 Speaker 1: like you know, going to swingers clubs or going to 471 00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:42,440 Speaker 1: parties or you know, having threesomes. And as parents of 472 00:28:42,640 --> 00:28:45,880 Speaker 1: you know, quite a young child, you know, Marcus said, 473 00:28:46,080 --> 00:28:48,240 Speaker 1: if you want to explore this, well, you know, I'm 474 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:50,759 Speaker 1: all in with you. Let's do this together. But you know, 475 00:28:50,800 --> 00:28:52,640 Speaker 1: we're the parents of a young child. We can't really 476 00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:55,560 Speaker 1: go cruising swingers parties or you know, bars or whatever. 477 00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:58,039 Speaker 1: So we set up in their accounts, which seemed kind 478 00:28:58,080 --> 00:29:01,040 Speaker 1: of safe in the beginning because we didn't disclose anything 479 00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:02,719 Speaker 1: to our friends. We were just okay, we're going to 480 00:29:02,720 --> 00:29:05,000 Speaker 1: try this out and if this doesn't work, can close 481 00:29:05,040 --> 00:29:09,040 Speaker 1: it up again. The boundaries we set around this exploration 482 00:29:09,200 --> 00:29:12,120 Speaker 1: were what helped make it feel safe in the beginning. 483 00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:15,280 Speaker 1: It wasn't like a free for all do everything you want, 484 00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:18,200 Speaker 1: you know, all the bets are off. You know. We 485 00:29:18,280 --> 00:29:22,560 Speaker 1: set agreements in place that helped us feel like we 486 00:29:22,560 --> 00:29:25,680 Speaker 1: were going into this you know, uncharted territory, like slowly, 487 00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:28,640 Speaker 1: bit by bit. So the first rule, and you know, 488 00:29:28,760 --> 00:29:31,479 Speaker 1: the arn't clad rule that we still have today is 489 00:29:32,320 --> 00:29:36,640 Speaker 1: save sex, which means barriers you know, with other partners 490 00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:41,080 Speaker 1: and regular STI testing. At the time, We also agreed, 491 00:29:41,360 --> 00:29:43,800 Speaker 1: you know, we agreed on like a certain frequency of dates, 492 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:47,120 Speaker 1: which was like maximum of once a week. We agreed 493 00:29:47,120 --> 00:29:50,520 Speaker 1: that we wouldn't sleep over with anybody because that just 494 00:29:50,560 --> 00:29:53,759 Speaker 1: felt too intimate to share with anyone at the time. Right, 495 00:29:54,280 --> 00:29:58,360 Speaker 1: No friends, I mean it gets messy. No co workers 496 00:29:58,400 --> 00:30:02,719 Speaker 1: as well. I mean, you know, were you eat? So 497 00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:05,720 Speaker 1: these were the agreements that we set out for ourselves 498 00:30:05,720 --> 00:30:09,840 Speaker 1: in the beginning. And that was ten years ago, kid, 499 00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:13,280 Speaker 1: I mean we you know, we've experienced the light since then, 500 00:30:13,400 --> 00:30:14,720 Speaker 1: and yeah. 501 00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:17,479 Speaker 2: But deeper, even just to get to that point, to 502 00:30:17,600 --> 00:30:24,959 Speaker 2: sit down with your husband and navigate those boundaries is 503 00:30:26,080 --> 00:30:28,320 Speaker 2: unimaginable in many ways. 504 00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:30,760 Speaker 1: And why do you think so well just to. 505 00:30:32,360 --> 00:30:39,400 Speaker 2: Just to have to address the mechanics which you needed 506 00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:42,959 Speaker 2: to be able to, you know, embark on this life together. 507 00:30:44,120 --> 00:30:47,560 Speaker 2: But for me, that's unimaginable to have a conversation with 508 00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:51,760 Speaker 2: my husband. Go, Okay, I promise I'll always use condoms 509 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:54,519 Speaker 2: and I'll be safe and I'll be home before our 510 00:30:54,640 --> 00:30:55,560 Speaker 2: daughter wakes up. 511 00:30:55,880 --> 00:30:58,200 Speaker 3: Do you know what I mean? Like it's really. 512 00:30:59,920 --> 00:31:04,000 Speaker 2: Going into the part of a map of human relations. 513 00:31:04,640 --> 00:31:06,880 Speaker 2: In the olden days, you know how salahs would have 514 00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:09,479 Speaker 2: on a map. They be monsters for the part of 515 00:31:09,480 --> 00:31:13,680 Speaker 2: the map whe they didn't know what happened. Yeah, that's 516 00:31:13,960 --> 00:31:19,480 Speaker 2: you're really sailing off into the part they be monsters, 517 00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:25,040 Speaker 2: but you're doing it with like such kind of faith. 518 00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:25,440 Speaker 3: In each other. 519 00:31:25,960 --> 00:31:28,080 Speaker 1: I think we had that in the beginning, even though 520 00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:32,239 Speaker 1: it was you know, the trust was definitely shaken. But 521 00:31:32,480 --> 00:31:35,320 Speaker 1: up toil that point, I think we'd been married seven years. 522 00:31:35,360 --> 00:31:37,680 Speaker 1: You know, we we there were a lot of things 523 00:31:37,720 --> 00:31:40,520 Speaker 1: at stake. We had our we just had our daughters, 524 00:31:40,600 --> 00:31:43,080 Speaker 1: We had a young we had a young family to protect, 525 00:31:44,400 --> 00:31:46,320 Speaker 1: you know. Going back to your map analogy, I find 526 00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:50,080 Speaker 1: it really interesting because when you set sail right, you're 527 00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:53,080 Speaker 1: on this vessel. You're the captain of your ship. You 528 00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:56,560 Speaker 1: you know what's important about your ship. You know what's 529 00:31:56,680 --> 00:31:59,120 Speaker 1: valuable and what you want to protect. You want to 530 00:31:59,120 --> 00:32:01,479 Speaker 1: protect the crew, you want to protect I don't know 531 00:32:01,520 --> 00:32:05,080 Speaker 1: your cargo. So what do you have to do to 532 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:09,040 Speaker 1: protect the most important parts of your ship? And I 533 00:32:09,040 --> 00:32:12,760 Speaker 1: think that's where the basis of these discussions are. It's 534 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:16,040 Speaker 1: not arbitrarily pointed like oh, you know you have to 535 00:32:16,040 --> 00:32:18,200 Speaker 1: be home by seven, you know, seven am or twelve 536 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,960 Speaker 1: midnight or whatever. What is it we want to protect 537 00:32:22,000 --> 00:32:27,080 Speaker 1: about our marriage, our health, our sexual health obviously, you know, 538 00:32:27,280 --> 00:32:30,800 Speaker 1: our intimacy with each other. What are the parts that 539 00:32:30,840 --> 00:32:33,400 Speaker 1: are really special? Oh, I really love waking up next 540 00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:35,160 Speaker 1: to you. I don't want to share it. I'm not 541 00:32:35,240 --> 00:32:38,120 Speaker 1: ready to share that with anybody else. So it is 542 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:41,320 Speaker 1: really starting from you have things that you love about 543 00:32:41,360 --> 00:32:45,520 Speaker 1: your marriage gate and we, you know, giving each other 544 00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:50,560 