Episode 1485: Interview with Dante Terese About Finding Community and Staying True To Your Principles

[00:00:00] Scott Maderer: Thanks for joining us on episode 1485 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

[00:00:07] Dante Terese: I'm Dante Therese. I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence, and impact the world using your time, your talent, and your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to stay true to yourself, even in challenging times, is key.

[00:00:25] And one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this, the Inspired Stewardship Podcast with my friend, Scott Mader.

[00:00:41] Really staying true to yourself, even when you see these other examples in front of you like this person has more, or someone just offered me this to do something that is not in keeping with my moral philosophy. The characters who stay true to their convictions and [00:01:00] they really have a reward that you can't really quantify.

[00:01:04] Scott Maderer: Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling. In the Inspired Stewardship Podcast, you will learn to invest in yourself, Invest in others and develop your influence so that you can impact the world.

[00:01:37] In this podcast episode, I interviewed Dante Therese. I asked Dante about her life and her faith. I also asked Dante how truth shows up in fiction stories that she writes that also comes from her life. And I asked Dante about her understanding of resilience and community. I've got a new book coming out called Inspired Living, assembling the puzzle of your call by [00:02:00] mastering your time, your talent, and your treasures.

[00:02:03] You can find out more about it and sign up for getting more information over at InspiredStewardship. com Inspired Living. That's InspiredStewardship. com Inspired Living. Voice in fiction, blending deep themes with compelling narratives in her work. Her debut novel, Sex, Death, and Diane, celebrates the courage of those who dare to think independently and speak their truths, exploring the quiet power within each of us.

[00:02:32] And her recent science fiction release, The Base, Book 1, takes readers into the high stakes world of military research, where ethical dilemmas and espionage intertwine in a suspenseful tale of innovation and integrity. Welcome to the show, Dante! Thank

[00:02:47] Dante Terese: you for having me, Scott.

[00:02:49] Scott Maderer: Absolutely. So I talked a little bit in the intro about some of the books that you've written and you've got one coming out now The Base, and [00:03:00] I wanted to talk to you a little bit about the before.

[00:03:03] So about your personal journey and what's brought you here to this point where you're writing these books, you're putting this out into the world.

[00:03:11] Dante Terese: As far as my health and my life journey I've always had this issue of having mysterious sort of ailments that weren't fully explained and being misdiagnosed often.

[00:03:25] And we thought for many years that I had allergies and that they would just pop up at strange times. and I would only really go to the doctor when I was like really sick, like when I had the flu or something. And they would notice that I had very high white blood cell counts. But then, they would say, okay, maybe because you're sick.

[00:03:46] And then I would get over the flu and we wouldn't necessarily do follow up testing because, I wasn't sick anymore or so I thought. What I really had though was a chronic form of [00:04:00] leukemia. And then at the end of last year that's when we found out that I had two forms of leukemia and they, the second one really packed a wallop.

[00:04:09] And so I wound up in. The land of the sick and which is, if you've never been there it is very interesting. There is a lot of support between people who are sick. We all regardless of diagnosis and stuff like that, we can all sit down and talk about all kinds of things with that faith, family, future, and really bond over that.

[00:04:34] And it was interesting to me how many of the health care providers and people in that circle of help who were sick themselves I had someone with a terminal illness who was very helpful, not only to me, but others. In our community, helping us get our paperwork through and stuff like that. And I was fortunate to, to see her a couple of times though she does work from home [00:05:00] still, but she's still very passionate about helping others and connecting people with the resources that they need.

[00:05:07] During the time of a health crisis, and I was surprised also at some of the nurses that I met who had cancer 8 or 10 years ago and had are now cancer survivors and then that pushed them to get their nursing degree and be a nurse in the oncology field to help others with it.

[00:05:28] And that was those people are tremendously helpful because they've been there. and they can tell you things that no one else can tell you. They can tell you what this feels like, and they can tell you different things that happen when you're sleeping and stuff. So you can have these connections with people that are really amazing and people really speak from the heart and from their own experiences about everything, and it makes you feel less alone, and it makes you suddenly have this, family of [00:06:00] survivors, but also people that are fighters, and all working together on one path to to lift each other and get each other through it.

