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Special Episode: Letting Go and Holding On · Divas That Care Network

• 0:32
  SPEAKER_07: Well, hello everyone, and welcome back to the Diva Zat Care.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_07: My name is Candace Gish.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_07: I'm so excited that each and every one of you has tuned in to today's program.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_07: We've been doing a series of special episodes lately.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_07: What I'm doing, along with a few of the other hosts, is interviewing some amazing women that are part of an anthology, Animal Prince on My Soul.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_07: And today's guest is Donna Polymer.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_07: And I am beyond excited to be having her.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_07: This is the very first time I've had the opportunity to interview her.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_07: And she's her story is actually called Letting Go and Holding On.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_07: So we're so excited to be chatting about that.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_07: If this is your very first time tuning into the Divaset Care, a huge welcome.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_07: The Divasat Care is now its 11th season.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_07: We are listened to in over 30 countries around the world.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_07: So we're so excited about that.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_07: You can listen to all of our other shows at divasetcare.com.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_07: All right, as I said, we have a special show today.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_07: Donna, welcome.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_04: Hi, Candace.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you so much.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_04: It's great to be here.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_07: I am so excited to finally be chatting with you.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_05: So, Donna, before we kind of dive into your story, would you share a little bit about yourself?
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_07: Sure.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_07: I am a lifelong resident of New Jersey, and I am dedicated, um dedicated my life to the pursuit of dark chocolate around the globe, as well as making sure that myself and my friends and women in general take the time to have some fun.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_07: It's just life is very, very serious, and there's so many responsibilities and things to do that we really we really owe it to ourselves to have some fun.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_07: And I'm I'm determined to incorporate that in every woman's life.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_07: What a great mission.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_07: You know, if that's what your mission is, I'm like, I love it, and I love the dark chocolate part of it.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_07: I'm like, yes, that is definitely what I need at this point in time.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_07: Excited that you have um submitted your story to our anthology.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_07: I was beyond excited about that.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_07: Would you mind sharing with us why you decided to do that?
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_07: Sure.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_07: Um, I think pets play such an important role in our lives, um, and they're here just out of pure love, and to be able to celebrate that and to celebrate my special pet with the world is is very meaningful to me.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_07: And also to hear how other people's pets inspire them, there's some very interesting stories.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_07: Isn't that the truth?
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_07: I love animal stories, and that's why I was so excited to be doing this anthology.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_07: So, what is your story about?
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_07: Well, it started out with me surprisingly rescuing a cat and then discovering that we actually rescued each other, which was an even bigger surprise.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_07: Um, I thought that I was doing something nice by getting her out of the shelter and you know, being able to share my life with her, and actually I think she she did more for me than I did for her.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_07: So I I'm very, very grateful for that.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_07: I love stories like that.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_07: I always thought my animals have have changed my life, have impacted me in such a positive way, in ways that I could never have even imagined.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_07: And exactly.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_07: I I and I I think a lot of people feel that way.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_07: Yes, they're very, very special.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_07: You know, some of the stuff you couldn't make up if you tried, and the amount of love that you get back from them is like a hundredfold if that's even possible.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_07: And it's just it's so beautiful.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_07: Tell me a little bit about your cat.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_07: Why did you decide to write the specific story?
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_07: I think it's a way of me acknowledging, too, that if I take myself seriously, that I need to lighten up.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_07: Um, just also because I said that fun is so important to me, she reminds me of that.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_07: Uh her nickname is actually Monk, which is short for monkey, because she goes into these wild fits of craziness where she runs around and then she looks at the ceiling to plot to climb the ceiling.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_07: And I constantly remind her, you can't do that, but she hasn't given up yet.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_07: But she's she's like a monkey more than a cat.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_07: And you know, I could have the most serious day, I could, you know, be coming out of a crying jag, and there she is looking at me like, okay, can you make a different choice?
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_07: Can we just play for a little while?