Speaker 1: the freedom to explore with other people. We were also 545 00:32:50,600 --> 00:32:52,960 Speaker 1: allowed to say, you know what, this is really special 546 00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:56,280 Speaker 1: to me. I want to protect this. I'm not comfortable 547 00:32:56,320 --> 00:33:00,040 Speaker 1: sharing this with anybody else. That's a boundary and being 548 00:33:00,080 --> 00:33:04,280 Speaker 1: allowed to express that with each other helped us set 549 00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:07,600 Speaker 1: the agreement in the beginning, and I saw, Okay, you 550 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:12,080 Speaker 1: know this is really important to my husband. He understood that, oh, 551 00:33:12,080 --> 00:33:14,880 Speaker 1: this is really important to my wife. Okay, we're going 552 00:33:14,960 --> 00:33:17,920 Speaker 1: to agree on something. I mean, there's so much you 553 00:33:17,960 --> 00:33:22,520 Speaker 1: can do and explore and experience around these boundaries. So 554 00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:26,160 Speaker 1: honoring each other's feelings and what we weren't comfortable with 555 00:33:26,240 --> 00:33:28,520 Speaker 1: or didn't feel safe at the time, you know, it 556 00:33:28,600 --> 00:33:31,200 Speaker 1: was just kind of a no brainer. But it does 557 00:33:31,320 --> 00:33:35,840 Speaker 1: start from understanding the places, you know, the things about 558 00:33:35,840 --> 00:33:37,320 Speaker 1: your marriage that's special. 559 00:33:37,120 --> 00:33:38,960 Speaker 2: Even if you don't know where the voyage is going 560 00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:41,880 Speaker 2: to take you, and no one knows where the voyage 561 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:46,560 Speaker 2: is taking them, by the way, But at this point 562 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:49,600 Speaker 2: it was all it seems like it's great for you. 563 00:33:50,040 --> 00:33:52,600 Speaker 2: So you're going out, you settle into kind of a 564 00:33:52,680 --> 00:33:56,440 Speaker 2: rhythm with Marcus. I say, it's great for you because 565 00:33:56,520 --> 00:33:59,720 Speaker 2: you're so in demand and you're going clubbing and you're 566 00:33:59,760 --> 00:34:04,880 Speaker 2: mating people and you, you know, just having a great time. Marcus, 567 00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:07,320 Speaker 2: he's a little bit more slow off than. 568 00:34:07,280 --> 00:34:10,600 Speaker 1: Mar Yeah, he's always then he likes to see He's 569 00:34:10,640 --> 00:34:13,359 Speaker 1: like he's like a big rock. You know, it takes 570 00:34:13,400 --> 00:34:16,200 Speaker 1: a lot of momentum for him to start moving. But 571 00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:19,840 Speaker 1: once it's moving, it's really moving. So yeah, right, people 572 00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:22,800 Speaker 1: just have you know, I think people just have different 573 00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:25,640 Speaker 1: paces when it comes to things, right, you know, you 574 00:34:25,680 --> 00:34:29,160 Speaker 1: have four children, and not everybody is going to hit 575 00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:31,719 Speaker 1: their kind of milestones at the same age or at 576 00:34:31,719 --> 00:34:35,239 Speaker 1: the same pace. It's true, it was important for us 577 00:34:35,279 --> 00:34:38,120 Speaker 1: to understand that about each other, that he would take 578 00:34:38,160 --> 00:34:39,319 Speaker 1: to something in a different way. 579 00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:45,160 Speaker 2: Coming Up Deeper reflects on how her experience finding partners 580 00:34:45,799 --> 00:34:50,000 Speaker 2: differed from her husband's and the emotional impact that had 581 00:34:50,040 --> 00:34:58,120 Speaker 2: on him. One of your superpowers that you discovered was 582 00:34:58,200 --> 00:35:02,560 Speaker 2: that you are a hot property in Amsterdam where. 583 00:35:02,320 --> 00:35:05,480 Speaker 3: The women are tall, the tallest people in the world, the. 584 00:35:05,480 --> 00:35:14,200 Speaker 2: Dutch, absolutely, and there you were a petite Philippaina dark 585 00:35:15,200 --> 00:35:18,160 Speaker 2: with the belly that had been so adored, and in 586 00:35:18,239 --> 00:35:21,400 Speaker 2: fact that was you became a really hot commodity. Whereas 587 00:35:21,400 --> 00:35:23,520 Speaker 2: Marcus explained to you at one point, it's not the 588 00:35:23,560 --> 00:35:28,520 Speaker 2: same for him being a Filippino man, so his relationships 589 00:35:28,560 --> 00:35:31,520 Speaker 2: developed kind of slowly compared to yours. 590 00:35:31,799 --> 00:35:34,960 Speaker 1: What was really surprising to me at the time. You know, 591 00:35:34,960 --> 00:35:38,759 Speaker 1: I have a friend who was teasing at this kind 592 00:35:38,759 --> 00:35:42,560 Speaker 1: of early phase. She said, oh, you're like a fetish jackpot. 593 00:35:42,759 --> 00:35:45,919 Speaker 1: And I said, what do you mean? And she said, look, 594 00:35:46,239 --> 00:35:49,640 Speaker 1: you're you know, your short, you're curvy, you've got a bomb, 595 00:35:50,400 --> 00:35:52,800 Speaker 1: you're dark haired, and you know in a land of blonde, 596 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:57,359 Speaker 1: you're somebody's wife, you're a mother. I mean, for some men, 597 00:35:57,440 --> 00:36:00,279 Speaker 1: this is really a thing. She was just like, yeah, 598 00:36:00,320 --> 00:36:02,319 Speaker 1: you're like a you know, a tick box of all 599 00:36:02,360 --> 00:36:05,680 Speaker 1: the fetish as men could possibly have. And I was like, 600 00:36:05,759 --> 00:36:08,960 Speaker 1: oh my gosh, no, I didn't expect this. And for Marcus, 601 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:11,960 Speaker 1: he was talking about this kind of you know, packing 602 00:36:12,120 --> 00:36:16,680 Speaker 1: order where it's like, you know, for sexual kind of 603 00:36:16,759 --> 00:36:20,480 Speaker 1: interest or like flings or whatever, there is a certain 604 00:36:20,560 --> 00:36:24,720 Speaker 1: packing order, and Asian men are at the bottom. We were, 605 00:36:25,080 --> 00:36:27,360 Speaker 1: you know, having grown up in a culture where it 606 00:36:27,520 --> 00:36:30,359 Speaker 1: was only all of us Asians, you know, kind of 607 00:36:30,400 --> 00:36:33,720 Speaker 1: in the dating pool. This was something that we didn't 608 00:36:33,719 --> 00:36:37,120 Speaker 1: expect and it did create an imbalance in the beginning. 609 00:36:37,480 --> 00:36:39,040 Speaker 3: In the beginning, yeah. 610 00:36:39,040 --> 00:36:42,680 Speaker 2: Yes, but they knew you had a moment which I 611 00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:46,400 Speaker 2: found really interesting, where they knew you had to confront 612 00:36:46,480 --> 00:36:50,239 Speaker 2: your own when things started to fire for Marcus. And 613 00:36:51,040 --> 00:36:53,719 Speaker 2: you know when he came when he goes on his 614 00:36:53,759 --> 00:36:58,120 Speaker 2: first date and comes home and you can tell that 615 00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:00,319 Speaker 2: something's different about him. 616 00:37:01,040 --> 00:37:04,359 Speaker 1: Yeah, I think his first day shook his world then 617 00:37:04,560 --> 00:37:08,080 Speaker 1: took my world as well. You know, he'd made his 618 00:37:08,120 --> 00:37:11,799 Speaker 1: first Tinder match. It was someone from the neighborhood, and 619 00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:13,920 Speaker 1: when he came home, he just had this kind of 620 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:18,160 Speaker 1: look on his face where he was clearly