The Moth Podcast: "Answers Before Questions"

Release Date: September 19, 2025
Host: Jennifer Hickson
Featured Storytellers: Jason Hymas, Andrea Rosky Metcalfe

Episode Overview

This episode of The Moth Podcast, "Answers Before Questions," explores the sometimes surprising consequences of our search for answers. Before an upcoming episode centered on questions, this episode takes a head start—focusing on what happens when we receive unexpected answers, or when answers arrive before we're ready. Two true, live stories anchor this theme: Jason Hymas’ childhood misadventure with “rat poison" and Andrea Rosky Metcalfe’s challenging early days as a Lutheran pastor in a new congregation.

Story 1: Jason Hymas – "Snooping"

Told at Phoenix Story Slam (Theme: Snooping)

[03:39] Childhood Curiosity, A Mistaken Treat, and a Hard Lesson

Key Points:

• Jason, a curious and food-loving kid nicknamed "Gordo," recalls a day when, while his family was busy, he wandered into his parents' room and found what looked like a candy tab on his mother’s nightstand.
• Eager to taste, he broke off a piece and enjoyed its fizzy, cherry flavor—going back for seconds.
• Suddenly, his mother shouts: “Hey kids, I forgot to tell you, I left rat poison on my nightstand.” ([04:22])
• Jason panics, convinced he is going to die. Leveraging kid logic, he tries to "neutralize" the poison by eating soap, thinking if it kills germs, maybe it'll kill poison too. ([05:04])
• Hiding under the couch, feeling his body succumb (actually to the soap, not poison), he decides to “just get to a hiding spot and die there.”

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “My heart starts pounding, my eyes get teary. I’m like, I’m going to die. I’m like, oh my God.”
  – Jason Hymas (04:25)

• “I grabbed this bar of soap and I went ahead and put it in my mouth and proceeded to scrape it with my teeth, followed by trying to keep it down with water.”
  – Jason Hymas (05:15)

• “I figured that if I was going to die, there was absolutely no point for me to eat, right? Why would I waste food?”
  – Jason Hymas (07:06)

[07:43] The Reveal – Not Rat Poison, But a Lesson

• His mother eventually calls him to dinner and, upon finding him hiding, laughs and explains:
  “Oh, my child, you’re not going to die. You ate an effervescent tab. I was just trying to teach you a lesson.”
  – Jason Hymas’s Mother (07:59)

• Jason describes being equally horrified and relieved—he wasn’t dying, but was traumatized by the prank. He’s learned his lesson: he never snoops, doesn’t eat unknown pills, and will “never, ever, ever use Irish Spring bar soap.”
  – Jason Hymas (08:34)

[08:40] Short Bio Provided by Host

• Jason is a Phoenix-based storyteller and risk analyst at the Mayo Clinic, born in Mexico and immigrated to the US at 14.

Story 2: Andrea Rosky Metcalfe – "Making Waves"

Told at Twin Cities Grand Slam (Theme: Making Waves)

[12:04] A New Pastor, a Viral Photo, and a Congregational Reckoning

Key Points:

• Andrea, a Lutheran pastor, starts at a new church and enjoys a “honeymoon period” that lasts only two days.

• On Day 3, she discovers she’s at the center of a barely-contained scandal: a photo of her at a pro-choice rally, wearing her clergy collar and holding a sign that reads:
  “Even the Virgin Mary got to choose, you motherfuckers.”
  – Sign in viral photo (13:25)

• Rumor and gossip swirl—no one talks to her directly. She feels isolated, some members leave, and she questions whether she’ll make it to Easter.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “The relationship between a pastor and her people is based on trust and mutual understanding. … I had been there for three days and this photo had been circulating for weeks. It wasn’t even the photo that was the problem. … It’s that I didn’t know who to talk to. No one was talking to me. They were just talking about me.”
  – Andrea Rosky Metcalfe (13:40 – 14:10)

• After a week, one woman approaches Andrea and asks why she attended the rally. Andrea shares a personal story:
  “The only time I have experienced suicidal ideation was during my own two pregnancies. I got through them one day at a time because I got to choose: one more day. No one else did.”
  – Andrea Rosky Metcalfe (15:10)

• The questioner presses on the profanity in the sign. Andrea, with humor and candor, admits:
  “You guys, I don’t even use that word. Except for Supreme Court justices who put their hand on the Bible and lie to the American people. Because that shit pisses me off. I didn’t say that to her.”
  – Andrea Rosky Metcalfe (16:03)

[16:24] Real Conversations, Real Changes

• The conversation builds some trust, but Andrea still feels the weight of the circulating rumors.
• On Easter, she preaches “a sermon full of questions because I didn’t have any answers” and feels empty yet committed.

[17:15] Aftermath and the Long Tail of Scandal

• Another woman requests the infamous photo—to share with her estranged daughter, who, inspired by Andrea’s stand, now considers attending church again.

  “I told her about your sign, and she’s going to come to church now.”
  – Church Member (17:44)

• The story closes without a tidy resolution: the congregation is still shifting, but Andrea is settling in, their shared journey ongoing.

• “My gay atheist neighbor recommends this church on Reddit because of that sign.”
  – Andrea Rosky Metcalfe (18:21)

• “If you want to see that picture, don’t bother on the Internet. Just come to worship any Sunday at 10am and ask around. I’m pretty sure half the congregation still has it on their phones.”
  – Andrea Rosky Metcalfe (18:37)

[18:43] Short Bio Provided by Host

• Andrea has served as pastor of Diamond Lake Lutheran Church in Minneapolis since Palm Sunday 2023, describing her congregation as “creative and courageous,” and says they are still growing together.

Notable Quotes

• Jason Hymas:
  “I was equal parts horrified and relieved … that the people that loved me the most, right, made me just think that I was dying.” ([08:15])

• Andrea Rosky Metcalfe:
  “Everybody knew they were talking about me. But nobody was talking to me.” ([14:00])
  “I wish that I could tell you that there’s a really clear end to this story. But that scrappy congregation and I, we’re still writing it.” ([18:28])

Episode Flow & Tone

The Moth’s classic blend of heartfelt humor and emotional candor shines in this episode. Both stories feature storytellers reflecting on vulnerability and the way answers—sometimes given before questions are asked—can upend expectations, create pain, and (eventually) foster growth and connection.

Jason’s tale is a comedic, almost slapstick account of childhood panic and (eventually) trust. Andrea’s is a contemplative, courageous meditation on public life, controversy, and finding belonging amid misunderstanding.

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:39] Jason Hymas’ story: childhood, “rat poison,” and a hard lesson
• [05:04] Jason eats soap, convinced he’s dying
• [07:43] Mother’s reveal and lesson
• [12:04] Andrea Rosky Metcalfe’s story: church, scandal, and seeking trust
• [15:10] Personal context: suicidal ideation and the importance of choice
• [16:24] Aftermath: trust built, rumors persist
• [17:44] The photo brings new welcome to the church
• [18:37] Iconic closing line: “Just come to worship…”

Closing Thoughts

Through deeply personal stories—one hilarious, one profound—this episode exemplifies The Moth’s mission: true stories, told live, which illuminate the extraordinary in the everyday. Whether the answers we receive come from mothers or congregations, sometimes they precede our questions, and sometimes they change us—and those around us—in ways we could never predict.