Nate and Emmy Eaton

Eight-year-old Emmy Eaton’s “7 Questions with Emmy” segment on “The Drew Barrymore Show” resulted from a comment on Facebook suggesting she swap roles with her news reporter dad. She accepted the challenge and has gone on to interview over 40 high-profile people, including Elmo, Jeff Foxworthy, Dana Perino, Keith Morrison, and Joy D. Jones. Her dad, Nate Eaton, an Edward R. Murrow Award recipient and four-time winner of Virginia Associated Press’ Outstanding Reporter of the Year Award, has interviewed a serial killer, covered the execution of the D.C. Sniper, reported on President Obama, and attended the White House Easter Egg Roll. In 2015, Nate launched EastIdahoNews.com, a news website that is now the news leader in eastern Idaho.

Emmy

“7-Questions with Emmy” on The Drew Barrymore Show (via East Idaho News) 

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“Measuring Snow with the Kit-Kat-O-Meter”

“Waiting Upon the Lord: the Power of Heaven,” Henry B. Eyring, BYU Devotional, 30 September 1990

Transcript

Connie (00:00):

Welcome back. I'm Connie Sokol, your host. And we are delighted today to have two incredible people in studio who are going to be sharing their story of doing great good. We have a father/daughter duo who are both news reporters, despite their great age gap. And we want to talk about how they did that. How do they walk that line and how, as a parent, do they help one another? And how, as a daughter, does she help her dad being able to do this great good? So we are so grateful. We want to hear all about this fortunate series of events that made all of this happen. So welcome Nate and Emmy Eaton.

Emmy (0:35):

Hi, Connie!

Nate (0:36):

Thanks so much for having us. This is our first joint interview, so we appreciate you having us, Connie.

Connie (0:43):

I feel so blessed. This is wonderful. And it's such a joy to hear from both sides of this coin that we get to hear the dual sides of the story. And we're going to start with Emmy. We're going to have her talk for a little bit before we have her be able to go and hang with her friends for a bit, but we really want to talk for a minute about how this all came about. We're going to talk about her story, but we're also going to talk about, as a parent, how do you guide and nurture your child in this creative path? How do you help them and protect them and nurture them along this so that it's a positive experience? And as a parent, for you, Nate, how you are able to deal with stressful assignments and being in this negative news industry, how do you navigate that and still strive to be a voice of light?

Connie (1:28):

So let's get started with sweet Emmy today. And we're going to kind of turn the tables a little. This spitfire news reporter has done 40 interviews, and with high profile people, but she does seven questions with Emmy. And today we're going to turn the tables and we're going to ask you seven questions, Emmy. Are you up for it? 

Emmy (1:45): 

Yeah. 

Connie (1:46):

All right, let's do this. Let's do this. All right. Question number one. What was it about you that drew Drew Barrymore to you? Because I understand that she was the one that, kind of, saw and connected, and said, Hey, I want to get to know you more.

Emmy (2:01):

Yeah, well, like, so it was about the time where I was getting Keith Morrison and then a couple of other famous people. And then dad was, like, Let's reach out to Drew Barrymore. And then I didn't even know who Drew Barrymore was. And then I did research about her. Then when I first met her, she was so nice and so kind to me. and I was just, like, she was so nice, but I was not expecting at the time that I was going to be able to see her again. And then she invited me back on, and back on, and we just grew this like huge relationship. And because she sent me off to New York before and everything, and I just love Drew so much.

Connie (2:48):

Oh my goodness. I watched clips of you and her. And she is so genuine in her love for you and her affection for you. It was just tender. Were you scared at all? I mean, that was my question two, is, Did you even know who she was? But once you knew, were you scared at all? Or did you feel comfortable?

Emmy (3:04):

Like, once I knew who she was, I felt a little comfortable, but then not knowing that she would grow this big. Ah, I'm so excited! Because we hold each other to a really close place in our hearts. Like, I just loved her so much, and it was just so fun to keep going on and going to see her so many more times.

Connie (3:29):

Oh yeah. She just adores you, like, you are her favorite. I watched you, especially, it was that interview with Elmo and you were so poised. And here you're on a big set. I've been on sets and it can be a little scary. Has it ever been scary for you to interview some of these high profile people?