trying to 621 00:37:18,200 --> 00:37:22,799 Speaker 1: process things, and he just said, I get it now, 622 00:37:23,279 --> 00:37:26,560 Speaker 1: like I've had fun with someone else, but it doesn't 623 00:37:26,640 --> 00:37:29,000 Speaker 1: change the way I feel about you. And at the 624 00:37:29,080 --> 00:37:31,120 Speaker 1: end of the day, you know, I still want to 625 00:37:31,120 --> 00:37:36,120 Speaker 1: come home to you and be your man. It doesn't 626 00:37:36,239 --> 00:37:40,120 Speaker 1: change the way I see you or I feel about you. 627 00:37:40,799 --> 00:37:42,640 Speaker 1: And he said, Okay, I kind of get it now. 628 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:47,919 Speaker 1: And for me, it was kind of confronting. Why don't 629 00:37:47,920 --> 00:37:50,799 Speaker 1: I feel jealous about this? Like? Am I jealous? You know? 630 00:37:50,840 --> 00:37:53,040 Speaker 1: I'm actually excited for him to go out and have 631 00:37:53,120 --> 00:37:57,160 Speaker 1: this really fun experience and see what that does for him. 632 00:37:57,480 --> 00:38:00,480 Speaker 1: And I remember thinking to myself, if I am not jealous, 633 00:38:00,520 --> 00:38:05,040 Speaker 1: does this mean I don't love him? Because we're so oh, 634 00:38:05,480 --> 00:38:08,440 Speaker 1: you know, we're so thought. I mean, we really thought 635 00:38:08,560 --> 00:38:14,880 Speaker 1: that jealousy is adherent component of love. The more jealous 636 00:38:14,920 --> 00:38:18,480 Speaker 1: we are, it means the greater we love somebody. And 637 00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:21,759 Speaker 1: I was discovering that this wasn't true. And I know 638 00:38:22,640 --> 00:38:25,879 Speaker 1: a new Marcus had grown up with the same you know, 639 00:38:26,840 --> 00:38:30,839 Speaker 1: ideas of shame around his body and sexuality that I'd 640 00:38:30,840 --> 00:38:34,200 Speaker 1: grown up with in the Philippines, and I wanted this 641 00:38:34,520 --> 00:38:38,080 Speaker 1: to start, you know, I wanted him to be kind 642 00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:40,800 Speaker 1: of free from those things and to enjoy his body 643 00:38:40,799 --> 00:38:44,200 Speaker 1: and to discover things about himself that I didn't necessarily 644 00:38:44,239 --> 00:38:45,440 Speaker 1: have to be responsible for. 645 00:38:46,239 --> 00:38:48,120 Speaker 2: You also, one of the things that you had in 646 00:38:48,239 --> 00:38:50,560 Speaker 2: place one of the understandings between you was that you 647 00:38:50,600 --> 00:38:56,279 Speaker 2: would not give each other graphic descriptions of the sexual 648 00:38:56,480 --> 00:38:59,799 Speaker 2: acts you performed with whoever. 649 00:38:59,440 --> 00:39:00,440 Speaker 3: You'd had your diets with. 650 00:39:01,120 --> 00:39:04,879 Speaker 2: That's right, So there was an element of I don't 651 00:39:04,920 --> 00:39:09,280 Speaker 2: know that jealousy is just about anyway. 652 00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:10,040 Speaker 3: I don't know. 653 00:39:10,160 --> 00:39:13,279 Speaker 2: I asked myself so many questions reading a book. It's 654 00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:18,960 Speaker 2: very interesting, okay, But to me, I've found it quite 655 00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:22,000 Speaker 2: illuminating that you had to put that process in place, 656 00:39:22,080 --> 00:39:25,920 Speaker 2: because there's a natural understanding that some things need to 657 00:39:26,000 --> 00:39:29,520 Speaker 2: remain private if they don't include you. 658 00:39:30,160 --> 00:39:34,560 Speaker 1: Someone recently, you told me this really interesting distinction between 659 00:39:34,560 --> 00:39:43,840 Speaker 1: transparency and honesty. And transparency is all the details unfiltered, 660 00:39:45,520 --> 00:39:49,399 Speaker 1: and honesty is when you've processed your experience and you've 661 00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:52,959 Speaker 1: taken the insight from it, and then you share that 662 00:39:53,080 --> 00:39:57,160 Speaker 1: with somebody when they're ready to hear it. I think honesty, 663 00:39:57,560 --> 00:39:59,360 Speaker 1: you know, I wrote this in the book, Honesty doesn't 664 00:39:59,400 --> 00:40:03,360 Speaker 1: need to be brutal, right. I think honesty can always 665 00:40:03,360 --> 00:40:07,040 Speaker 1: be kind and respect. You know, if Marcus wasn't comfortable 666 00:40:07,080 --> 00:40:10,719 Speaker 1: hearing about graphic details, then that was something I needed 667 00:40:10,759 --> 00:40:11,280 Speaker 1: to respect. 668 00:40:12,480 --> 00:40:14,759 Speaker 2: And then you had a taste of your own medicine 669 00:40:14,759 --> 00:40:19,040 Speaker 2: though in that regard, which I must say, I must 670 00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:22,319 Speaker 2: say in the book, just because he's proven himself to 671 00:40:22,360 --> 00:40:25,080 Speaker 2: be such a beautiful husband and partner to you as 672 00:40:25,120 --> 00:40:28,439 Speaker 2: you are to him. But you really have led him 673 00:40:28,480 --> 00:40:30,080 Speaker 2: on this life. 674 00:40:30,080 --> 00:40:32,719 Speaker 3: He couldn't, I think, even have imagined for himself. 675 00:40:33,840 --> 00:40:36,680 Speaker 2: And then at one point when he comes home and 676 00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:42,960 Speaker 2: he's had an unexpected foursome and he utters this phrase 677 00:40:43,160 --> 00:40:45,400 Speaker 2: to you where he's trying to describe you go and 678 00:40:45,440 --> 00:40:47,880 Speaker 2: you're debriefing in the you know, he's in the shower 679 00:40:48,719 --> 00:40:50,439 Speaker 2: or you're in the shower. You're talking to each other 680 00:40:50,680 --> 00:40:53,239 Speaker 2: about what happened, and he's so full of it. At 681 00:40:53,320 --> 00:40:57,120 Speaker 2: the time it was very fresh, and he utters the phrase, yes, 682 00:40:57,279 --> 00:40:58,799 Speaker 2: it was too fresh. 683 00:40:58,920 --> 00:40:59,680 Speaker 3: I've discovered this. 684 00:40:59,880 --> 00:41:04,080 Speaker 2: It can't be too fresh where he says he describes 685 00:41:04,120 --> 00:41:06,400 Speaker 2: the woman that one of the women that he was with, 686 00:41:06,960 --> 00:41:11,800 Speaker 2: and he said she was pure feminine sexual energy and daper. 687 00:41:13,120 --> 00:41:14,719 Speaker 1: You lost there, who had. 688 00:41:14,640 --> 00:41:18,400 Speaker 2: Been a pioneer in this. Yeah, you lost it, You 689 00:41:18,560 --> 00:41:19,239 Speaker 2: lost it. 690 00:41:19,719 --> 00:41:23,839 Speaker 1: I mean, human feelings are messy, you know. I think that, Yeah, 691 00:41:23,920 --> 00:41:27,160 Speaker 1: that was one of the times when we didn't have this, 692 00:41:28,239 --> 00:41:30,120 Speaker 1: I mean, one of the sort of agreements that we 693 00:41:30,160 --> 00:41:31,880 Speaker 1: had just flew out the window and he was fresh, 694 00:41:31,880 --> 00:41:34,319 Speaker 1: he had just walked in, and all of this was 695 00:41:34,320 --> 00:41:36,600 Speaker 1: still kind of like, you know, he was still buzzing 696 00:41:36,640 --> 00:41:40,520 Speaker 1: from it. And it was at this time when I 697 00:41:40,560 --> 00:41:44,040 Speaker 1: was like, oh, you know, we had this. We set 698 00:41:44,120 --> 00:41:46,839 Speaker 1: out with this idea to kind of process experiences before 699 00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:48,680 Speaker 1: we share them with each other. And there's a reason 700 00:41:48,759 --> 00:41:51,640 Speaker 1: for that. Yes, yeah, I think it was also I 701 00:41:51,640 --> 00:41:54,520 Speaker 1: mean there's also context, right, I'm trying to remember, you know, 702 00:41:54,560 --> 00:41:57,479 Speaker 1: what was I doing at the time was probably yeah, 703 00:41:57,520 --> 00:41:59,640 Speaker 1: probably with our daughter. I was in a very different 704 00:41:59,719 --> 00:42:03,840 Speaker 1: space or something. It was very unexpected. There is something 705 00:42:03,880 --> 00:42:07,080 Speaker 1: to be said for Okay, you know, I'm not ready 706 00:42:07,120 --> 00:42:09,080 Speaker 1: to hear this right now. Can we talk about this, 707 00:42:09,279 --> 00:42:12,360 Speaker 1: you know, this evening after you know, after bed time 708 00:42:12,520 --> 00:42:14,879 Speaker 1: or with a glass of wine. Yeah, I don't need 709 00:42:14,920 --> 00:42:16,800 Speaker 1: to hear about this now. And I think it's really 710 00:42:16,920 --> 00:42:20,439 Speaker 1: okay to say these things. This is not the right time. 711 00:42:20,560 --> 00:42:22,560 Speaker 1: I think one of us should have gone, oh wait, 712 00:42:22,680 --> 00:42:25,360 Speaker 1: this is not the right time, you know, to process 713 00:42:25,400 --> 00:42:26,160 Speaker 1: all of this stuff. 