The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being
byJeff Ellison
SocietyCulture
Tell Us Your Story - A captivating and thought provoking podcast that intricately weaves together personal stories with timeless ancient wisdom and groundbreaking modern discoveries to unlock the profound mysteries of life.Personal stories, special edition episodes, guest hosts and our Next Gen series, celebrating the young voices that are helping make the world a kinder and less divided place.Our conversations, preserved for future generations will send the same message as the oldest known hand stenciled cave paintings made by our Neanderthal cousins over 64,000 years ago "I was here. My life was meaningful."www.thestoryofusproject.comMake sure to check...
Episodes(40 episodes)
Season 2 - Episode 16
NEXT GEN: Your Life Is An Empty Canvas... Now What? with Max McGuire
What does it actually feel like…to stand at the edge of your life…and try to figure out who you’re going to become?In this special NextGen episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Max McGuire—recent University of Tennessee graduate, adventurer, artist, and someone stepping into adulthood in real time.This conversation is a little different.Max isn’t just a guest—he’s someone Jeff knows personally (yeah, it's his daughters BOYFRIEND). Which makes this episode feel less like an interview… and more like a real, honest conversat...
Published: May 10, 2026Duration: 1h 12m 15s
Season 2 - Episode 15
The Life Most People Only Dream About- Sailing The World with Alison Gieschen
Episode TitleShe Sold Everything to Sail the World… Here’s What She Found | Alison GieschenEpisode DescriptionWhat happens when you walk away from everything you’ve built…and choose a life most people only dream about?In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Alison Gieschen—author, storyteller, and global sailor—who made a bold decision alongside her husband to sell everything they owned and circumnavigate the world by sailboat.Since then, they’ve traveled across five continents, visited over 50 countries, and lived a li...
Published: May 3, 2026Duration: 53m 52s
Season 2 - Episode 14
May The Schwartz Be With You - Chasing the Inexplicable Something with Calvin Schwartz
Some lives don't follow a script. They follow a feeling — an inexplicable something that whispers just loud enough to be heard over the noise of the ordinary. Calvin Schwartz has been listening to that whisper his whole life, and what it's led him to is nothing short of extraordinary.Calvin joins us today as the host of We the Species, a podcast over 700 conversations deep that explores the big, beautiful, unanswerable questions about humanity, connection, and what it means to be alive. If you haven't found it yet, consider this your sign.In this episode, Ca...
Published: Apr 26, 2026Duration: 1h 3m 33s
Season 2 - Episode 13
SPECIAL EDITION: You Can Be a “Man’s Man” Without Being an Asshole
What does it actually mean to be a “tough guy”?Lately, that definition feels… off. Somewhere along the way, toughness has been confused with anger. Strength with cruelty. Confidence with tearing other people down.In this solo episode of The Story of Us, Jeff steps back and challenges that idea.This one is personal.Through the lens of his son Brady—a welder, diesel mechanic, and what most would call a “man’s man”—Jeff explores the difference between being disciplined, resilient, and capable… versus being closed off, hateful, or divisive.Because those...
Published: Apr 21, 2026Duration: 19m 10s
Season 2 - Episode 12
Is the World Falling Apart…or Waking Up? with Scott Paradis
Something feels… off.The world we thought we understood doesn’t quite make sense anymore. Institutions feel shaky. The rules seem unclear. And underneath it all, there’s this quiet, persistent question:Is everything falling apart… or are we being pushed into something new?In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Scott Paradis—retired U.S. Army Colonel, Congressional Fellow, and National Security Fellow at Harvard—to explore one of the most important questions of our time.Drawing from decades inside systems of power, Scott offers a bold persp...
Published: Apr 19, 2026Duration: 57m 22s
Season 2 - Episode 11
From The Big Bang to Space Colonies: 13.8 Billion Years (in 60ish minutes) with Richard Anderson
From Big Bang to Space Colonies (13.8 Billion Years in Under 90 Minutes) | with Richard AndersonWhat if the story of your life didn't begin when you were born — but 13.8 billion years ago in a single flash of energy that contained, quite literally, everything?In this episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, we sit down with Richard Anderson — molecular biologist, clinical scientist, and author of The Evolution of Life, Big Bang to Space Colonies — for a conversation that begins at the beginning and somehow still manages to feel personal by the...
