That moment is why A Perfectly Imperfect Union: Conversations with Everyday Americans exists. In this first episode as a standalone show, Michael explains what he learned from talking with neighbors in all 50 states and D.C. for America’s 250th. He shares why the divide we feel (most guests put it at a 5 or 6 out of 10) is real but still bridgeable. He also explains why the election won’t heal us. The work of healing falls to us.

In this episode:

• The Rushville, Indiana cafe stop that sparked the whole project
• What everyday Americans in every state said about division and connection
• Lessons on labels from Michael’s near-fatal cycling accident, and from the EMS crews who never asked who he voted for
• Kintsugi as a metaphor for our perfectly imperfect union
• Why we keep reaching for the “Amazon replacement” instead of repairing what’s broken, including people
• Pausing instead of reacting, as a person and as a nation
• Who the show is for: the weary hopefulist
• How the new format works: a new neighbor every Sunday, their story of struggle, and the “Can I borrow a cup of sugar?” question

Your “cup of sugar” question:

What’s one thing you can do today, where you live or work, to start a ripple effect? Tell us in the comments.

Take the next step:

• Follow A Perfectly Imperfect Union so you don’t miss Sunday episodes
• Start with Season 0, beginning with Morty, a kintsugi artist from Delaware
• Share this episode with one friend, family member, or colleague who hasn’t given up on us

Remember to celebrate your scars as golden symbols of your strength and resilience.

Be sure to check out this week's episodes of my other podcast, Whole Again, and to connect with me, please visit my website.

A Perfectly Imperfect Union features honest conversations with everyday Americans who see the world differently and still choose to listen. Inspired by kintsugi, the Japanese art of mending broken pottery with gold, the show is for weary hopefulists: people who haven’t given up on us but are tired of the noise and division.

Hosted by Michael O’Brien. New conversations every Sunday. Start with Season 1, ten guests from ten states, and follow so you don’t miss what’s next

What if the biggest regret people carry isn't something they did, but a road trip they never took?

In an episode from season one of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to the Mount Rushmore State to connect with Jeff Gould on this question.

Jeffrey believes America is a story worth telling, one built on possibility rather than perfection. He also believes we've forgotten how to tell it, trading gratitude for outrage because outrage gets more clicks.

He shares what 700 funerals have taught him about regret, and why the road trip is almost always the thing people wish they'd taken. We also get into South Dakota's particular brand of curiosity, the kind that starts with "where you from" and ends in finding someone you both know.

Please connect with Jeffrey via his website or LinkedIn.

And his question(S) for you and our next guest are: 1) Have you been to South Dakota, and 2) what's the best piece of advice you've ever gotten?

What are you willing to give up in order for us to unite?

That's the question Jerry leaves us with in this conversation for A Perfectly Imperfect Union.

Jerry is an executive coach of 25 years, former investor, author of Reboot and Reunion, and a previous guest on The Kintsugi Podcast. Today he calls Centennial State Home.

Jerry believes disunion has a beneficiary. Someone always gains when the rest of us turn on each other, and naming that is the first step toward healing.

He traces his own family's story, immigrant ancestors who came to America out of poverty and survival, sons who served in World War II, a grandfather who registered for the draft before he was even a citizen, and uses it to make the case that America has always been a process of transformation, not a finished thing.

You can connect with Jerry through his website.

In this episode from season one of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, we travel to Texas and visit with Taylor Lopez.

Taylor opens up about breaking her life apart in 2019 and rebuilding it into something more beautiful than she could have imagined. She first learned about Kintsugi from an art therapist during a stay at a behavioral hospital, and it became a cornerstone of her healing.

To Taylor, America isn't a place. It's a feeling. Promise, optimism, and the belief that reinvention is always possible.

To connect with Taylor, use this LinkedIn link.

What are you choosing every day: joy or the weight of the world?

In this episode from season one of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, Demetria traces her family's tangled American story, including a DNA surprise that revealed their earliest known maternal relative was a Native American woman, alongside deep European and African roots.

"We are as American as America can be," she says, and it shows in how she talks about the country itself: full of oxymorons, messy on purpose, home for better or worse.

And her question for you and our next guest is:

How are you choosing joy each day?

You can discover more about Demetria via her website.

I recently sat down with Maggie Mick, a Kentucky-based government affairs leader with MultiState, co-host of The Political Life podcast, and a woman whose family history traces back to the first Welsh settlers of Philadelphia.

She's traveled the world as a soft diplomat, breaking bread with people in far-flung places, and every time she came home with gratitude.

But she's also watching something quietly erode: local community. The stickiness, as she calls it, that comes from knowing your neighbor, showing up for a stranger, gathering in shared spaces. Without it, she says, we lose our ability to hold anyone accountable for anything.

You can connect with Maggie via MultiState, The Political Life Podcast, or LinkedIn.

And finally, Maggie's question for you and our next guest in our series, Laura Cross, is:

If you could live in any state other than the one you currently call home, which would it be and why?

What would it take to just sit down with someone you disagree with and share a meal?

That's the quiet but powerful question at the heart of this conversation with Lloyd Owen Banwart, a Midwestern farm kid turned humanitarian worker, now living in his beloved Minnesota and building a life that holds two very different Americas at once.

He believes America's greatest promise is simple: every day, we get to try to be a little better than we were the day before. But he also knows that the promise is fragile.

Lloyd's question for you and our next guest, Kyle, is: When was the last time a real conversation changed your mind or your perspective on something?

You can connect with Lloyd over on LinkedIn, and as his picture says: Do Something Great!

In this episode from season 1 of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, Becky shares what she sees as the root of our communication breakdown. The subtle mental traps that make us argue in circles, attack people instead of ideas, and believe there are only two options when there are almost always more.

Becky's question for our next neighbor on the series, and for you, is:

What's a smell that takes you right back to a positive childhood memory?

Share your answer in the comments and share this episode with someone you love.

You can connect with Becky via LinkedIn, Substack and her website.

You can also get a copy of her book, Choose The Handle That Holds, at fine independent bookstores and Amazon.

He pulled himself up from very basic beginnings to lead creative organizations at Apple, Disney, Twitter, and Starbucks, and spent 14 years at Wieden+Kennedy and TBWA\Chiat\Day learning how stories either bring people together or drive them apart.

In this episode from Season 1 of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, Jayanta Jenkins gets to the heart of what's fracturing us. His answer isn't a policy or political failure. It's an empathy deficit, supercharged by algorithmic fear bubbles and misinformation moving faster than our ability to think critically.

His prescription? Kintsugi empathy. Slow down. Think before you react. Give people enough space to actually be understood.

What would happen if Americans spent less time debating each other and more time truly listening?

In season one of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, a heartfelt new series exploring the beauty, wounds, and shared humanity that shape our country, Michael speaks with everyday folks just like you.

In this powerful conversation with Kintsugi artist Morty Bachar, the discussion moves beyond politics and into something deeper: healing, connection, truth, and the courage to acknowledge both the scars and strengths that define us. Through stories of brokenness transformed into beauty, listeners are invited to reflect on what it really means to repair relationships, communities, and a nation.

Discover more about Morty and visit his Lakeside Pottery studio here.

What if the real solution to division isn’t louder opinions but deeper understanding?

In a time when polarization, fast reactions, and surface-level conversations dominate, it’s easy to feel disconnected from one another. This episode explores how stepping back, seeking to understand different perspectives, and returning to human connection can help bridge the growing divides we see in our communities and country.

You can connect with Dean via his website or LinkedIn.