714 00:42:26,520 --> 00:42:28,920 Speaker 2: I'm struck by when I'm reading your book. I have 715 00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:31,319 Speaker 2: the same questions that everyone has. How does it work? 716 00:42:31,360 --> 00:42:34,320 Speaker 2: So jealousy being one of them. Yeah, another one being 717 00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:35,960 Speaker 2: your daughter. 718 00:42:36,680 --> 00:42:36,879 Speaker 1: Right. 719 00:42:37,080 --> 00:42:39,200 Speaker 3: So obviously you kept you keep. 720 00:42:39,000 --> 00:42:43,560 Speaker 2: Your home as a as your sacred space for the family. 721 00:42:44,080 --> 00:42:44,279 Speaker 1: Right. 722 00:42:44,960 --> 00:42:48,040 Speaker 2: But it must have always been a subject of discussion 723 00:42:48,040 --> 00:42:50,360 Speaker 2: of when you were going to broach with your daughter 724 00:42:51,640 --> 00:42:52,680 Speaker 2: as she got older. 725 00:42:52,880 --> 00:42:55,200 Speaker 3: So she's nearly a teenager now. 726 00:42:55,120 --> 00:42:58,640 Speaker 1: Oh, she's twelve. Yeah, she's onto high school next year. 727 00:42:58,840 --> 00:42:59,200 Speaker 3: Yeah. 728 00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:05,520 Speaker 2: Yeah, how you were going to broach the unusual nature 729 00:43:05,600 --> 00:43:09,400 Speaker 2: of your circumstances with her, well, what you thought or 730 00:43:09,480 --> 00:43:10,920 Speaker 2: unusual circumstances. 731 00:43:11,040 --> 00:43:13,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's interesting that you pointed out, actually, because I 732 00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:17,600 Speaker 1: don't think we ever really discussed you know, there's going 733 00:43:17,640 --> 00:43:20,560 Speaker 1: to be a big review, right there was we were 734 00:43:20,759 --> 00:43:23,279 Speaker 1: We were never thinking about when do we you know, 735 00:43:23,440 --> 00:43:26,399 Speaker 1: strike a gong and tell her we're in an open marriage, 736 00:43:27,440 --> 00:43:31,359 Speaker 1: because we went into it, so I guess experimentally, there 737 00:43:31,440 --> 00:43:34,960 Speaker 1: was no idea, you know, that this was going to 738 00:43:35,080 --> 00:43:38,520 Speaker 1: last for as long as it has, which is now 739 00:43:38,560 --> 00:43:41,560 Speaker 1: almost ten years. You know, at the in the beginning, 740 00:43:41,560 --> 00:43:43,319 Speaker 1: it was always say, yeah, let's just give it a try, 741 00:43:43,480 --> 00:43:45,759 Speaker 1: you know, let's see how far we we get. And 742 00:43:45,799 --> 00:43:48,239 Speaker 1: this was you know, we opened our marriage, I think 743 00:43:48,440 --> 00:43:51,920 Speaker 1: just before she started school, maybe she was around four. 744 00:43:52,920 --> 00:43:55,719 Speaker 1: So everything that happened, you know, kind of in our 745 00:43:55,759 --> 00:43:58,800 Speaker 1: private lives and our intimate lives happened after her bedtime. 746 00:43:59,560 --> 00:44:03,000 Speaker 1: Dates were after she went to bed, one of our 747 00:44:03,200 --> 00:44:05,520 Speaker 1: you know, ourn claud agreements. To these days, we've never 748 00:44:05,520 --> 00:44:08,279 Speaker 1: been partners home, so all of this was kind of 749 00:44:08,759 --> 00:44:13,919 Speaker 1: not in her daily life or not part of our 750 00:44:14,040 --> 00:44:17,080 Speaker 1: family life as she knew it. And it was only 751 00:44:17,200 --> 00:44:20,839 Speaker 1: really during COVID when I started becoming close to the 752 00:44:20,840 --> 00:44:24,360 Speaker 1: man who you know, I know call my boyfriend Hella Robert. 753 00:44:24,560 --> 00:44:26,399 Speaker 1: We had a curfew. I don't know if you had. 754 00:44:26,480 --> 00:44:31,519 Speaker 2: Yes, we had curfews in Australia. Australia the ultimate painal Colony. Yes, 755 00:44:31,680 --> 00:44:32,880 Speaker 2: everyone was in prisoned. 756 00:44:33,320 --> 00:44:37,600 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I remember reading about the gosh, reading about 757 00:44:37,600 --> 00:44:39,000 Speaker 1: all of the stuff going on there as well. But 758 00:44:39,040 --> 00:44:41,200 Speaker 1: we had a it was you know, the Dutch are 759 00:44:41,279 --> 00:44:43,640 Speaker 1: very liberal. They liked their freedom and so the idea 760 00:44:43,680 --> 00:44:46,600 Speaker 1: of a curfew was was unthinkable for us at the time. 761 00:44:46,600 --> 00:44:48,640 Speaker 1: But I think it was like eight pm or something 762 00:44:49,040 --> 00:44:53,319 Speaker 1: from eight pm to four am, and I would you know, 763 00:44:53,520 --> 00:44:55,880 Speaker 1: I was about to leave from my date with Robert, 764 00:44:56,239 --> 00:44:58,719 Speaker 1: and Marcus was like, okay, well you're going to be 765 00:44:58,799 --> 00:45:01,120 Speaker 1: back at eight. Then it said that's very enough time 766 00:45:01,120 --> 00:45:03,839 Speaker 1: to sit down to dinner. What are you thinking? And 767 00:45:03,920 --> 00:45:08,480 Speaker 1: so because I stayed over until the curfew was done, 768 00:45:09,040 --> 00:45:11,279 Speaker 1: then I had to be honest with my daughter, say, 769 00:45:11,840 --> 00:45:16,400 Speaker 1: you know, I'm leaving for Robert's house because of the curfew. 770 00:45:16,440 --> 00:45:18,560 Speaker 1: I'm not going to be able to come back until, 771 00:45:18,719 --> 00:45:21,239 Speaker 1: you know, the following morning. And I said, so I'm 772 00:45:21,239 --> 00:45:23,239 Speaker 1: going to sleep there. And in her mind she was 773 00:45:23,279 --> 00:45:25,839 Speaker 1: already doing sleepovers with like our neighbor, you know, her 774 00:45:25,880 --> 00:45:28,640 Speaker 1: little neighbor friends at the time, and she said, okay, 775 00:45:28,719 --> 00:45:30,920 Speaker 1: well you're going to have a sleepover. We'll have fun. 776 00:45:31,320 --> 00:45:33,960 Speaker 1: And that was kind of our approach to always build 777 00:45:34,040 --> 00:45:37,719 Speaker 1: on what she understood and what was really part of 778 00:45:37,759 --> 00:45:39,999 Speaker 1: her life, like what was a reality in her life. 779 00:45:40,880 --> 00:45:43,120 Speaker 1: Dates that went on after that time were not a 780 00:45:43,120 --> 00:45:46,600 Speaker 1: part of her life. Sleepovers she understood, you know, she 781 00:45:46,640 --> 00:45:48,839 Speaker 1: had a working knowledge of a sleepover is a fun 782 00:45:48,880 --> 00:45:51,319 Speaker 1: thing you do with a friend. And so I would 783 00:45:51,400 --> 00:45:52,919 Speaker 1: come back the next morning and she'd be like, how 784 00:45:52,960 --> 00:45:54,879 Speaker 1: was your sleepover? Was it fun? And I'd be like, yes, 785 00:45:54,920 --> 00:45:59,520 Speaker 1: it was fun. But again, you know, like sexual details 786 00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:02,000 Speaker 1: are not for children, Like I don't know how many 787 00:46:02,080 --> 00:46:05,120 Speaker 1: monogamous parents share their sex lives with their children. Yeah, 788 00:46:05,160 --> 00:46:09,879 Speaker 1: I certainly, you know, it's the scene. So in a way, 789 00:46:09,960 --> 00:46:13,160 Speaker 1: it was always something that she knew about. So she 790 00:46:13,200 --> 00:46:16,200 Speaker 1: knew about the sleepovers once a week with Robert, which 791 00:46:16,320 --> 00:46:20,000 Speaker 1: began to became a regular kind of feature of my life. 792 00:46:20,320 --> 00:46:25,879 Speaker 2: Yes, because he's your boyfriend. Ok, yes, he's your boyfriend. Deeper, Yeah, 793 00:46:25,920 --> 00:46:28,440 Speaker 2: you have a husband and a boyfriend. 