In this deeply resonant episode, co-hosts Dionne C. Monsanto and Yvette Love Dávila return to ask a deceptively simple but transformative question: What do we really mean when we say grief?

Together, they broaden the definition of grief beyond death—naming the hidden losses that shape who we are and the cultural silences that keep us from healing. Through raw, honest storytelling—from Uncle Al’s childhood heartbreak over a lost stroller to Yvette’s painful reckoning with her father’s disappearance—this conversation invites listeners to rethink how loss lives in our bodies, families, and communities.

Yvette and Dionne explore the five stages of grief, unpack cultural expectations of strength and silence in Black and Latinx households, and reveal how unspoken grief can echo for generations. They weave humor, spirituality, and truth into a shared language of healing—reminding us that grief changes things, but it doesn’t get the final say.

Take a breath, say the names of your loved ones, and join the dialogue. This episode is an invitation: to name your grief, to see it fully, and to begin the journey of living alongside it—with compassion, honesty, and aché.

Two Mothers, One Aché: A Grief Dialogue is produced and distributed by Merrick Studios and hosted by Yvette Dávila and Dionne C. Monsanto. Each episode offers a brave and intimate space where grief is spoken aloud, healing is shared, and love refuses to fade—listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever your journey takes you. Follow us on Instagram and learn more at wearemerrickstudios.com/two-mothers-one-ache-pod.

Original music by Dasan T. Broadnax, known artistically as O.D. Mongrel. Discover more of his work on all streaming platforms.

In the debut of Two Mothers, One Ache: A Grief Dialogue, Yvette Dávila and Dionne C. Monsanto invite you to the kitchen table—bring tea, water, cafecito—while they open the door to who they are, how they met, and the ache that birthed this show.

Between laughter about their Hunter College days and “hair did, nails did” glow-ups, they ground the conversation in breathwork, faith, and the Yoruba concept of Aché—life force—explaining why “ache” (the hurt) and Aché (the power to keep going) share the same letters in sacred symmetry.

They honor their children, Dasan and Siwe, and the grandmothers—Margarita and Bianca—who taught them that food heals and shared memories keep the dead alive. Sesame Street’s Mr. Hooper, a well-traveled Elmo, and a beloved Stitch become touchstones for how joy and grief co-exist.

The hosts introduce the idea of a “grief toolkit,” preview episodes on what grief really is (beyond death), and invite listeners to share the names of their loved ones who have passed on.

Each episode closes with a Moment of Aché—a shared breath, a quiet benediction that lingers like incense, and the calling of our beloveds into the space so they live on. There is always a seat at the table—for memory, for presence, and for you.

Two Mothers, One Aché: A Grief Dialogue is produced and distributed by Merrick Studios and hosted by Yvette Dávila and Dionne C. Monsanto. Each episode offers a brave and intimate space where grief is spoken aloud, healing is shared, and love refuses to fade—listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever your journey takes you. Follow us on Instagram and learn more at wearemerrickstudios.com/two-mothers-one-ache-pod.

Original music by Dasan T. Broadnax, known artistically as O.D. Mongrel. Discover more of his work on all streaming platforms.

Two Mothers, One Aché: A Grief Dialogue brings listeners into raw, transformative conversations about love and loss with Dionne C. Monsanto and Yvette Dávila —two mothers bound by grief after the deaths of their children, Siwe at 15 and Dasan at 26. Rooted in faith, culture, and lived experience, the podcast explores grief in its many forms—child loss, identity shifts, estrangement, rage, and renewal—through storytelling, guest voices, and ritual-inspired reflections. Rather than offering neat resolutions, Yvette and Dionne create a sacred space where sorrow and joy co-exist, where vulnerability is honored, and where love outlives loss.

Two Mothers, One Aché: A Grief Dialogue is produced and distributed by Merrick Studios and hosted by Yvette Dávila and Dionne C. Monsanto. Each episode offers a brave and intimate space where grief is spoken aloud, healing is shared, and love refuses to fade—listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever your journey takes you. Follow us on Instagram and learn more at wearemerrickstudios.com/two-mothers-one-ache-pod.

Original music by Dasan T. Broadnax, known artistically as O.D. Mongrel. Discover more of his work on all streaming platforms.