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_07: Let's just forget about that nonsense for a while and just have fun with me.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_07: And you can go back to that later, it'll be there, but just for now, let's do something fun.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_07: And I I so appreciate that.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_07: The last couple years have been quite trying on individuals, and to me, having an animal especially now, I think has really been important to people.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_08: I don't think I could have made it through without her.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_07: You know, it's such such time of uncertainty and fear and concern to to have gone that walk by myself.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_07: I don't I don't think I would have made it through as successfully as I did.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_07: Yep.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_07: I think that's what animals are doing.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_07: And so I'm gonna ask you, do you think it's really important for people to check this book out?
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, absolutely.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_07: This the stories are inspiring.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_07: There's you could laugh, you can cry, and there's a a great way that you connect b uh um through understanding of exactly what they're saying and feeling.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_07: And that's I think that that's the magic of the book.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_07: Well, and it and it's funny, I I was telling people before we had put this anthology together, one of the biggest things that I like doing is watching even YouTube videos of animals and animal stories and bring a smile to my face and feeling that empathy again, being surrounded with animals and brings it back to us.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_07: Yes, yes, and especially since their their presence is so big, but sometimes, especially like if you don't know what to say or or how you're feeling, with them just being there and they can't really speak, you don't need to because they're there, they're holding space with you.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_07: They're sharing they're sharing that moment.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_07: And they're just holding that space and saying, Okay, everything's gonna be okay.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_07: We'll get through this together.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_07: And you know, there are a lot of times where there's there's no words needed, and sometimes it's impossible to what to say.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_07: So they they they bypass all that and they're they're just a hundred percent present, and that is what makes us get through it all.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, I love how you just said that, being a hundred percent present.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_07: And I think that's what the animals do for us.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_07: They really are just present when we just need that.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_08: Yes, they have that that special magic.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_07: I am just beyond excited and grateful that you did submit this amazing story to our anthology.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_07: We are beyond grateful to have you a part of our diva family.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_07: Um, one of the things I want to ask you is how can our listeners get a hold of you if they want to, you know, learn more about you?
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, awesome.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you for this opportunity too.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_07: Um I'd say um you can reach me at the Menopause Far um themetopausefairy.com or actually specifically Donna at themenopausefairy.com.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_07: Donna, we're definitely gonna have to have you back on our program in the new year because I'd love to chat more about what you do.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_07: Fantastic.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_07: I look forward to that.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_07: Me too.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_07: And thank you to all of our listeners that have been checking out these special episodes for the Divas That Care, this new brand new anthology, Animal Prince on My Soul.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_07: We're so excited about this anthology.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_07: It's going to impact so many people.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_07: Again, thank you to Donna for being my amazing guest today, uh, for being a part of our anthology, and a thank you to all of our listeners that have been a part of the Divas that care journey.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_07: We are so thankful to each and every one of you.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_07: I hope that all of you have a fantastic day.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_07: Have a great Christmas season, and please be kind.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_07: Until next time, everyone.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_01: Stories, strategies, and ideas to inspire positive change.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Divas the Care, a network of women committed to making our world a better place for everyone.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_01: This is a global movement for women by women engaged in a collaborative effort to create a better world for future generations.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_01: To find out more about the movement, visit divashatcare.com after the show.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: Right now, though, stay tuned for another jolt of inspiration.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_07: Well, hello everyone, and welcome back to the Divas That Care.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_07: My name is Candace Gish.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_07: I'm so excited that each and every one of you has tuned in to today's program.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_07: We've been doing a series of special episodes lately.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_07: Um, what I'm doing, along with a few of the other hosts, is interviewing some amazing women that are part of an anthology, Animal Prince on My Soul.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_07: And today's guest is Donna Polymer.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_07: And I am beyond excited to be having her.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_07: This is the very first time I've had the opportunity to interview her.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_07: And she's her story is actually called Letting Go and Holding On.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_07: So we're so excited to be chatting about that.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_07: If this is your very first time tuning into the Divas at Care, a huge welcome.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_07: The Divas That Care is now its 11th season.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_07: We are listened to in over 30 countries around the world, so we're so excited about that.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_07: Uh you can listen to all of our other shows at divashatcare.com.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_07: All right, as I said, we have a special show today.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_07: Donna, welcome to our show today.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_04: Hi, Candace.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you so much.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_04: It's great to be here.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_07: I am so excited to finally be chatting with you.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_05: So, Donna, before we kind of dive into your story, would you share a little bit about yourself?