Published: Apr 12, 2026Duration: 1h 12m 21s
Season 2 - Episode 10
The Fiercest Kind of Love with Shannon Carmicle Crawford
This episode carries a different weight—one built not on tragedy alone, but on quiet, relentless strength.Jeff sits down with Shannon Carmichael Crawford, a Louisville native, former record-breaking swimmer, teacher, mother, and now fierce advocate. Her story moves from a joyful childhood and deep-rooted friendships to a life reshaped by profound challenges—and purpose.Shannon and her late husband Scott built a life centered on family, raising their daughter Caitlin and son Chase. When Chase was diagnosed with profound autism, everything changed. What followed was a relentless journey through therapies, medical systems, and uncertainty—naviga...
Published: Apr 5, 2026Duration: 1h 12m 43s
Season 2 - Episode 9
SPECIAL EDITION: The Stranger in the Mirror
You've changed. More than you know. More than you're probably comfortable admitting.Not gradually. Not just a little. Fundamentally. Repeatedly. And you're not done yet.In this rare and deeply personal solo episode, host Jeff Ellison steps away from the guest chair and turns the microphone — and the mirror — on himself. What begins with an ordinary Tuesday morning and a steamed-up bathroom mirror becomes something far more searching: a raw, honest, and at times uncomfortably beautiful meditation on identity, impermanence, and what it means to keep becoming someone new while carrying everything you've already been.<p...
Published: Mar 29, 2026Duration: 20m 2s
Season 2 - Episode 8
Eyes, See Me Too: The Proverbs and Parables That Unite Us with Chris Morehouse
What if the world's great wisdom traditions aren't competing with one another — but have been quietly agreeing for thousands of years?In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Chris Morehouse, author of the remarkable book Legacy: Wisdom of African Traditions and the Bible — a seven-year labor of love that places nearly 300 African proverbs alongside biblical scripture, not to blur their differences, but to illuminate their profound and often stunning similarities.Chris grew up in suburban Philadelphia, the son of theater people, raised with an open mind and a restless curiosity that...
Published: Mar 22, 2026Duration: 1h 4m 40s
Season 2 - Episode 7
We Will Fight on Forever: Delivering Packets of Hope with Jill Chalsty
What happens when the hardest moments of life become the seed for a lifelong mission?In this episode of The Story of Us, Jeff Ellison sits down with Jill Chalsty, founder of the global life-skills initiative Overcoming Obstacles and author of Packets of Hope. Jill shares the remarkable journey that began with childhood bullying and evolved into a curriculum that has reached over 180 million students in nearly 200 countries.Her story takes a powerful turn after the loss of her husband and her own battles with cancer. Facing grief and uncertainty, Jill embarked on a 107-day...
Published: Mar 15, 2026Duration: 1h 7m 36s
Season 2 - Episode 6
Don’t Hurt People: A Lesson Learned the Hard Way—War, Prison, and Divine Grace with Jack Hager
Jack Hager joins Jeff Ellison for a raw, wide-ranging conversation tracing his journey from a transient military childhood and early addiction, to combat in Vietnam, involvement in smuggling and organized crime, and a 10-year prison sentence. In a Texas jail cell—through boredom, books, and an unexpected encounter with the Gospels—Jack experiences a faith conversion that reshapes his worldview and sets him on a decades-long path of prison ministry.Along the way, Jack returns again and again to personal responsibility: “You make your choices, then your choices make you.” The episode explores war’s moral complexity, the scars...
Published: Mar 8, 2026Duration: 1h 10m 30s
Season 2 - Episode 5
Forged for Battle. Grounded in Peace with Jeff Patterson
What if becoming stronger has less to do with pushing harder… and more to do with yielding?In this conversation, Jeff Ellison sits down with Jeff Patterson—martial artist, meditation teacher, and author of The Yielding Warrior—to explore the surprising intersection of combat and consciousness.With 36+ years of training (and black belt equivalencies across multiple disciplines), Jeff could absolutely toss most of us like a beach towel in a hurricane… but he’s devoted his life to something quieter and far more powerful: breath, awareness, regulation, and intelligent response.You’ll learn why distract...
Published: Mar 1, 2026Duration: 57m 54s
Season 2 - Episode 4
SPECIAL EDITION: You Aren’t a Machine
In this special solo episode of The Story of Us, Jeff reflects on a truth many of us have forgotten:We are not machines.On the heels of his conversation with Melanie Love (Let It Be Enough), Jeff explores the deeper cultural and biological forces that keep us overworked, overstimulated, and overwhelmed.Why do we treat ourselves like devices — charging overnight, powering through daylight, running task after task until something inside us glitches?Why does modern life feel like an endless treadmill set a few speeds too high?This ep...