[00:06:10] Scott Maderer: When it comes to the books themselves, tell us a little bit more about the writing journey.

[00:06:14] Dante Terese: And I'm sure that, people can see that, but I'm not really blatant, and I'm not condescending to the reader, I don't beat them over the head with it, but I know that they, there's a lot of different ways that I illustrate those examples, and like sometimes it's compare and contrast with different characters yes, this villain lives in this wonderful exclusive area and they have tons and tons of material things, but ultimately who would you rather live next door to, would you rather live next door to the villain, or would you rather live next door to the, the good family who's trying to raise good children in a very challenging world?

[00:06:55] But you know that they're good, they're decent people and the people that they [00:07:00] have in their orbit are not going to bring any harm or unnecessary surprises to you and stuff. And, so sometimes I illustrate things, with the contrast of characters and sometimes I show the long term consequences of different things like the characters, the choices the characters make.

[00:07:26] Oh it's been interesting. They, before I was putting them out, I was writing them and giving them to friends and family. After, during putting them out, there's always that, I guess you could say, fear of rejection or, the other things that writers face, like criticism and stuff, but I think I think overall it's been a good experience different people's reactions and stuff and then learning from that and learning how to be better at what you do and how to put a, make sure that your stuff always has like a [00:08:00] positive underlying message and stuff.

[00:08:03] Give me the question.

[00:08:11] I'm sorry. I thought you were going to ask again. Okay.

[00:08:14] Scott Maderer: So were you going through this at the same time that you were working on the novels? And was that before or after? the novels that came out.

[00:08:24] Dante Terese: The let me see when I was, the base which is now going to be a series, but the first book I was writing a lot of that as I was getting, IV treatments.

[00:08:34] I was just instead of bringing the laptop in there, I was texting chapters and stuff to my big computer at home from my phone. And that was, to me, that was funny, because if I had other people in the pods, the infusion pods, there's generally four people, and when there are people, and when they're awake, we all talk to each other, we put aside our devices and everything like that, and we talk to [00:09:00] each other, but when people nod off in their treatments and stuff, then if you're the only one who's awake then you can noodle and do, some work, which I was doing.

[00:09:10] I was writing at that time. But but also when people were somewhat in crisis and they needed a big distraction, I would talk to them about some of the characters and stuff like that. And, just bounce things off them and stuff. And that was a lot of fun. And I would also share pictures from the church gardens that I tend with all the flowers.

[00:09:34] I would, we would talk about flowers and stuff.

[00:09:37] Scott Maderer: So you, you mentioned in there that you were talking about the church garden and earlier you mentioned, sharing things about faith as you went through the journey. Can you talk a little bit about your faith journey and how that's informed both the novels and as well as just your own life journey?

[00:09:54] How has your faith journey affected your life?

[00:09:58] Dante Terese: I think for me, the, [00:10:00] one of the harder things is that I was never good at just sitting in a pew, listening to the just sitting in a pew being absolutely quiet and listening. I'm a high energy person. Even now with chemo, I'm still bouncing off the walls.

[00:10:13] And so I have always been more of service oriented, if you have a soup kitchen, I can dish soup and I can run around like a maniac and tidy the place up and, I worked for Habitat for Humanity as a volunteer and stuff, so I needed to find a place that had the right fit for me, where there were service opportunities.

[00:10:33] I, I still go to church service. But I spend much more of my time on the actual things that we're doing, like the we have clothing and housewares rooms where members of the public donate things rather than let it go to a landfill, which I'm really happy about. They donate things when they're downsizing or organizing spring cleaning, whatever.

[00:10:58] And then [00:11:00] I organize them and display them and everything, and then all the social service agencies send us, people in need, and then we connect them with the things for free, because those people in need, they have to reestablish themselves, they have to come up with rent deposit, utility deposit, all of that.