Emmy (3:47):

Yeah, sometimes I get really nervous and I'm, like, wait, what if I make a mistake? Because one time when I was on America's Newsroom with Dana Perino and Bill Hemmer, we were on live, and their sound cut out. So, on live TV, I'm like, um, I asked a question to Bill and he was, like, Well, one of my favorite... And then he froze, and I couldn't hear them. And I couldn't see them at the time either. So, because you couldn't see them on the Skype, So, I'm like, I can’t hear you. So that made me nervous. So I got nervous. So sometimes, like when I was with Elmo and Drew, I got really nervous because it was my first time with a live audience at Drew and everything. So sometimes I get nervous, but sometimes I don’t.

Connie (4:52):

So what do you do when you feel nervous? Do you just think positive thoughts or do you take a deep breath? What happens?

Emmy (5:00):

So sometimes it's a little funny. I have a pillow, like, I'll grab a pillow and scream in it, because I'm excited and nervous. I'm like, I just scream in it. And then I'll like, sometimes dancing helps me.

Connie (5:14):

I love it. Can you show me a little dance move, maybe?

Emmy  (5:17):

Yeah. Like, sometimes I just gotta get my wiggles out. 

Nate (5:22)

That’s what the producers at Drew had her do right before Elmo. They had her do a big dance there on the stage. She was really excited.

Connie (5:30):

Okay. That's genius for adults too. I'm going to try to get my moves on. I'll get my Emmy on because honestly, sometimes when you're interviewing people and you're trying not to sound scared and your voice sounds a little, you know, weak and wobbly. So I'm super proud of you. Oh my goodness. And you're eight. I should mention this. People, she is eight years old! And can you imagine her being so articulate? And you're so grounded and so confident. Where do you think this confidence has come from? Not a lot of kids your age feel this confident and can speak so well the words that they want to say. Where do you think this has come from?

Emmy (6:07):

I don't know, really. It's just, when I was little, sometimes my parents… Like, I think I got it from Mom and Dad. But, like, when I was little, I used to see my dad on TV, ‘cause he'd be, like, on TV when I was two years old and I'd be, like, Dadda, Dadda! So, I get it probably from my mom and dad.

Connie (6:32):

I love it. I love it. And we're going to talk with your dad about that, because, honestly, when you do see them do that, then probably you think you're mind, Well, yeah, I could do that, because I've already seen them do it. I do think, though, you are a special girl. You do have your own ability to be confident. And how fun that you found a way to be able to share that, and share that light. So, as you're doing these interviews, has there been a moment or a person that you've interviewed that was just extra special? And I know all of them are wonderful, and they all have a unique way to be wonderful. But is there one that comes to mind that you're like, that was a really special moment for me?

Emmy (7:11):

Well, I love all of them. Like, some people will sometimes ask me, Who's your favorite interview? I'm like, I love all of them. So I love all of them, but Drew was really, really special to me. So probably it would be Drew.

Nate (7:26):

Emmy, you should also tell her about a Sister Jones, the Primary General President

Connie (7:32):

Joyce D. Jones? You got to interview Joy?

 Emmy (7:34)

Yeah.

Nate (7:35):

Tell her about that. They spoke a lot off camera, and Joy was actually going to try to come to her baptism.

Emmy (7:41):

They couldn’t come, though, because her grandbaby was born.

Nate (7:45):

They've kept up a friendship, an email friendship, and Joy, she sent a gift for your baptism and was going to come and visit her in Primary. So that was a really cool one too.

Connie (7:56):

That's amazing. I have to tell you, I know Joy, and actually, her daughter-in-law is a super good friend of mine. And I can say, that sounds exactly like Joy. She is so kind and she's so aware and thoughtful. How wonderful for you to have that experience! Oh my gosh! Look at the things you've already had already. You've done Lester Holt. And like you said, Keith Morrison. Is there someone that you want to interview that you haven't yet, but you think, I would love to interview that person?

Emmy (8:28):

I always say, Zac Efron and Justin Bieber, always. When I'm doing my interviews, I'll say, My dream interview is Zac Efron, Justin Bieber. Who's yours? Like I said that on Drew. I say it when I'm in a room of really famous people to then see if Zac Efron or Justin Bieber’s here.

Connie (8:56):

She is a genius. You're exactly right. You plant that seed, and it is all six degrees. It's who, you know, right? It's connections. I love it. Well, we will keep putting a plug-in for those two. I know if Dude Perfect can have Zac Efron on, it's a high chance that you can have Zac Efron for you. This is so great. Okay. Just a couple more questions. Thanks for being patient. 