794 00:46:28,600 --> 00:46:31,200 Speaker 1: Indeed, yeah, almost six years now. 795 00:46:31,719 --> 00:46:35,719 Speaker 2: So you ended up telling your daughter just the concept 796 00:46:35,759 --> 00:46:38,920 Speaker 2: that explaining the concept that you're in an open marriage, 797 00:46:38,920 --> 00:46:41,120 Speaker 2: which she was not at all phased by because it 798 00:46:41,160 --> 00:46:43,320 Speaker 2: turns out there were two kids in her school whose 799 00:46:43,400 --> 00:46:46,680 Speaker 2: parents also were in open marriages, and they discussed it 800 00:46:46,719 --> 00:46:48,400 Speaker 2: without going into any detail. 801 00:46:48,600 --> 00:46:49,680 Speaker 1: Welcome to Amsterdam. 802 00:46:50,239 --> 00:46:55,080 Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, yeah, but that came about through the writing 803 00:46:55,120 --> 00:46:58,239 Speaker 2: of the book, right that she was curious about the 804 00:46:58,279 --> 00:47:03,680 Speaker 2: book you were writing. But what I just need to 805 00:47:03,759 --> 00:47:08,160 Speaker 2: know how this was he's having a boyfriend and a husband, 806 00:47:08,759 --> 00:47:10,759 Speaker 2: because also it seems to me like there was a 807 00:47:10,799 --> 00:47:13,759 Speaker 2: sliding scale of the boundaries that you had. First there 808 00:47:13,759 --> 00:47:15,400 Speaker 2: were not going to be any sleepovers, or there was 809 00:47:15,440 --> 00:47:18,359 Speaker 2: not going to be an emotional entanglement and then you 810 00:47:18,480 --> 00:47:23,759 Speaker 2: realize that these encounters you were having that were purely sexual, 811 00:47:23,799 --> 00:47:28,600 Speaker 2: we're not nourishing to you. And you fell for this guy, Robert. 812 00:47:28,840 --> 00:47:34,800 Speaker 2: All right, So Robert's Irish, very charming, right, Robert doesn't 813 00:47:34,840 --> 00:47:37,680 Speaker 2: have any other girlfriends, now, does he only have you? 814 00:47:38,160 --> 00:47:38,480 Speaker 1: Yes? 815 00:47:38,759 --> 00:47:41,720 Speaker 3: And you have him and you have Marcus. 816 00:47:42,120 --> 00:47:43,400 Speaker 1: That's correct. 817 00:47:43,680 --> 00:47:45,600 Speaker 3: How are you not exhausted? 818 00:47:46,160 --> 00:47:48,919 Speaker 1: You know? I've been asked this a million times, and 819 00:47:49,000 --> 00:47:54,040 Speaker 1: I think it's because the men in my life don't 820 00:47:54,120 --> 00:47:58,080 Speaker 1: need any mothering. They're very self sustaining in a way. 821 00:47:58,279 --> 00:48:03,560 Speaker 1: Like Robert is really independent, he's super self reliant. He's 822 00:48:03,600 --> 00:48:07,959 Speaker 1: an artist, artists. Yeah, he's a photographer, yes, yes. And 823 00:48:08,040 --> 00:48:10,920 Speaker 1: Marcus he takes equally the share of the mental and 824 00:48:11,000 --> 00:48:15,360 Speaker 1: domestic load. Like I'm not doing all of the domestic 825 00:48:15,759 --> 00:48:20,920 Speaker 1: work on both sides in both houses. I have quite 826 00:48:20,920 --> 00:48:26,680 Speaker 1: a degree of autonomy. I you know, in my life, 827 00:48:26,840 --> 00:48:31,160 Speaker 1: it's very clear to the people that I'm closest to 828 00:48:31,320 --> 00:48:34,400 Speaker 1: the red love that there is space for me to 829 00:48:34,480 --> 00:48:37,600 Speaker 1: do my food. You have space to do your thing. 830 00:48:37,759 --> 00:48:41,520 Speaker 1: Everyone is space to do their thing. So I don't know. 831 00:48:41,560 --> 00:48:46,160 Speaker 1: I think it's just because I'm not doing mental, emotional, 832 00:48:46,520 --> 00:48:51,160 Speaker 1: domestic labor one hundred percent on both sides, and that 833 00:48:51,320 --> 00:48:52,919 Speaker 1: each of those men can pull their weight. 834 00:48:53,120 --> 00:48:59,479 Speaker 2: Yes, but you know, when you a committed to someone romanticly, 835 00:49:00,440 --> 00:49:05,400 Speaker 2: sexually and spiritually, it's a big It's. 836 00:49:05,239 --> 00:49:06,640 Speaker 3: Also nourishing to you. 837 00:49:06,920 --> 00:49:09,560 Speaker 2: I get that, but also it's a big expenditure of 838 00:49:09,600 --> 00:49:13,200 Speaker 2: your energy and you're doing that with two people and 839 00:49:13,320 --> 00:49:17,239 Speaker 2: at the same time inventing a way, a new way 840 00:49:17,279 --> 00:49:18,680 Speaker 2: to have relationships. 841 00:49:18,759 --> 00:49:20,600 Speaker 3: Really And so. 842 00:49:20,640 --> 00:49:24,759 Speaker 2: It's Robert and what's in it for him? Aside from 843 00:49:24,799 --> 00:49:28,120 Speaker 2: you obviously, but you know what I mean. He's a 844 00:49:28,160 --> 00:49:31,239 Speaker 2: guy who wants to have a family and babies and 845 00:49:32,080 --> 00:49:35,440 Speaker 2: that's not a possibility with you, as you've said, Yeah. 846 00:49:35,239 --> 00:49:38,520 Speaker 1: That's after people. What's in it for him? You know, 847 00:49:38,640 --> 00:49:43,280 Speaker 1: I'm very careful when I write and when I speak, 848 00:49:43,640 --> 00:49:46,560 Speaker 1: not to speak for the men that I'm in a 849 00:49:46,600 --> 00:49:49,839 Speaker 1: relationship with. Yes, what's in it for you? When you 850 00:49:49,880 --> 00:49:52,440 Speaker 1: fall in love with someone the experience of being loved, 851 00:49:53,040 --> 00:49:58,760 Speaker 1: being seen, being held, being understood. So somehow he must 852 00:49:58,799 --> 00:50:01,960 Speaker 1: be getting that and is getting that from me for 853 00:50:02,080 --> 00:50:03,040 Speaker 1: the past six years. 854 00:50:03,239 --> 00:50:07,160 Speaker 3: Yes, I know thought, Yes I understand that. 855 00:50:07,239 --> 00:50:09,640 Speaker 2: But what I mean is because he has this goal 856 00:50:09,719 --> 00:50:12,799 Speaker 2: of what he wants in his life broadly, which is 857 00:50:12,840 --> 00:50:17,240 Speaker 2: he wants to have he loves your family with Marcus, 858 00:50:18,040 --> 00:50:21,080 Speaker 2: he wants that for himself at some point. And because 859 00:50:21,120 --> 00:50:26,560 Speaker 2: that's not an option for you, it's interesting to go 860 00:50:26,680 --> 00:50:28,759 Speaker 2: into a relationship or to be a part of a 861 00:50:28,799 --> 00:50:32,160 Speaker 2: relationship in which you know, at some point the gate's 862 00:50:32,239 --> 00:50:35,279 Speaker 2: going to come down. And I know you're not obviously 863 00:50:35,320 --> 00:50:38,640 Speaker 2: one for thinking about, you know, for crossing the bridge 864 00:50:38,680 --> 00:50:41,960 Speaker 2: before you come to it, but that will be hard 865 00:50:42,080 --> 00:50:44,560 Speaker 2: because you're in love with him. 866 00:50:44,880 --> 00:50:48,239 Speaker 1: You love him, I do, I do, and I want 867 00:50:48,279 --> 00:50:50,879 Speaker 1: him to have what he wants. And again, I think 868 00:50:50,880 --> 00:50:53,359 Speaker 1: this goes back to something that you know, I brought 869 00:50:53,440 --> 00:50:59,319 Speaker 1: up earlier. Everybody approaches things at a different pace, right, 870 00:50:59,440 --> 00:51:02,440 Speaker 1: like I've always you know, the ending is kind of 871 00:51:02,600 --> 00:51:06,480 Speaker 1: bagd what's kind of into the beginning of this relationship, 872 00:51:06,520 --> 00:51:11,160 Speaker 1: which is very unusual. Yes, you know, some relationships don't 873 