[00:11:19] All these things. And they don't necessarily have the money after that to get clothes for the new job and pots and pans and a few dishes. And I'm really glad to be part of that circle and it really has strengthened me a lot to, to see these people who come in with a carload of boxes full of things that they want to help someone that they have never met and they likely never will meet.

[00:11:44] But they want to help people and so that's why they're there and that's why they're bringing freshly washed clothes and very well, nice packed dishes and stuff because they want to help someone. They know someone out there needs [00:12:00] help and then the ones who, who come to receive the help it's just a feeling I can't describe when you connect them with their needs.

[00:12:08] And and you see them leave and they, you can tell that you've lifted some of the weight off their shoulders and that you're part of connecting them, to a good path and which will hopefully sustain them.

[00:12:23] Scott Maderer: So when you think about that, has the health journey you went through and then your own faith and the background of service that you do you think that shows up in the novels that you write?

[00:12:33] Dante Terese: Yes. Yes, I think so. Because I, I think that they, there is the characters in there that are somewhat vulnerable. And there are people who reach out to them. And that they just don't let people fall through the cracks, really. In the base, there are some super villains and eventually some of them, get their comeuppance, you should say, but But the ones who, you know stay close to each [00:13:00] other and serve each other and help each other on this military base, which I had the privilege of, seeing friends and stuff on a military base.

[00:13:09] I spent a fair amount of time in the one in South Dakota, and the sense of community there was really excellent. If someone had a flat tire, three of your neighbors came over to help. There were always cookouts and then the mothers would get together and watch all the kids together and homeschool together and stuff.

[00:13:26] It was a tremendous really tight knit community and I haven't really seen that outside of bases so much but I'm, I was Thankful to see that there, that they they always had each other's back. There was always someone there to babysit if and then I knew a grandmother who, when the husbands were deployed, she would be the one in the delivery room with the wives if the husbands, couldn't be there and, just people really just taking care of each other.

[00:13:58] Scott Maderer: When you think about kind of [00:14:00] resilience and community and those sorts of things, what are some of the lessons you feel like you've learned as you've gone through these different journeys?

[00:14:07] Dante Terese: I think one of the things is that there, there are many different definitions of success.

[00:14:12] And it seems that a lot of times in different facets of media, that definition seems to be material things. But I think the other definitions of success, some of the cancer survivors who have later turned into nurses who are helping people as nurses in oncology departments and stuff that I've met, for them to be able to come full circle and then give back and then help someone and be there like, look, six years ago, I was you sitting in that chair.

[00:14:45] And, and that is it. That's a different definition of success. It's not a fancy zip code. It's not the 10 cars in the driveway. You would see on some of these housewives shows or whatever. But, [00:15:00] just just having that reassurance when someone says to you, eight years ago, I was you.

[00:15:04] I was sitting in that chair and I had the IV in my arm and. You're gonna, you're gonna get through this and, just passing along that gift of confidence and taking away some of the fear that someone may have is really a blessing.

[00:15:21] Scott Maderer: When you think about the novels that you've written, what is the kind of deeper message that you think you're trying to put out in the world?

[00:15:30] Dante Terese: Oh, I think a lot of it is the really staying true to yourself. Even when you see these other examples in front of you, like this person has more, or someone just offered me this to do something that is not in keeping with my moral philosophy and stuff the characters who stay true to their convictions and they really have a reward that you can't really quantify.

[00:15:56] You, it doesn't show up on your pay stub or something like that, [00:16:00] but they have a consistency. Their children look up to them and people in the community, also realize that person's a straight shooter. And so those are the type of things that I put out there and that I feel strongly about.

[00:16:15] And I don't do it in a really overtly preachy way or anything like that, but I think that when it's a common thread and the writing, and then when people do read that, they can tell what I'm putting out there.

[00:16:28] Scott Maderer: When you think about that, why did you decide to write fiction instead of putting together something?

[00:16:34] Like a nonfiction book.