Emmy (9:18):

Hoda Kotb knows Zac Efron. And because I told her my dream interview was him, and she's like, I'm going to call Zac Efron. But she was filming a movie in Australia, so she didn't write back.

Connie (9:30):

You know what, never give up. You never know when that connection can happen. Never know. You are so smart to keep putting that out there and saying, Hey, when it's the right time that's going to happen. I love it. So I wanted to ask you, how do your friends take this? Like, how do they feel about what you're doing? Are they happy for you? Do they feel kind of awkward? Like how have they responded to it?

Emmy (9:53):

Well, they really like it. But sometimes, like, they'll be a little jealous of me because I get to interview a lot of famous people. But they're really happy for me and excited.

Connie (10:06):

That is so great. And those are great friends. I mean, who wouldn't have a moment of being like, I wish that was me, right? But it sounds like they get over it and you hang together, and they get to be with their friend Emmy and just be able to play. I love it. Okay. Last question: What do you hope when people are watching your interviews? What do you hope that they take away? Do you want them to feel happier? Do you want them to learn something? What's the thing that you really want to accomplish with doing your interviews?

Emmy (10:36):

Like, I want them to think happy thoughts. If they see an interview with me and, like, Hoda Kotb, I want them to be, like, it just brings them happiness and cheerfulness. And, like, everything just brings them happiness and a lot of good thoughts. I want them to have good thoughts, like rainbows and sparkles and unicorns. Yeah.

Connie (11:05):

I’m feeling all of those with our interview right here.

Emmy (11:10):

And puppies!

Connie (11:13):

Can't have enough puppies. You know what, I'm totally cracking up because there's a word that you probably heard it's called branding, right? And you want to make sure that you're aligned with your message, meaning you and your message are the same. And your message is happiness and light and rainbows. And look at the shirt you're wearing. It says HAPPY in rainbow colors.

Connie (11:35):

I absolutely love it. Okay, One bonus question, if I may. What do you want to do from here? Do you have a dream in your mind that this is where I want to go or this is what I want to do to be a voice of light and to do good? What's a dream for you from here?

Emmy (11:49):

Well, I kind of…I told Drew Barrymore and Ross Mathews this. I'm going to take over their show when I’m older.

Connie (12:02):

And by then they'll be, like, I'm exhausted. Fantastic.

Emmy (12:06):

I'll just be their substitute. I'll dress up like Drew and be, like, Hey guys, let’s have….on the Drew Barrymore Show. 

Connie (12:15):

I love it. Drew 2.0. I love it. Emmy, this has been an absolute delight. Thank you so much for taking time with us on this beautiful podcast for you to share your joy and your light and your happiness. Thank you so much. We wish you every success. 

Emmy (12:30):

Bye, Connie!

Connie (12:32):

Bye sweetheart. Have fun with your friends. 

Emmy (12:35):

Thank you.

Connie (12:39):

Oh my goodness, she is such a delight, genuine delight. It was such a treat to have her on. And what a gift. I can't wait to talk to you about this whole parenting part, because so much of it seems natural for her and intuitive for her. However, you can also tell that you've had your part in it and the things that you have taught and also by osmosis, that she's been able to get some of these really great skills of presence and articulateness. It's just beautiful. So, before we officially go into our section with Nate, I'm going to give you the official bio, because this is really fantastic. I loved that your connection with Emmy, it makes you, and you have chosen to be, it seems to me, a little low key about the credibility and the awards that you've won, but I just love that you have this substance behind what you are doing and also to be able to help Emmy in her path.

Connie (13:31):

So, just so you know, to give the official introduction, Nate is an award winning journalist, winning the national Edward R Murrow for a story that he produced about a baby that was born at 24 weeks gestation. He's also received 11 regional Moreau awards, which is so distinguished and was named outstanding report of the year four times by Virginia Associated Press. He's also helped launch eastidahonews.com, which has become Idaho's leader for news and has been honored with dozens of awards. And he has also appeared on every national news network. And his work has been featured on Dateline NBC, Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil, Today, and Good Morning America. And he and his wife have three children. Wow. Like, Wow. So she's following in those footsteps. So, let's go back to the beginnings for you, because it really does transition to Emmy's age, where apparently when you were young, this is where this started for you. What was it that drew you to all of this when you were a child?

