This week, Orla and Leanne sit down for an honest conversation about friendship, childhood, parenting and how much life has changed.

After reconnecting with childhood friend Jill, they reflect on old friendships, growing up, the loss of community, and how childhood today compares with their own.

From funny memories to heavier conversations around the Magdalene laundries, social media, parenting pressures and loneliness, the episode ultimately comes back to one thing: connection.

**Content note:** This episode includes discussion of the Magdalene laundries, violence, child protection concerns, discrimination against Traveller families and a brief reference to self-harm.

Timecodes
[00:00] – Intro: Friendship, childhood and memories from last week’s episode
[01:24] – Reconnecting with old friends
[02:14] – How easily years can pass without seeing people
[03:24] – Nights out, friendship and mam guilt
[04:40] – Childhood expectations then versus now
[05:12] – Electric Picnic and time with friends
[06:11] – How friendship groups change over time
[07:09] – Growing up beside a Magdalene laundry
[08:19] – Remembering the women who lived and worked there
[09:11] – Looking back and understanding it differently as adults
[10:24] – What happened after the laundries closed?
[11:57] – Growing up near a convicted murderer
[13:27] – Dark realities in the background of childhood
[14:19] – Connolly Station and childhood adventures
[15:07] – Rainbow Rapids and getting stranded without train fare
[17:11] – Childhood independence then versus now
[18:06] – The dangerous games they somehow survived
[19:48] – Why children text instead of knocking on doors
[20:49] – Read receipts, anxiety and instant replies
[21:46] – Putting the phone away and being present
[22:34] – Watching concerts through phone screens
[23:22] – Social media versus reality
[24:12] – When being grounded actually felt like punishment
[24:57] – Youth clubs, summer projects and community
[26:06] – How youth workers supported vulnerable children
[26:54] – Teaching basic life skills
[28:00] – Childhood school mornings and family routines
[29:27] – Creating positive mornings for your own children
[30:14] – Children arriving at school after chaos at home
[31:39] – The importance of emotional regulation before school
[33:10] – Mitching school before apps and notifications
[34:38] – Pressure on parents, teachers and schools
[35:08] – Traveller families and the realities children faced
[36:18] – Discrimination within the education system
[37:16] – Why many problems facing children are systemic
[38:21] – Housing, overcrowding and loss of community space
[39:06] – Remembering community life in Ballymun
[40:03] – Planning decisions and listening to communities
[42:01] – Building spaces without asking what families need
[42:25] – Expensive experiences versus simple childhood fun
[44:34] – Cousins, summer projects and family days out
[45:19] – Simple days out and sharing a bag of chips
[46:00] – Electric Picnic bringing back old memories
[47:16] – Recreating childhood memories with the next generation
[49:04] – Busy lives, loneliness and lost connection
[49:31] – Has social media changed friendship?
[50:38] – Thinking of an old friend? Send the text
[51:22] – Not wanting funerals to be the only reunion
[52:18] – Friendship as chosen family
[53:35] – Social media and young people
[54:17] – Entitlement, expectations and family pressures
[55:48] – “Kids have forgotten how to be kids”
[56:49] – How birthdays have changed
[57:34] – Christmas Eve boxes, Halloween boxes and more
[58:27] – Remembering old Halloween traditions
[59:05] – Bring back fun, friendship and connection
[59:30] – Final thoughts: make time for real human connection