[00:16:36] Dante Terese: I felt I'm just more of a creative person. I'm more of a left brain, creative person. And so that's where my head was. And so that's how that happened.

[00:16:48] Scott Maderer: Do you think you got it? You, are you ever going to try to write your own life story or your autobiography or anything else?

[00:16:54] Or are you just going to stick with the fiction novels?

[00:16:56] Dante Terese: The first book was based on my life. [00:17:00] And, there's a lot in it that came from my life, but then there's some added fiction to it. So it's not 100 percent actual factual.

[00:17:09] It was two best friends growing up in the dawn of the AIDS crisis.

[00:17:14] and just how crazy that time was.

[00:17:20] Scott Maderer: When you think about the deeper lessons that you put in the book, do you think sometimes it's easier for people to hear those messages when it comes at them through a story or through a, an allegory the kinds of things that we put into a fiction book as opposed to a nonfiction book?

[00:17:37] Dante Terese: Sometimes I think so, because I think especially now that a lot of people are, really, trying to they're getting away from news a lot of people are like really stressed out and they want entertainment when they get home, they just want to unwind and be entertained, and so this is entertainment on, the surface and everything like that, but then there's also some [00:18:00] validation underneath it with the with the underlying message, the story under the story.

[00:18:08] Scott Maderer: So I've got a few questions that I like to ask all of my guests, but before I go there, is there anything else about the books or your own journey that you'd like to share with the listener?

[00:18:20] Dante Terese: I would say that I, I never expected the path that I'm on to be where I'm at right now. It's hard when you're sitting in a doctor's office and.

[00:18:29] When people are, giving you a laundry list of numbers that are happening in your blood, and that is something that you have no control over. So I'm very thankful to be on the path that I'm on this creative path. And and it's taken a new turn. We I've decided after people, liked the book, the first book, to make it into a series and to try to pitch that to the film industry as a television sort of streaming series.

[00:18:58] So I have written the [00:19:00] sequel, and we went back and re examined the book cover, and we found people in our community. I found three actors to portray the three lead scientists in the base, and we also found someone who had vintage Jeeps, to get across the concept that this was a military base.

[00:19:18] I was told that I should have something more military on the cover, I got two vintage Jeeps, one from World War II and another one from 1951, and then three actors to portray the three main scientists who are the good guys in, in the books. and took a bunch of pictures and that will, those pictures will be on the book covers and other things in the future.

[00:19:45] Scott Maderer: Awesome. So my brand is Inspired Stewardship and I run things through that lens of stewardship and yet that's one of those words that means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. So when you hear the word stewardship, what does that word mean to [00:20:00] you?

[00:20:00] Dante Terese: That means that you have to be consistent and you have to Do the best thing that you can for taking care of what we have now and passing that on to the next generation and also being true to yourself and having a certain set of convictions that you're not going to compromise.

[00:20:19] I realize we have had. in the community where I live, we've had loads and loads of people who, make a lot of tax free money selling drugs and stuff like that. And, wouldn't that be wonderful to have that lifestyle, but I am not going to touch that economy at all. In fact, when I go into places and I know that they, in addition to their other inventory, they're selling like drug paraphernalia, I don't shop in those places.

[00:20:45] I don't want to participate in that economy. And so for me, stewardship is really examining every decision that you make every day are you going to throw this T shirt out that doesn't fit, or are you going to wash it next time you do [00:21:00] laundry and then donate it so someone else could have some use out of that?

[00:21:03] Are you going to just participate in these other economies that you don't agree with, or are you going to say, you know what, I'm going to walk half a mile. further to this other store to get my bottled water or Gatorade or something because I don't want to go to this store because they're selling things that are part of an economy that I don't want to participate in.

[00:21:31] So you have to constantly be aware of the decisions and the impact that you're making and and try, try to watch everything closely because it's amazing how many little things will. Be under the radar and then suddenly you notice oh, wow, I didn't know that was there or maybe I should pay more attention to this and.

[00:21:53] And then also the opportunities to help others and to serve the community too.