Published: Feb 22, 2026Duration: 23m 13s
Season 2 - Episode 3
Let It Be Enough with Melanie Love
In this Valentine’s Day episode of The Story of Us, Jeff sits down with Melanie Love — a former investment manager turned chronic pain advocate and founder of (un)block — for a deeply honest conversation about reinvention, healing, and embodiment.Jeff first met Melanie at an event hosted by Season 1 guest Molly Jones. What began as an organic connection around chronic pain and shared purpose turned into a powerful dialogue recorded at Jeff’s kitchen table.Melanie shares her journey growing up in Calgary, Canada, the influence of her grandparents, and her impressive career in internat...
Published: Feb 16, 2026Duration: 1h 9m 32s
Season 2 - Episode 2
Get Off The Bus: The Traveler’s Path with Doug Brouwer
What if travel isn’t about where we go — but about who we become along the way?In this episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, Jeff Ellison is joined by Doug Brouwer, Presbyterian pastor, author, and lifelong traveler, for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like a shared walk on a winding path.Doug has spent more than four decades in ministry, serving congregations across the United States and Europe, learning new languages later in life, leading pilgrimages, and listening deeply — in sanctuaries, prison...
Published: Feb 8, 2026Duration: 1h 7m 46s
Season 2 - Episode 1
Season 2 Kickoff - Turning the Page
Welcome back to The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being.In this opening episode of Season Two, I want to slow things down for a moment and let you into the why behind this project—how it started, what Season One taught me, and why we’re continuing the journey together.This episode is part reflection, part gratitude, part gentle nudge forward.I share how turning 50, navigating chronic pain, watching my kids grow up and move outward, and feeling my own body push back forced me to finally open...
Published: Feb 3, 2026Duration: 16m 49s
Season 1 - Episode 17
SEASON FINALE: What If Life Really Did Have An Easy Button? The Answer Might Surprise You.
We’re wrapping Season 1 of The Story of Us—and closing the book on 2025—with a cup of coffee (maybe the 12th), a little laughter, and a lot of heart.From an imperfect first recording around a kitchen table to conversations about pain, compassion, mental health, faith, and the sacred “middle lane” of life, Season 1 was about learning to listen—and remembering why stories matter.In this finale, Jeff shares his biggest takeaway from 2025: we may not get an Easy Button for life… but we can press what he calls the Easier Button—the practice of loosening our...
Published: Dec 28, 2025Duration: 33m 51s
Season 1 - Episode 16
Under The Hood: Finding Peace in a Noisy World with Brady Ellison
“Some people become like a sunrise; others like a storm over the ocean. Both are beautiful in their own way.”In this deeply personal — and often hilarious — father-son conversation, Jeff sits down with his 23-year-old son, Brady Ellison, to reflect on the journey of becoming a man.Brady opens up about growing up a camo-clad, Lego-scattering, ninja-star-crafting kid who could break an AC unit faster than most people could turn one on… and the outdoor adventures, mishaps, and long list of injuries that shaped him along the way. From early mornings in deer stands to legendary...
Published: Dec 15, 2025Duration: 1h 12m 43s
Season 1 - Episode 15
SPECIAL EDITION: Be Patient With Me... I’m From the 1900’s
In this solo episode of The Story of Us: From Cosmic Dawn to the Depths of Being, Jeff Ellison pulls on his 1990 J-Town All-Stars gear, climbs into the time machine, and takes us from pay phones and Blockbuster late fees to the always-on, always-scrolling world we live in today.Born in 1975—the same year as Microsoft, home Pong, and the Betamax—Jeff and his buddies have lived through more technological shifts in 50 years than any generation in human history. From paper maps and pagers to AOL dial-up, smartphones, and rage-bait algorithms, he unpacks what this “technology tsunami” is doing...
Published: Dec 9, 2025Duration: 24m 41s
Season 1 - Episode 14
Love, Loss and the Light That Follows - The Story of Molly Cassaro Jones
Recorded at Jeff's kitchen table on a cold, rainy late October night, this conversation traces a lineage of people helping people. Molly Cassaro Jones—daughter of Irish and Italian second-generation immigrant families—grew up watching her grandfather defend dispossessed renters in Depression-era New York, her mother choose integration in 1960s Florida (“because I can make this choice now”), and her father welcome Iranian students during the hostage crisis. That inheritance of courage met an unthinkable loss when one of Molly’s 5 children, her son Pete, a gifted, big-hearted twin, elected to take his own life by suicide at the age of 23...
Published: Nov 9, 2025Duration: 1h 1m 51s