00:51:11,239 --> 00:51:14,359 Speaker 1: last forever, some aren't meant to last forever. But it's 874 00:51:14,360 --> 00:51:17,640 Speaker 1: still a beautiful experience that you can share and grow from. 875 00:51:18,080 --> 00:51:19,680 Speaker 1: So you know, I was. 876 00:51:19,640 --> 00:51:21,960 Speaker 5: Fully thinking, oh yeah, at the end of you know, 877 00:51:22,000 --> 00:51:24,040 Speaker 5: at the end of Lockdown, the dating apps will be 878 00:51:24,080 --> 00:51:27,080 Speaker 5: flourishing again and he'll you know, he'll be back to 879 00:51:27,560 --> 00:51:30,360 Speaker 5: dating and you know, being his charming, irish self with 880 00:51:30,680 --> 00:51:33,719 Speaker 5: bars and chatting up women, and I'm you know, it 881 00:51:33,840 --> 00:51:36,520 Speaker 5: just didn't happen, and life can really surprise you that way. 882 00:51:37,040 --> 00:51:40,279 Speaker 5: I don't think I'm pushing him out the door, but 883 00:51:40,360 --> 00:51:46,600 Speaker 5: I do understand that everybody approaches life at their own pace. 884 00:51:47,320 --> 00:51:51,160 Speaker 5: Like if he's not, you know, feeling like this, this 885 00:51:51,279 --> 00:51:54,440 Speaker 5: relationship is not enough, or he hasn't outgrown it, or 886 00:51:54,920 --> 00:52:00,560 Speaker 5: I don't know, it's not for me to decide it's. Yeah, 887 00:52:00,600 --> 00:52:04,839 Speaker 5: it's something for him to understand and decide when it's 888 00:52:05,440 --> 00:52:08,760 Speaker 5: his time. He's gone out on dates, he's had flings 889 00:52:08,840 --> 00:52:10,200 Speaker 5: and you know, but. 890 00:52:10,440 --> 00:52:11,360 Speaker 3: How did you feel. 891 00:52:11,480 --> 00:52:15,719 Speaker 2: Did you feel any territorialness when he was saying out 892 00:52:15,759 --> 00:52:16,080 Speaker 2: the page? 893 00:52:16,480 --> 00:52:20,879 Speaker 1: Yeah, this was interesting for me because I felt differently 894 00:52:21,279 --> 00:52:24,840 Speaker 1: from when I, you know, when when Marcus first started dating, 895 00:52:25,040 --> 00:52:26,999 Speaker 1: when when Robert went out with a couple of people. 896 00:52:27,080 --> 00:52:30,920 Speaker 1: I was quite surprised at how not possessive, But somehow 897 00:52:31,560 --> 00:52:36,040 Speaker 1: the jealousy was there because the idea of being replaced 898 00:52:36,279 --> 00:52:39,400 Speaker 1: was really real then, like something that I wasn't really 899 00:52:39,759 --> 00:52:42,400 Speaker 1: you know, that I wasn't really thinking about in my 900 00:52:42,520 --> 00:52:45,040 Speaker 1: relationship with Marcus, it was it's clear to both of 901 00:52:45,120 --> 00:52:49,960 Speaker 1: us that we're not dating to audition replacements. But with Robert, 902 00:52:50,040 --> 00:52:52,960 Speaker 1: the implication is always there that you know, somebody that 903 00:52:53,000 --> 00:52:55,080 Speaker 1: you go on a date with, you could fall in 904 00:52:55,120 --> 00:52:59,880 Speaker 1: love with at any time, and you could decide, you know, okay, 905 00:53:00,120 --> 00:53:01,999 Speaker 1: this is this is the person I'm going to start 906 00:53:02,000 --> 00:53:05,760 Speaker 1: a family with, this is my person. And what's really 907 00:53:05,799 --> 00:53:09,480 Speaker 1: interesting is that that kind of inherent you know, that 908 00:53:09,640 --> 00:53:12,960 Speaker 1: knowledge that this might be the end. It created this 909 00:53:13,040 --> 00:53:16,200 Speaker 1: kind of insecurity, which I feel is like the root 910 00:53:16,239 --> 00:53:20,200 Speaker 1: of jealousy is not feeling secure. But we talked about it, 911 00:53:20,239 --> 00:53:23,279 Speaker 1: and we talked about his experience, you know, going on 912 00:53:23,320 --> 00:53:27,279 Speaker 1: a daily with one of the few times in someone, 913 00:53:27,440 --> 00:53:30,879 Speaker 1: and we really got to take a look at what 914 00:53:31,520 --> 00:53:34,680 Speaker 1: it meant for me that I felt insecure in the 915 00:53:34,759 --> 00:53:37,680 Speaker 1: relationship because he could always you know, he could always 916 00:53:37,799 --> 00:53:43,000 Speaker 1: leave at any time. And actually, jealousy can point to 917 00:53:43,120 --> 00:53:46,520 Speaker 1: me a need that's not being met, which is at 918 00:53:46,560 --> 00:53:49,319 Speaker 1: the point was to feel more secure in the relationship. 919 00:53:50,120 --> 00:53:54,120 Speaker 1: So one thing about being non monogamous, I guess it 920 00:53:54,200 --> 00:53:57,600 Speaker 1: makes you think, how will this need be fulfilled by 921 00:53:57,640 --> 00:54:01,359 Speaker 1: something other than sexual exclusivity, and what it was at 922 00:54:01,400 --> 00:54:03,839 Speaker 1: the time for Robert and me, was him showing me 923 00:54:04,799 --> 00:54:08,120 Speaker 1: how much he appreciated our relationship. And what I brought 924 00:54:08,120 --> 00:54:11,680 Speaker 1: into is life like that reassurance of you know, you're 925 00:54:11,759 --> 00:54:13,920 Speaker 1: really valuable. And if I did fall in love with someone, 926 00:54:13,920 --> 00:54:16,959 Speaker 1: it wouldn't you know, you wouldn't be someone I could 927 00:54:16,960 --> 00:54:20,040 Speaker 1: discard overnight and we'd work through it. And you know, 928 00:54:20,320 --> 00:54:21,840 Speaker 1: like I've always known it's going to happen. 929 00:54:22,080 --> 00:54:29,000 Speaker 2: I know, but knowing knowing something doesn't necessarily soften the 930 00:54:29,080 --> 00:54:33,919 Speaker 2: inevitability of it when it will happen, if it should happen, I. 931 00:54:33,880 --> 00:54:38,480 Speaker 1: Agree, But I mean I can do hard things. You know, well, you. 932 00:54:38,480 --> 00:54:41,399 Speaker 3: Can do hard things. You also you also do a 933 00:54:41,440 --> 00:54:42,360 Speaker 3: lot of talking. 934 00:54:42,840 --> 00:54:49,560 Speaker 2: Like your relationships, there's so much to navigate that. I'm 935 00:54:49,600 --> 00:54:52,040 Speaker 2: also struck by the fact that you and Marcus nearly 936 00:54:52,080 --> 00:54:55,680 Speaker 2: every issue and obviously because it's the subject of your book, 937 00:54:56,799 --> 00:55:00,520 Speaker 2: but nearly every issue within your relationship aside from when 938 00:55:00,520 --> 00:55:07,160 Speaker 2: you first got together, has arisen because of the open marriage. 939 00:55:07,239 --> 00:55:10,720 Speaker 1: That's not entirely true, Kate. I focus on that, Okay. 940 00:55:10,799 --> 00:55:11,760 Speaker 3: I'm happy to hear. 941 00:55:11,719 --> 00:55:14,040 Speaker 1: Yeah, because I mean, we fight about who, you know, 942 00:55:14,200 --> 00:55:17,080 Speaker 1: who stacks the dishwasher, and I mean, this is really 943 00:55:17,200 --> 00:55:20,960 Speaker 1: kind of thanks all married couple stuff, But I do, 944 00:55:21,480 --> 00:55:24,600 Speaker 1: but I do focus on the issues that arose within 945 00:55:24,640 --> 00:55:27,560 Speaker 1: an open marriage because that's the focus of the book. Yes, right, 946 00:55:27,680 --> 00:55:30,200 Speaker 1: Like okay, yeah, you're you're not picking up a book 947 00:55:30,239 --> 00:55:32,920 Speaker 1: called ask me how it works love in an open 948 00:55:32,920 --> 00:55:36,080 Speaker 1: marriage to find out how we resolve the issue about the. 949 00:55:36,040 --> 00:55:39,120 Speaker 3: Dishwasher housework, right, Okay? 950 00:55:39,160 --> 00:55:47,200 Speaker 2: Deeper, So you had these concurrent loves differing but loves. 951 00:55:47,799 --> 00:55:50,960 Speaker 2: So when you get to say, when I think of 952 00:55:51,080 --> 00:55:54,560 Speaker 2: in a relationship in times of good and in times 953 00:55:54,560 --> 00:55:57,560 Speaker 2: of bad, that's when you turn to your significant person. 954 00:55:58,239 --> 00:56:02,319 Speaker 2: So when you have good news, who do you tell first? 955 00:56:02,640 --> 00:56:03,719 Speaker 2: Do you tell Marcus? 