Modern Love

When you're dealing with a tragedy, it can feel like you would do anything for an ordinary day. But those ordinary days can come with their own complications. Ginnifer Goodwin ("The Twilight Zone") reads Monica Wesolowska's essay.

When we take stock of the people who matter most to us, there are the spouses, the family members, the best friends, the partners. And then there are the people who aren’t any of those things, but who change our lives anyway. Emily Raboteau's essay is about one of those people. It's read by Lake Bell ("Bless this Mess.")

Under normal circumstances, trying to find love can be challenging -- and stressful. And for Elizabeth Koster, the pressure was even more intense. Sarah Goldberg (HBO's "Barry") reads Elizabeth's essay.

Love thrives on good communication. It can take many forms -- but what happens when you suddenly lose what was once your primary means of communication? Pedro Pascal ("King Lear," "Game of Thrones") reads Jamison's essay.

What happens when you know you want to marry someone, but you are also are falling in love with someone else? Is there a way for you to have everything? Sophie Lucido Johnson's essay is read by DeWanda Wise ("She's Gotta Have It").

Interracial relationships come with their own complexities, and there are a lot of questions that come up. Questions like: How does your partner think about race? How do you talk about it? What works, and what doesn't? Kim McLarin writes about race and dating in her piece, which is read by Lorraine Toussaint ("The Village").

Anna Chlumsky ("Veep") reads Brooks Rinehart's essay, on 90 days that changed the entire course of one family's life.

When it comes to dating, Amy Cohen says this: "We all need to be reincarnated as an older Jewish man with an apartment on the Upper East Side.” Natasha Lyonne ("Russian Doll") reads Amy's essay about the difference between her 76-year-old father's dating life and her own.

How much can you give of yourself before it’s too much? And what do you do when you reach your limit? Nazanin Boniadi ("Hotel Mumbai") reads Tara Ebrahimi's essay.

Catherine O'Hara ("Schitt's Creek") reads Patricia Morrisroe's essay, about a piece of technology that complicates a marriage.

Dementia can alter someone's personality and change how how they interact with the world. But sometimes, it can also lead to moments of profound connection. Jenny McPhee writes about one of those moments in her piece, which is read by Zoe Saldana.

Therapists' offices are supposed to be places where you can be both vulnerable and safe. But what happens when your therapist crosses a line? That happened to Julianna Baggott -- and she writes about it an an essay that's read by Isabelle Huppert ("Greta").

You know the phase. The one when you're going back and forth between your place and your partner's, and you have to bring all your stuff with you.  But when is it time to make a change? Deanna Clevesy's essay is read by Christina Hendricks ("Good Girls").

Have you ever dated someone living in a studio apartment with a pet? If so, how did you handle the logistics around sex? Ryan Pfeffer writes about how he dealt with that situation in his essay, which was performed by William Jackson Harper ("The Good Place") in front of a live audience at the Huntington Avenue Theatre in Boston.

Last week, you heard an essay by Amy Krouse Rosenthal -- "You May Want to Marry my Husband." It was published just days before she died of ovarian cancer. Today, André Holland of "High Flying Bird" reads the essay her husband Jason wrote in response last summer, and we hear from Jason himself about how he's doing today.

Debra Winger reads the late Amy Krouse Rosenthal's essay about her fairytale love story, which was cut short by cancer. This is an encore presentation.

We're celebrating the 91st Academy Awards by revisiting two of our favorite episodes featuring nominated actors. We'll hear pieces read by Rachel Weisz of "The Favourite," and Willem Dafoe, of "At Eternity's Gate."

It's easy to single out the biggest decisions in a life. But this week's essay by Ann Leary is about little choices, that you might not think about very much in the moment, that end up slowly changing everything. It's read by Connie Nielsen ("I Am the Night").

Nikolina Kulidzan was twelve years old when she fell in love for the first time. Not long after, the Bosnian War changed her life forever. Her essay is read by Joanna Kulig ("Cold War").

How do you talk to your children about loss? What secrets do you keep, and for how long? And when do you decide to tell them everything? Emily Listfield faces those questions in her essay, read by Carmen Ejogo ("True Detective.")

When you think back to sex ed class, it's not hard to come up with a couple of memories that might have scarred you for life. But actor Gillian Anderson reads an essay that shows it can be equally scarring for the parents.

Happy Holidays from all of us at Modern Love! We will be back with brand new episodes in 2019, but today, we're bringing you a playlist of our favorite holiday episodes from the past two years. 

When people ask for advice, do they really want to hear what you have to say? Sometimes it's hardest to find a friend who can give just a simple, sympathetic ear. Actor Laura Dern takes us deep into a friendship that experienced a unique evolution. This is an encore presentation.

Getting undressed in front of your partner can be really hard. And for Jameson Rich, is was even more complicated. He writes about it in his piece, which is read by Finn Wittrock ("Write When You Get Work").

When Rand Richards Cooper was in his 40s, he was faced with a question: How late is too late to first become a dad? He writes about it in his essay, which is read by Stanley Tucci ("A Private War").