Nate (14:32):

Well, I remember being on a field trip. I think I was in sixth grade at the Festival of Trees in Salt Lake City, and KSL was decorating a tree. And Carol Makita, the news anchor reporter, was there, and I watched her do a live shot. And I was so mesmerized that here she was doing a live shot and I could see it and she was on the TV. And I went home that night and watched the news, and I was hooked. And I started to write Carol Makita letters, and she wrote back, and then she invited my family to come down to a KSL broadcast house and watch a newscast. 

Connie (15:04):

That’s so Carol. That’s fantastic.

Nate (15:07):

She was so nice. We watched it and I was mesmerized by the green screen and the graphics and the reporters. And she really kind of, became a mentor to me. We still talk to this day. And I never diverted from that path. I went to, well, it was Rick's College at the time. And then I went on a mission to Australia and came home, and it had transformed to BYU-Idaho and went through the broadcasting journalism program there, graduated, got a job in television, and worked in TV for about nine, ten years before coming back to Idaho and launching East Idaho News. So I never thought that I would be in Idaho doing this. And I never thought that I'd have a daughter who's interviewing famous people that will say no to me, but they'll say yes to her.

Connie (15:55):

Lester Holt, like, come on! Like, wow. I love it. It's the cuteness factor, I'm telling you. I love that though, that journey. And I love that you started with that raw desire and that determination that it hooked you. And it sounds like the same for sweet Emmy that she's got that desire and that encouragement from you and your wife, that's, Okay, what can we do with this to channel it, to hone it? And that kind of begs the question. How has that been for you as a parent trying to keep her on this creative path but still protect her as you guide her on it?

Nate (16:32):

That is a great question. So we reached out to…this started…. We were actually on a river rafting trip last summer, 2020, in the middle of the pandemic. And I did a live Facebook video for my work page. And Emmy popped in and the family said, Hi. It was just a fun little thing. And someone said in the comments, Emmy, you should interview your dad. And so the next day, she said, I'll interview you, and we'll call it seven questions, ‘cause she was seven. So she interviewed me and then she interviewed my wife. And then our bishop at the time owns a restaurant in Idaho Falls, and said, She can come and interview me. So we went there. And then I was working on a story with Dateline, and I asked Keith Morrison, the famous correspondent. I said, Would you mind if my daughter interviewed you?

Nate (17:19):

And he's like, Sure. And so he did that. And then NBC showed it across their platforms, and it got millions of views. And Lester Holt said, Let's do a story. So that's how it all started. I mean, this was not planned at all.

Connie (17:32): 

Snowball

Nate (17:33):

Oh, really, in a big way. But, immediately agencies started to reach out to say, We want to represent her. And, you know, there were some things… We don't want to contaminate our children. We want to keep them special and, you know, exactly what your question was. And so we reached out to another LDS family who has a very popular YouTube channel, and asked them for advice. And they wrote back and said, Don't do anything for money. Just don't do anything for money. If it brings you happiness, and it brings your family joy, do it.

Nate (18:06):

And that's kind of been our philosophy that if we get a big offer for her to act in an R-rated movie, we're not going to do it. But, if it brings us joy, that's what we'll do. So that's kind of what we've done. We don't let her on social media. We run the accounts. There have been some offers of some celebrities that just aren't right for her at this time. Maybe down the road, but just, like you said, that the goal of the brand is to be happy and fun and that's kind of who we seek out. And, you know, I cover the horrible news, and she gets to do the real happy news. So it kind of balances, I guess.

Connie (18:44):

You know, that was the question that I had. And that's a beautiful segue, because truly you're involved in this lovely, upbeat, perky, eight-year-old joy. And then you've covered serial killers and prostitute rings. And I mean, oh my goodness, the depth and the brutality of what you're covering, that sort of, if it bleeds, it leads, right? So how do you navigate that as a father? And you are steeped in that during the day. And not every second, but you're in that. Then you come home and it's dinner and play Uno, kind of thing. How do you switch that gear and shift it for yourself, for your family, and also in helping her?

