We dubbed this episode "Slow Reading", and in it we discuss the art of reading well, the importance of community in reading, and practical strategies for deepening our engagement with books and poetry. We share some of our personal practices and note-taking methods, and we talk about how reading influences our writing and spiritual growth.

McEntyre invites us to enter a text, eat it, and breathe it.

“If you’re reading slowly, listening to be addressed, one word or another will summon you. Those are the places where, instead of going on, you go in. You pause. you do that countercultural thing you can’t do at the movies: you stop.”

Trouble Seat:

“A Little Lectio,” by Megan Willome

Mentions in this episode:

• Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, by Marilyn McIntyre
• The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne (yes, you read that correctly, he of Pooh fame)

What we’re reading:

• Megan: Bea Wolf, by Zach Weinersmith, art by Boulet
• Callie: Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim David Sedaris
• Tresta: Galahad and the Grail by Malcolm Guite

Visit us at https://necessarytroublepodcast.substack.com/ to read the revised essays from each episode, find links to each of our websites, and more.

In this episode, we explore the importance of honesty, trust, and boundaries in life and writing, inspired by Marilyn McEntyre's insights on truth telling and the power of metaphor. We also get a little glimpse into Tresta's forthcoming book 'More Beautiful Than Necessary: Finding God's Goodness in a Life Beyond My Control', releasing October 14, 2026.

McEntyre offers questions to pose about our news sources, including:

“Who is framing the questions? What questions are conspicuously not being addressed—or being consigned to a back page, or a subordinate clause? Who is selecting? Sequencing? Explaining?”

Trouble Seat:

“April Fool,” by Callie Feyen

Mentions in this episode:

• Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, by Marilyn McIntyre
• The Geography of Memory: A Pilgrimage Through Alzheimer’s, by Jeanne Murray Walker

What we’re reading:

• Megan: Stella Maris by Cormac McCarthy
• Callie: Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
• Tresta: Life, and Death, and Giants by Ron Rindo

Visit us at https://necessarytroublepodcast.substack.com/ to read the revised essays from each episode, find links to each of our websites, and more.

In this episode we explore Marilyn McEntyre's insights on truth, the craft of writing, and the importance of honesty and humility in storytelling. Callie expounds on the value of scene and reflection, and we give practical tips for writers seeking authenticity.

McEntyre offers a list of distinguishing characteristics of truth, including:

“Truth is not two-sided; it’s many-sided.

Truth burrows in the body.

Truth flickers.”

Trouble Seat:

“Sorting Truth,” by Tresta Payne

Mentions in this episode:

• Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, by Marilyn McIntyre
• Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge, by Mem Fox
• The Daily Poem podcast

What we’re reading:

• Megan: Lonesome Dove
• Callie: Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
• Tresta: The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green

Visit us at https://necessarytroublepodcast.substack.com/ to read the revised essays from each episode, find links to each of our websites, and more.