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_07: Sure.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_07: Um, I am a lifelong resident of New Jersey, and I am dedicated, um dedicated my life to the pursuit of dark chocolate around the globe, as well as uh making sure that myself and my friends and women in general take the time to have some fun.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_07: It's just life is very, very serious, and there's so many responsibilities and things to do that we really we really owe it to ourselves to have some fun.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_07: And I'm I'm determined to incorporate that in every woman's life.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_07: What a great mission.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_07: You know, if that's what your mission is, I'm like, I love it, and I love the dark chocolate part of it.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_07: I'm like, yes, that is definitely what I need at this point in time.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_07: Excited that you have um submitted your story to our anthology.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_07: I was beyond excited about that.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_07: Would you mind sharing with us why you decided to do that?
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_07: Sure.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_07: Um, I think pets play such an important role in our lives, um, and they're here just out of pure love, and to be able to celebrate that and to celebrate my special pet with the world is is very meaningful to me.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_07: And also to hear how other people's pets inspire them, there's some very interesting stories.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_07: Isn't that the truth?
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_07: I love animal stories, and that's why I was so excited to be doing this anthology.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_07: So, what is your story about?
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_07: Well, it started out with me surprisingly rescuing a cat and then discovering that we actually rescued each other, which was an even bigger surprise.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_07: Um, I thought that I was doing something nice by getting her out of the shelter and you know, being able to share my life with her, and actually I think she she did more for me than I did for her.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_07: So I I'm very, very grateful for that.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_07: Oh my goodness, isn't that I love stories like that.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_07: I always thought my animals have have changed my life, have impacted me in such a positive way, in ways that I could never have even imagined.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_07: And exactly.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_07: I I and I I think a lot of people feel that way.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_07: Yes, they're very, very special.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_07: It's it's you know, some of the stuff you couldn't make up if you tried, and the amount of love that you get back from them is like a hundredfold if that's even possible.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_07: And it's just it's so beautiful.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_07: So tell me, I I know that we're gonna be talking you've already said that in your story, but tell me a little bit about your cat.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_07: You know, why is this cat, you know, so important?
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_07: Why did you decide to write this p specific story?
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_07: Uh obviously she's made such a big impact on you, but you know, why else?
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_07: Why would you have done this?
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_07: Um I think it's a way of me acknowledging too that if I take myself seriously, that I need to lighten up.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_07: Um, just also because I said that fun is so important to me, she reminds me of that.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_07: Uh her nickname is actually Monk, which is short for monkey, because she goes into these wild fits of craziness where she runs around and then she looks at the ceiling to plot to climb the ceiling.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_07: And I constantly remind her, you can't do that, but she hasn't given up yet.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_07: But she's she's like a monkey more than a cat.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_07: And you know, I could have the most serious day, I could, you know, be coming out of a crying jag, and there she is looking at me like, okay, can you make a different choice?
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_07: Can we just play for a little while?
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_07: Let's just forget about that nonsense for a while and just have fun with me.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_07: And you can go back to that later, it'll be there, but just for now, let's do something fun.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_07: And I I so appreciate that.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_07: Oh wow.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_07: And you know, having her in your life has probably been a really amazing experience, probably also through this whole uh I would say the last couple years have been quite trying on individuals.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_07: And to me, having an animal in our lives, especially now, I think has really been important to people.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_08: I don't think I could have made it through without her.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_07: You know, that's such such time of uncertainty and fear and concern to to have gone that walk by myself.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_07: I don't I don't think I would have made it through as successfully as I did.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_07: I love that.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_08: I feel the same way.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_07: I yeah.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_07: I think that's what animals are doing.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_07: And so I'm gonna ask you, you know, you've just submitted your story to the Synthology, you know, we've it's gonna be coming out here right away.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_07: Do you think it's really important for people to check this book out?