Nate (19:29):

That's a great question. And there's been this really big case that I've been covering for the past two years. It's gotten this national attention and it's just tragic with some children who died and were killed and all sorts of horrible stuff that you can imagine. And now having kids that are that age, it really hits home. And I think that in all of my reporting, I try to do it in a compassionate way, regardless of what the topic is. And often people will say reporters aren't compassionate. And they've probably said that about me, and maybe that's true in certain cases, but I try to just tell the stories as best I can and not focus on all negative all the time. We have to report that stuff. But luckily here at my job, I get to do a lot of happy stories.

Nate (29:14):

I did another story just last week, about another preemie who went home from the hospital after her mother was in a COVID coma. They had to deliver the baby as the mother’s in a coma, and they both survived and it was great. And those are the types of stories I love. So it is a tricky balance, especially with the way media is today. But I want my daughter, I want my kids to see that, yeah, I had to do some really bad stuff and hopefully not a lot of it. But I also want to do the happy stuff too and show the good in the world. This is a job where you see the absolute worst, and you see the absolute best. And you can see them both on the same day, meet the worst people and the best people. And that kind of is a nice balance, at least for me as a professional.

Connie (20:58):

Oh, I love that. In fact, it made me think, I remember Oprah saying that when she was early in her journalism career, she'd be covering the fire and than her boss was frustrated with her because she's calling to find out about blankets and where the family's going to stay, you know. Because there is that compassionate side, like you said, and there is a very fine line for you. I actually started out in journalism, and there's a fine line of walking credibility but still putting compassion and your personality. In fact, that reminds me that you had a video that went viral, that was on how to measure snowfall with Kit-Kats, right? Tell us about that, because to me, that's such a beautiful example of being able to put your fingerprint, your personality, in this world of journalism and still remain credible

Nate (21:42):

So we were living in Virginia at the time where it doesn't snow a lot in the part of Virginia where we were. But for some reason, this particular winter, we had, like, three or four snow storms. And, you know in television, in areas where they don't get snow, when there's a snowstorm, it's the end of the world. And so they stationed all the reporters all across town, and we were on for hours and they would come to us every 10 or 15 minutes. And we had to fill time. There’s only so much you can say. So finally, on the third or fourth storm, I said, What's a creative way we can do to measure this snowfall rather than just a ruler? And my wife and I were talking, and I said, How about we get candy bars? We could do Kit-Kats, a mini Kit-Kat, a regular size, a king size, and then, like, a mega size.

Nate (22:22):

And so, I went to work that day, and I showed my boss and she's like, I don't know, but, okay, try it. I'm up there pounding Kit-Kat bars. We taped them to rulers in the ground. And they came to me for my first live shot, and it hadn't been snowing at the time. And I showed the Kit-Kat-O-Meter, we named it, and it blew up on social media right away. And so they were coming to me every 15 minutes to check on the Kit-Kats. And by the time we did our 11 o'clock news that day, they were all covered. And people were messaging me, Can I have the Kit-Kats? Can I have the candy bars? And Hershey actually sent a case of Kit-Kats several days later to our newsroom. They had seen it. So it took off. And that was a fun way to report the news in a normal snowstorm. But yeah, the video’s somewhere. Somebody put together a video with the Kit-Kat song, Give me a Break with the clips.

Connie (23:18):

Oh my gosh, we will put it in the show notes. That is fantastic. And I'm seeing this theme throughout that you are, it seems to me, that you are living your life the best way you know how, with integrity, with values, and doing your best job to share good and light. And you're just letting those opportunities come, and you're there for them, and you're letting them roll, with Emmy, with the snowstorm, I mean, just all of the things. Instead of, sometimes in this day and age, there's such a grasping feel of, you got to get to the top of the mountain, you've gotta, you know, knock out old ladies in walkers to get there. And there's this beautiful feel from you and Emmy of just, we're just putting it out there and then seeing what happens with it. And what a beautiful gift. That's just a great life lesson to say, Hey, take that and be in ease, what I call, ease and flow. Is there another tip that you would give for people who want to do what you do, who want to do news? Or even someone who's out there who's like, I have a child who wants to get into this creative path, but I'm just not sure how much I want to actually encourage it. Do you have a tip for them as far as to keep this a positive experience?