956 00:56:03,840 --> 00:56:06,439 Speaker 1: Or do you tell er whoever is in the room 957 00:56:06,480 --> 00:56:08,600 Speaker 1: with me at the moment? Or like it's you know, 958 00:56:09,040 --> 00:56:13,880 Speaker 1: if Marcus is over like cooking dinner in the kitchen 959 00:56:13,920 --> 00:56:16,120 Speaker 1: and I receive good news while I'm sitting here at 960 00:56:16,120 --> 00:56:19,759 Speaker 1: the dining table, first child goes to whoever's in the 961 00:56:19,840 --> 00:56:20,200 Speaker 1: room with. 962 00:56:20,200 --> 00:56:24,359 Speaker 3: Me, right, okay? And is that ever an issue for them? 963 00:56:25,120 --> 00:56:25,879 Speaker 3: Do you know what I mean? 964 00:56:26,040 --> 00:56:32,759 Speaker 2: Aside from any sexual notions of exclusivity or whatever, you know, 965 00:56:32,799 --> 00:56:36,279 Speaker 2: that emotional thing that oh, you told Robert before you 966 00:56:36,360 --> 00:56:36,839 Speaker 2: told me. 967 00:56:36,960 --> 00:56:41,239 Speaker 1: Or bus never. I mean because that I think, No, 968 00:56:41,840 --> 00:56:46,680 Speaker 1: they're not that kind of there's no possessiveness in that way, 969 00:56:46,719 --> 00:56:50,640 Speaker 1: because that would entail quite a level of micro management. 970 00:56:50,799 --> 00:56:55,240 Speaker 1: Would you say, like to know who finds out what first? 971 00:56:55,360 --> 00:56:57,879 Speaker 1: All the time? I mean we've had a lot of yeah, yeah, 972 00:56:58,000 --> 00:57:01,680 Speaker 1: really great news, you know exploding with the book recently, 973 00:57:01,840 --> 00:57:04,839 Speaker 1: right if I learned the great interview like this or 974 00:57:04,880 --> 00:57:08,919 Speaker 1: a new piece of you know, publicity comes out or 975 00:57:09,040 --> 00:57:12,560 Speaker 1: something really great has happened. I mean, no one's keeping tabs, 976 00:57:12,640 --> 00:57:16,440 Speaker 1: no one's keeping an Excel sheet on who hears things first? 977 00:57:16,560 --> 00:57:20,200 Speaker 2: Well deep, and we think they're not. But in relationships, 978 00:57:20,240 --> 00:57:24,400 Speaker 2: people are often keeping a ledger that we're unaware of. Okay, yeah, 979 00:57:24,560 --> 00:57:28,200 Speaker 2: you spend more time to analyzing your relationships than most 980 00:57:28,280 --> 00:57:30,320 Speaker 2: people do, so you'd be I think. 981 00:57:30,160 --> 00:57:32,400 Speaker 1: I know my husband and i'm boys had pretty well 982 00:57:32,760 --> 00:57:33,160 Speaker 1: right now. 983 00:57:33,600 --> 00:57:40,120 Speaker 2: Also, what space is there in your life for your girlfriends, 984 00:57:40,120 --> 00:57:44,919 Speaker 2: who I know play a significant role, How do they 985 00:57:45,880 --> 00:57:50,720 Speaker 2: fit into the tapestry of your life both time wise 986 00:57:51,240 --> 00:57:56,479 Speaker 2: and emotionally and being aware of your situation which you're 987 00:57:56,520 --> 00:57:57,520 Speaker 2: so open about. 988 00:57:58,040 --> 00:58:01,720 Speaker 1: My best friend is going to write about her in 989 00:58:01,760 --> 00:58:06,160 Speaker 1: the book you do. Yeah, we all of almost all 990 00:58:06,160 --> 00:58:11,800 Speaker 1: of my close girlfriends are also moms, and I think 991 00:58:11,880 --> 00:58:15,920 Speaker 1: when you you know, when you're a mom, the time 992 00:58:16,040 --> 00:58:21,720 Speaker 1: you can devote to friendships has limitations. So we're on 993 00:58:21,760 --> 00:58:24,280 Speaker 1: what's App quite a lot of the time, Like there's 994 00:58:24,320 --> 00:58:27,520 Speaker 1: group chats, there's you know, I think between me and 995 00:58:27,520 --> 00:58:29,880 Speaker 1: my best friend or WhatsApp. History is like another book 996 00:58:29,920 --> 00:58:33,320 Speaker 1: on its own. So we're very in touch with each other, 997 00:58:33,560 --> 00:58:35,680 Speaker 1: and then we see each other I don't know about 998 00:58:35,720 --> 00:58:38,600 Speaker 1: maybe once a week or once every other week. There's 999 00:58:38,640 --> 00:58:42,000 Speaker 1: seasons when life is heavy for one of us and 1000 00:58:42,440 --> 00:58:44,640 Speaker 1: we know that, you know, someone can't really be present, 1001 00:58:44,720 --> 00:58:48,520 Speaker 1: but we stay in touch. Quite a lot of my 1002 00:58:48,720 --> 00:58:53,120 Speaker 1: friends now as it stands now, are also in you know, 1003 00:58:53,160 --> 00:58:56,160 Speaker 1: non monogamous relationships or have decided to be non monogamous. 1004 00:58:56,680 --> 00:58:59,720 Speaker 1: So it's a very supportive. It's a very very supportive 1005 00:58:59,720 --> 00:59:01,960 Speaker 1: and understanding community of girlfriends. 1006 00:59:02,240 --> 00:59:07,160 Speaker 2: Was there anyone that was not able to accept your choices? 1007 00:59:08,160 --> 00:59:10,200 Speaker 2: Do you think you've lost anyone along the way. 1008 00:59:11,000 --> 00:59:14,640 Speaker 1: No, I don't think that. I have probably my friends 1009 00:59:14,720 --> 00:59:17,520 Speaker 1: from back home in the Philippines, but then I've lived 1010 00:59:17,560 --> 00:59:20,560 Speaker 1: away from home for so long. Yeah, close to sixteen 1011 00:59:20,640 --> 00:59:23,400 Speaker 1: years now. Yeah, for so long, so you know you're 1012 00:59:23,520 --> 00:59:26,200 Speaker 1: you're also not part of every like wedding, baptist and 1013 00:59:26,240 --> 00:59:30,800 Speaker 1: birthday house party that's going on. So that's been kind 1014 00:59:30,800 --> 00:59:34,000 Speaker 1: of a natural ebb from my life, you know. But now, 1015 00:59:34,120 --> 00:59:35,880 Speaker 1: I mean, when you know news about the book started 1016 00:59:35,880 --> 00:59:38,240 Speaker 1: coming out, yeah, they were all very curious about it. 1017 00:59:38,360 --> 00:59:39,919 Speaker 1: You know. I now have a group of friends from 1018 00:59:39,920 --> 00:59:42,840 Speaker 1: back home who are all reading the book and they're like, oh, 1019 00:59:42,920 --> 00:59:44,919 Speaker 1: book club. You know, when we're all done, it's all, 1020 00:59:44,960 --> 00:59:48,560 Speaker 1: you know, get together on Facebook, Messenger or FaceTime or 1021 00:59:48,560 --> 00:59:51,240 Speaker 1: whatever and have a book club and discuss your life 1022 00:59:51,320 --> 00:59:53,959 Speaker 1: right now, how you've been Yeah, I don't think I've 1023 00:59:53,960 --> 00:59:57,560 Speaker 1: lost anyone along the way. So it kind of the 1024 00:59:57,560 --> 01:00:01,920 Speaker 1: support I've received around being open about our open marriage 1025 01:00:02,760 --> 01:00:05,280 Speaker 1: has kind of told me like, oh, it's really like 1026 01:00:05,800 --> 01:00:08,840 Speaker 1: the people who really matter to me and who really 1027 01:00:09,040 --> 01:00:11,680 Speaker 1: care for me, and who I really care about, you know, 1028 01:00:11,760 --> 01:00:13,120 Speaker 1: are still kind of all around me. 1029 01:00:13,720 --> 01:00:15,000 Speaker 3: I am dapa. 1030 01:00:15,680 --> 01:00:21,120 Speaker 2: Where do you imagine yourself to pay in titaneous time? 1031 01:00:21,520 --> 01:00:24,880 Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, fifty three, I hope I'll still be 1032 01:00:25,760 --> 01:00:31,160 Speaker 1: curious about life, wanting to have new experiences. Married to 1033 01:00:31,240 --> 01:00:35,439 Speaker 1: Marcus Robert will be in my life in some form 1034 01:00:35,600 --> 01:00:40,040 Speaker 1: or fashion. My daughter will be twenty two and spreading 1035 01:00:40,040 --> 01:00:43,880 Speaker 1: her wings in the world. I'm looking forward to a 1036 01:00:43,920 --> 01:00:48,040 Speaker 1: new phase of life in which parenting is not as 1037 01:00:48,120 --> 01:00:52,840 Speaker 1: intensive and there's more There's even more space now too, 1038 01:00:53,880 --> 01:00:58,360 Speaker 1: you know them, now to discover what else you know 1039 01:00:58,480 --> 01:01:02,640 Speaker 1: lies ahead, more time with Marcus, with just the two 1040 01:01:02,680 --> 01:01:07,840 Speaker 1: of us. Quite optimistic, but I think you got that 1041 01:01:07,880 --> 01:01:09,760 Speaker 1: I'm an optimist from reading my book. 1042 01:01:10,040 --> 01:01:14,560 Speaker 2: Yes, you're definitely, you're definitely an optimist. 