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, absolutely.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_07: This the stories are inspiring.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_07: There's you can laugh, you can cry, and there's a a great way that you connect um through understanding of exactly what they're saying and feeling.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_07: And that's I think that that's the magic of the book.
• 16:26
  unknown: Yeah.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_07: Well, and it's funny.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_07: I I was telling people before we had put this anthology together, one of the biggest things that I like doing is watching even YouTube videos of animals and animal stories and how I was feeling.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_07: I would it would just bring a smile to my face and feeling that empathy again.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_07: I think as humans we're we've gone through such trials and tribulations in the last little while that sometimes that humanness inside of us has been put away to the side and I think being surrounded with animals and brings it back to us.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_07: Yes, yes, and especially since they're their presence is so big, but sometimes, especially like if you don't know what to say or or how you're feeling, with them just being there and they can't really speak, you don't need to because they're there, they're holding space with you.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_07: They're sharing they're sharing that moment.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_07: And they're just holding that space and saying, Okay, everything's gonna be okay.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_07: We'll get through this together.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_07: And you know, there are a lot of times where there's there's no words needed, and sometimes you impossibly think of what to say.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_07: So they they they bypass all that and they're they're just a hundred percent present, and that is what makes us get through it all.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, I love how you just said that, being a hundred percent present, because that's exactly what I felt, even with my my dog that we had re got, um my husband had actually before this would all happen, got us a puppy, and it was designed for my children.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_07: You know, he he knew that our older our dog was getting older and we needed to start doing that adjustment period and getting a new dog into our lives and you know, so the two of them could bond and and so forth.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_07: And and I realized through this whole transition that the dog ended up being there for me and and helping me keep everybody else in our family kind of stable because he was there for me to help I just laugh because he brings a smile to my face constantly.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_07: Like I I laugh, I but and I just he's there.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_07: He knows when there's something going on, I just pet him and everything is okay.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_07: And I think that's what the animals do for us.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_07: They really are just present when we just need that.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_08: Yes, they have that that special magic.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, I love that.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_07: I am just beyond excited and grateful that you did submit this amazing story to our anthology.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_07: We are beyond grateful to have you a part of our diva family.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_07: Um, one of the things I want to ask you is, Donna, how do our listeners, you know, you've got all these amazing things happening outside of this particular story, but how can our listeners get a hold of you if they want to, you know, learn more about you?
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, awesome.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you for this opportunity, too.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_07: Um I'd say um you can reach me at the Menopause Far um the MenopauseFairy.com or actually specifically Donna at themopausefairy.com.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, that's wonderful.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_07: And it's great.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_07: And Donna, we're definitely gonna have to have you back on our program in the new year because I'd love to chat more about what you do.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_07: Fantastic.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_07: I look forward to that.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_07: Me too.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_07: And thank you to all of our listeners that have been checking out these special episodes for the Diva Zet Care.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_07: This new brand new anthology, Animal Prince on My Soul.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_07: We're so excited about this anthology.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_07: It's going to impact so many people.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_07: And remember, the proceeds of this book will be going to different charities around the world, animal charity charities specifically.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_07: So, you know, please check them out.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_07: If you've got a chance, purchase one for yourself and perhaps even give one to somebody else.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_07: Again, thank you to Donna for being my amazing guest today, uh, for being a part of our anthology, and to thank you to all of our listeners that have been a part of the Diva Zite Care journey.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_07: We are so thankful to each and every one of you.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_07: I hope that all of you have a fantastic day.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_07: Have a great Christmas season, and please be kind.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_07: Until next time, everyone.