[00:21:59] Scott Maderer: So you've [00:22:00] talked about impact. This is my favorite question that I like to ask everybody. Sure. Imagine for a moment that I invented this magic machine and with this machine, I could take you from where you are today and transport you into the future, maybe 150, maybe 250 years, but through the power of this machine, you were able to look back and see your entire life and see all of the connections, all of the ripples, all of the impacts you've left behind.

[00:22:24] What impact do you hope you've left on the world?

[00:22:27] Dante Terese: I hope I've really done a good job at not abusing the resources I have, but using the resources and everything I've had to, in a positive direction. And I really try to be conscious of that all the time, that it wasn't until recently a few years ago when my friend told me about because I'm not familiar with the paraphernalia and stuff, but my friend whose husband works in law enforcement pointed things out to me, she said, I'm not going into stores that have this and that for sale because that's paraphernalia.[00:23:00]

[00:23:00] And I've always, lived in this little bubble because I don't participate in that economy. But I didn't realize that I really was participating in that economy because I was, ignorant about those things. It's made me more watchful and I want to continue that and make sure that I leave a good imprint behind.

[00:23:20] And that when I look back on it that I, they say ignorance is no excuse now that I've been informed about certain things that, I constantly follow and in the example, find another place to do business with and stuff like that.

[00:23:38] Scott Maderer: So what's coming next? What's on the roadmap?

[00:23:40] Dante Terese: I'm hoping I'm in the Rust Belt which is the middle of the country where there used to be steel mills and coal mills and stuff like that. And now there's a lot of things that have shut down and I'm hoping that if we do have the privilege of taking the base and making it into a [00:24:00] series out here, that I could possibly help to Revitalize the film industry out here, but also involve the high school kids and stuff like that in terms of an internship and stuff to show them how to operate the equipment and things like that.

[00:24:16] I want to have that participation. From the youth, if we can involve them and stuff and in internships and to get them get them some real world skills, whether or not they choose to participate in the future in that type of a profession. Is one thing, but if I could involve them and show them a real life working place that they can participate in, with supervision from the school and stuff like that, I would really like to do things that way to, give them those experiences and, let them move on from that because I think that mentorship and, [00:25:00] Internships are important, especially when you consider that the entry level jobs that were around when I was growing up, AI is going to eliminate those things.

[00:25:12] Already we're seeing that cashiers are not really going to be around much longer, and there's a lot of other entry level jobs that you used to take. That aren't going to be there. So to be able to show people and then, involve them in paths that are going to be more in the future especially since, streaming and stuff like that is going to be a part of the future.

[00:25:39] I would like to help with that.

[00:25:42] Scott Maderer: So you can find out more about Dante Therese over on her website at DanteTherese. com. Of course, I'll have a link to that in the show notes as well. Dante, anything else you'd like to share with the listener?

[00:25:54] Dante Terese: Thanks. I want to say thanks for having me. And if you're out there listening to me, thank you for [00:26:00] listening to me.

[00:26:00] I do appreciate it. And I know that we all have an interest in common in trying to move forward in a positive direction and be conscious of our decisions and our stewardship. And so I'm thankful that I got the opportunity to connect with people and to talk about that. And and I hope that, we all stay focused on that because it's really important.

[00:26:26] And so that I wanted to share, and if people want to get the books I can say they're on Amazon. If you type in the base and then Dante it pops up. I'm also on Amazon as an author, Dante Therese, that's T E R E S E. And that's my last name. And I have a website as well with that. And when this podcast is out there it will be on that website also for people to check into if they would like in [00:27:00] the future.

[00:27:02] Scott Maderer: Thanks so much.

[00:27:09] Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen. but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode please do us a favor. Go over to inspired stewardship.

[00:27:32] com slash iTunes rate. All one word. iTunes rate. It'll take you through how to leave a rating and review and how to make sure you're subscribed to the podcast so that you can get every episode as it comes out in your feed. Until next time, invest your time, your talent, and your treasures. Develop your influence and impact the [00:28:00] world.