1043 01:01:15,080 --> 01:01:17,480 Speaker 3: And you know what, that's a very seductive energy. 1044 01:01:17,840 --> 01:01:19,160 Speaker 1: All right, I'll keep that in mind. 1045 01:01:19,840 --> 01:01:22,400 Speaker 2: I don't know how you do it deeper, but you 1046 01:01:23,320 --> 01:01:28,200 Speaker 2: make it sound normal. I feel like it's so strange, 1047 01:01:28,240 --> 01:01:30,280 Speaker 2: and your book is, i think I said at the start, 1048 01:01:30,800 --> 01:01:36,200 Speaker 2: oddly sort of wholesome for something so unexpected. 1049 01:01:36,640 --> 01:01:39,880 Speaker 1: Well, I think most people are surprised when they think 1050 01:01:39,920 --> 01:01:42,800 Speaker 1: open marriages. You know, they think it's all about the sex. 1051 01:01:43,080 --> 01:01:46,760 Speaker 1: This is going to be super racey. But this is 1052 01:01:46,840 --> 01:01:49,680 Speaker 1: part of my life in which I'm also a mother. 1053 01:01:50,560 --> 01:01:54,400 Speaker 1: You know, I'm a daughter, I'm a wife, I'm a writer. 1054 01:01:54,680 --> 01:01:57,160 Speaker 2: Like there's a lot of sex steper, there's a lot 1055 01:01:57,200 --> 01:01:58,720 Speaker 2: of sex there's a lot of sex. 1056 01:01:58,720 --> 01:02:03,480 Speaker 1: There's a lot of sex, absolutely, but there's also parts 1057 01:02:03,520 --> 01:02:07,000 Speaker 1: in which I as a young, you know, insecure Catholic 1058 01:02:07,040 --> 01:02:10,440 Speaker 1: schoolgirl who didn't know what to do with the things 1059 01:02:10,440 --> 01:02:13,880 Speaker 1: she was curious about and wanted. There was also, you know, 1060 01:02:13,960 --> 01:02:16,919 Speaker 1: a lonely new mother who was finding out what it 1061 01:02:16,960 --> 01:02:19,560 Speaker 1: was like to be isolated within a marriage. You know. 1062 01:02:19,640 --> 01:02:22,800 Speaker 1: There is also an immigrant who's making a new life, 1063 01:02:23,600 --> 01:02:27,240 Speaker 1: you know, in a new culture. There's also a woman 1064 01:02:27,280 --> 01:02:31,920 Speaker 1: who's dating again at thirty five I think I started dating. 1065 01:02:32,000 --> 01:02:35,240 Speaker 1: I mean, you'll have listeners who are you know, maybe 1066 01:02:35,280 --> 01:02:37,959 Speaker 1: divorced or starting over at the age of forty three, 1067 01:02:38,120 --> 01:02:41,999 Speaker 1: forty five, fifty and now they're facing this, Oh my gosh, 1068 01:02:42,000 --> 01:02:44,160 Speaker 1: what do I do with this dating landscape? So there's 1069 01:02:44,200 --> 01:02:48,560 Speaker 1: also that maybe this is what makes the book surprisingly 1070 01:02:48,680 --> 01:02:52,880 Speaker 1: relatable and like normal and wholesome, as you said, because 1071 01:02:52,920 --> 01:02:55,680 Speaker 1: all of the sex, all of the raziness is situated 1072 01:02:55,760 --> 01:02:58,880 Speaker 1: in the life of a woman who's also all these 1073 01:02:58,920 --> 01:03:05,800 Speaker 1: other things and somehow making it all. You know, and 1074 01:03:05,840 --> 01:03:09,520 Speaker 1: you're doing it as well with you have your podcast. 1075 01:03:09,680 --> 01:03:14,280 Speaker 1: You are giving so much love to your husband and 1076 01:03:14,320 --> 01:03:17,120 Speaker 1: your four children. I mean, when I think of four children. 1077 01:03:17,200 --> 01:03:21,560 Speaker 1: I feel really tired, you know, so I could also 1078 01:03:21,600 --> 01:03:23,960 Speaker 1: ask you, I mean, how are you not tired? 1079 01:03:24,440 --> 01:03:27,520 Speaker 4: But maybe we all are and and we're doing it 1080 01:03:27,560 --> 01:03:31,920 Speaker 4: because somehow it gives us something that's fulfilling and rewarding, 1081 01:03:31,960 --> 01:03:34,880 Speaker 4: and the self awareness is worth it for me to 1082 01:03:34,960 --> 01:03:36,800 Speaker 4: get to these really sweet spots. 1083 01:03:37,320 --> 01:03:39,640 Speaker 1: And there are more of them than I can write 1084 01:03:39,640 --> 01:03:43,280 Speaker 1: in a book. You know, there's still there's still going on, 1085 01:03:43,480 --> 01:03:46,440 Speaker 1: Like I hop off the story you know, in the 1086 01:03:46,440 --> 01:03:49,640 Speaker 1: book at a certain point when I turned forty and 1087 01:03:49,760 --> 01:03:52,600 Speaker 1: since then, I mean there's only been more of these moments, 1088 01:03:52,640 --> 01:03:56,600 Speaker 1: and there's just and these moments of it all works, 1089 01:03:57,360 --> 01:04:00,760 Speaker 1: you know, are all really worth all of the They're 1090 01:04:00,760 --> 01:04:02,320 Speaker 1: worth the work of making them work. 1091 01:04:02,560 --> 01:04:04,680 Speaker 3: Well, that's a MOLTI for life, isn't it? 1092 01:04:04,760 --> 01:04:07,720 Speaker 1: For self renewing process? Right? It's not always going to be. 1093 01:04:07,920 --> 01:04:09,200 Speaker 1: It's not going to work. You know, we're not going 1094 01:04:09,280 --> 01:04:12,280 Speaker 1: to hit like equilibrium one day and that it's all 1095 01:04:12,320 --> 01:04:14,080 Speaker 1: going to be like that our life. 1096 01:04:14,120 --> 01:04:16,880 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like going to this, something else will come up. Yeah, 1097 01:04:16,920 --> 01:04:20,400 Speaker 2: it's not a destination. I wish I'm like, oh, it's 1098 01:04:20,520 --> 01:04:25,320 Speaker 2: it's a cheap process. Deeper, Paul, I wish you every 1099 01:04:26,080 --> 01:04:29,280 Speaker 2: luck in your life and your laves. 1100 01:04:29,880 --> 01:04:33,000 Speaker 1: Thank you so much, Keith. This has been a wonderful conversation. 1101 01:04:36,600 --> 01:04:39,240 Speaker 3: So that was Deeper, Paul. 1102 01:04:40,520 --> 01:04:43,480 Speaker 2: Most of us will never choose the path Deeper and 1103 01:04:43,560 --> 01:04:48,000 Speaker 2: Marcus have taken. But what I found so interesting is 1104 01:04:48,040 --> 01:04:51,720 Speaker 2: that they made their own rules. They decided what their 1105 01:04:51,760 --> 01:04:55,240 Speaker 2: relationship would look like following the one that they were handed. 1106 01:04:56,320 --> 01:05:00,040 Speaker 2: Deepest story isn't trying to convert anyone or convince us 1107 01:05:00,080 --> 01:05:04,840 Speaker 2: that monogamy is outdated. It simply shows that relationships don't 1108 01:05:04,880 --> 01:05:07,680 Speaker 2: all have to look the same, and that people can 1109 01:05:07,720 --> 01:05:11,760 Speaker 2: live in whatever way makes them feel most alive, most honest, 1110 01:05:12,480 --> 01:05:16,440 Speaker 2: and most connected. And for her, this is the shape 1111 01:05:16,520 --> 01:05:21,320 Speaker 2: her love story, her life story takes Deeper's book, Ask 1112 01:05:21,440 --> 01:05:24,520 Speaker 2: me how it works is out now. If this conversation 1113 01:05:24,680 --> 01:05:28,600 Speaker 2: made you think differently about marriage, desire, or the quiet 1114 01:05:28,640 --> 01:05:32,640 Speaker 2: compromises we all make, please share the episode with someone 1115 01:05:32,640 --> 01:05:36,320 Speaker 2: who'd love it. I'm kateline Brook and this is No Filter. 1116 01:05:36,880 --> 01:05:40,040 Speaker 2: The executive producer of No Filter is Nama Brown. The 1117 01:05:40,080 --> 01:05:44,360 Speaker 2: senior producer is Pre Player. Audio production is by Tina Mattalov, 1118 01:05:44,800 --> 01:05:48,240 Speaker 2: and video editing is by Josh Green. This episode was 1119 01:05:48,280 --> 01:05:50,640 Speaker 2: recorded at session in progress Studios. 1120 01:05:51,440 --> 01:05:53,000 Speaker 3: Thank you for listening. 1121 01:06:01,760 --> 01:06:05,120 Speaker 2: Mumma Mia acknowledges the traditional owners of the land waters 1122 01:06:05,160 --> 01:06:06,959 Speaker 2: that this podcast is recorded on