This episode features two stories from our recent World Refugee Day storytelling event, stories that highlight courageous journeys of leaving everything behind to seek asylum in the US.

Arina Lekht was a child when she and her family fled Odessa, Ukraine in September 1991. Her story weaves humor and heartbreak as she tells of the unbelievable events leading up to and during her family’s departure. Hayman Linn Lae Zaw left her home in Burma in 2022 after the military coup and subsequent state-sponsored violence on civilians. Hayman’s story uncovers her difficult decision to flee her country and settle in North Carolina.

Both storytellers show us what courage looks like: the courage to leave, the courage to find home in a new place, and the courage to belong in a world with borders.

The Flame Tree Story podcast is produced by Story First Design.

In this final episode from our World Water Day storytelling event, two environmental leaders share the profound gift of witnessing children discover water and nature, as if for the first time.

Hannah Welborn-Lewis coordinates the Haw River Learning Celebration, a field trip program where students from across the area come to wade creeks, catch critters, and witness wildlife in their local river. Randee Haven O'Donnell reflects on her final science field trip to the creek after decades of guiding young people in biotic discovery both in and outside of the classroom.

Both storytellers remind us that water and children can be among our greatest teachers, renewing curiosity and awakening wonder at the beauty all around.

The Flame Tree Story podcast is produced by Story First Design.

In this episode, we feature two more stories from our World Water Day storytelling event. Storytellers Melanie Joiner and Maya McDoom-Echebiri share how water taught them to navigate life's most challenging transitions. Melanie reflects on her time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo, where water scarcity and a trusted friendship transformed how she understood gratitude and connection. Maya shares her journey through sudden job loss and the tsunamis of grief that followed. Through this experience, she learned to flow like water, releasing what no longer served her to become fully herself again.

These renewal stories remind us that we must let go before we can to see the way forward, and that we have much to gain from life’s most challenging experiences.

The Flame Tree Story podcast is produced by Story First Design.