RISK! – The Best of Gratitude Stories #1
Date: November 27, 2025
Host: Kevin Allison
Theme: True stories of gratitude, shared in the show’s signature raw, heartfelt, and humorous style
Episode Overview
This special Thanksgiving episode of RISK! celebrates the transformative power of gratitude. Host Kevin Allison presents two standout stories from the archives that explore profound thankfulness in the face of grief, adversity, and unexpected kindness. Featuring storytelling icon Satori Shakur and transplant survivor Paul Sibis, their tales reveal how gratitude can surface in the hardest moments and how it shapes life’s next chapter.
Key Discussions & Insights
Introduction by Kevin Allison (01:48–04:28)
- Kevin welcomes listeners, highlighting the importance of gratitude not just at Thanksgiving but throughout the year.
- He reflects on moments when listeners have expressed gratitude towards him, fueling his passion for the show.
- Announces special Patreon member Sarah Fleischer, expressing the show’s gratitude for listener support.
- Frames the episode: Stories of gratitude from two remarkable tellers—Satori Shakur and Paul Sibis.
Story 1: Satori Shakur – “Thank You”
[04:28–20:23]
Setting the Scene
- Satori opens on November 25, 2005, at her mother’s funeral, describing her devastation and lack of thankfulness the day after Thanksgiving.
- Recalls the painful hospital scene where her mother received a terminal diagnosis.
Lessons in Gratitude
- Mother’s Grace:
Satori’s mother, reflecting dignity and gratitude even in her final days:“Who am I to tell God that 87 years ain’t enough? ... Well, Doctor, I just want to thank you, because y’all sure was nice to me. Thank you.”
(05:19–05:44) - Satori recollects “thank you” as a childhood lesson, only realizing its power after making a classmate smile:
"I love the abracadabra of the words, the open sesame of their powers."
(06:26) - As life brings more challenges, “thank you” becomes harder—until she learns to create opportunities for gratitude.
Gratitude in Adversity
- Recounts professional disappointments and personal losses: missing a big break, a second failed marriage.
- The ultimate gratitude arises during and after her son’s traumatic car accident—thankful for his survival, but devastated by his death nine months later.
Raw Grief and the Journey Back
- Satori describes her collapse in Macy’s, her need for help, and the transformative role of her grief support group:
“I talked and I listened and I cried and I screamed and I laughed through the stages of grief, denial, depression, anger, acceptance and finally hope.”
(10:39–11:10) - Humor surfaces in her journey:
“I am horny as hell. Now when I say I’m horny, I’m talking about horny like a 15 year old boy…like Halle Berry in Monster’s Ball on the 4th of July.”
(11:36–12:47)
Reclaiming Life & Love
- Satori relates an absurdly funny and honest story of dating post-menopause, seeking connection via Craigslist, and rediscovering her own vivacity.
- Memorable encounter at a bar—honest conversations, laughter over “big noses,” and sharing her past as a singer with Parliament Funkadelic.
- A romantic relationship blossoms, then ends abruptly with her partner’s admission:
“Satori, you’re just too much for me… I just want to be complacent.”
(18:39–18:56) - She reframes “too much” as a badge of her survival and spirit:
"Grief had taught me how to lose, how to live, how to love, and how to want to live some more again…. I’m going for being way too much. I’m going for being over the top, alive.... I’m alive. Thank you."
(19:44–20:23)
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Story 2: Paul Sibis – Living on Gratitude
[21:54–34:14]
Born With a Challenge
- Paul describes being born with Alport Syndrome (“two balls of garbage” for kidneys), diagnosed at age five but living a mostly normal childhood.
Facing Transplant Realities
- By his early twenties, Paul’s kidney function declines—entering the world of dialysis and the painful, surreal waiting game for a transplant.
- The weird moral tension:
“You are waiting for somebody to have the worst day of their life so that you can have the best day of yours.”
(25:43–25:56) - He humorously but honestly confesses:
“As far as I was concerned, motherfuckers were not dying fast enough.”
(27:28)
Dialysis & Desperation
- Goes into the harsh realities and exhaustion of being “plugged in” nightly.
- Cataloguing the grim humor and acceptance:
“Let’s get some dying going here. I want to move up that list.”
(28:48)
The Call & The Connection
- Finally, the long-awaited call comes:
“It’s like an iPhone was on backorder or something. It’s like, hey, your new kidney’s in. Come on down, pick it up.”
(29:39) - Told only that the donor was a younger girl.
- By chance, learns from a news story about a local high school girl who died of an undiagnosed heart condition—believes she is his donor.
- Reflects on how receiving her kidney tied his life to hers in an unbreakable, ongoing way:
“This is part of a person who had a life and who had a story. And now that story continues on with me.”
(33:00–33:13)
Profound Gratitude
- Closes with a message of thanks to donors and their families:
“I am eternally grateful to that girl and to her family and to anyone else who has the strength and the foresight and the generosity to take the worst day of their life, turn that into the best day of somebody else’s.”
(33:20–33:41)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Satori Shakur: “Thank you. Two words my mother taught me in childhood. Her legacy.” (05:57)
- Satori on Reclaiming Life: “I’m going for being way too much. I’m going for being over the top, alive…. I’m alive. Thank you.” (19:52–20:23)
- Paul Sibis: "You are waiting for somebody to have the worst day of their life so that you can have the best day of yours." (25:43–25:56)
- Paul’s Profound Realization: “This is part of a person who had a life and who had a story. And now that story continues on with me.” (33:00–33:13)
Important Timestamps
- 01:48: Kevin Allison introduction and the power of gratitude
- 04:28: Satori Shakur – “Thank You”
- 11:36: Satori’s journey through grief and rediscovering desire and humor
- 18:39: Satori’s relationship ends, new perspective on being “too much”
- 19:52: Satori’s closing gratitude
- 21:54: Paul Sibis – Living on Gratitude
- 25:43: Paul on the moral dilemma of waiting for a transplant
- 29:39: The call for a kidney
- 33:00: Paul’s reflection on carrying on his donor’s story
- 34:14: Kevin closes the episode, inviting listener stories
Episode Takeaways
- Gratitude is not always simple; it often emerges from sorrow, defeat, and hardship.
- Small acts of gratitude can radiate outward, changing lives.
- True thankfulness can come from letting go, surviving loss, and recognizing the stories that interlace us—sometimes with strangers we’ll never meet.
- Both Satori and Paul show that gratitude persists—even flourishes—after tremendous pain.
If you’re moved to share your own gratitude story, RISK! welcomes pitches at risk-show.com/submissions. Take a risk—share your truth.