Nate (24:30):

I think that this news, journalism, is an industry that either doesn't pay a lot or pays you a ton out. If you work on a network. It's one of the weird things where, you know, I started in Idaho falls back in 2005 on, as a beat reporter making $18,000 a year. That was my salary for the year. I could've made more at Walmart. And I remember a really wise person told me, Don't focus on the money, focus on building you. If you make a good you, the money will come. If all you focus on is the money, you'll never have a good you. And so for a business owner, if you focus on the product, get a good product, the money will come. If all you're focusing on is the money and you have a crappy product, the money is not going to come.

Nate (25:16):

And so I have tried to keep that in mind, to really just work hard, build your unique, you, whoever you are, and then the money will come. And I'm not saying I'm really rich or anything. But I worked in television for 10 years. And I had offers in big markets to go to California or other cities where I could be the lead reporter, maybe, on the 11 o'clock news. Instead, six years ago, my family and I moved to Idaho Falls, market 163, very small city, and launched a news website. And I've never been happier. It's been the best job that I've ever had. I would probably be making a lot more money working for a big network in New York City, but I would never see my family. And I would be on a plane every day to who knows where else.

Nate (26:04):

And I wouldn't be able to sit with my daughter as she interviews Derek Hough or Lindsay Sterling or something like that. So my advice to anybody, no matter what you're doing, is to build a good you. Too often in society we get caught up with the money, with the Facebook followers, the Twitter followers, whatever it is. But if you're a good you, people will be attracted to that. And that's what we try to instill in Emmy. I love that she can interview the garbage man or Drew Barrymore. And, to her, she's equally curious with both, and she'll respect them the same. And we were just in a potato cellar two weeks ago; she interviewed a potato farmer. And we stood for 30 minutes and she was just as curious. And she might remember that more than interviewing Elmo, might be a toss up. But that would be my word of advice amongst everything else.

Connie (26:53):

Oh my goodness, that is spot on. And I love how you took into consideration your family and the five steps down the road. That whole question from Boyd K packer that says, Where will it go? And, Then what? Where will it lead? You're exactly right. If I can share just a personal second Yah-ha to what you're saying. I know in college, I started out in journalism, but then I wanted to have a family, and I thought that's just not going to be conducive. And I thought, well, I'll just put that dream on the shelf. And it was in the days of Barbara Walters and Jessica Savage, you know, like, Oh, this is going to be so great! And, full circle, I ended up doing work for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And I ended up doing a TV show for 13 episodes.

Connie (27:33):

And I'm sitting in between Bob Evans of Fox 13 News and Carlos Amezcua who is a 13-time Emmy Award winner in LA. And it's my first time ever doing TV. I didn't even know where to look for the monitor. And I remember, on break, we were talking, and I said, You know, this is what I actually wanted to do, and isn't it ironic? I've come full circle, but I'm doing this in a way that is conducive to my family. And I remember Bob saying to me, You're lucky. You missed all the weekends and the holidays and all the sweat-blood, sweat, and tears that goes into it. Right?

Nate (28:04):

Early mornings, Christmas mornings, being in a standoff with the police. Yeah, I hear ya. 

Connie (28:10):

Oh my goodness. And look at the choice that you made. How beautiful that you're in a grounded space; that now you can help Emmy to fly. And isn't that what we want as parents for our children? We want to be able to pass on good stuff to them, to be in our grounded space and be able to play in our creative space, and to be able to pass on something to them, that they can now take the baton and go with it in a way that is joyful to them. And that's what you're doing. What a blessing, what a gift. If you were to talk to a parent who was guiding their child and you see what you've done with her and how you've helped her, what has been a tool that you've taught her to stay level headed, or to stay in that space of being a child while she's interacting in such an adult world?

Nate (28:56):

That's a good question. I think one of the things that we talked about before this even got big, is at the end of every interview, Emmy sends a note, a thank you note, to the person who she interviewed. But not only that, she tries to get the people who helped arrange it. So sometimes it might take three or four managers or agents to get the interview, but she'll send that thank you note just to thank them. And sometimes we have to twist her arm to write them, because, you know, it's like, you gotta do it. But it's important to hopefully create a feeling of gratitude amongst her that these people take out time to talk with her. We've also said to her, if she ever wants to stop, we'll fully support it. I mean, if she said tomorrow, I don't want to do this anymore, we would stop it.

Nate (28:44):

As cool as it is and as fun as it is, and we want her to keep doing it, and she definitely wants to keep doing it, but we're not going to force it on her. And it's, kind of, learn as you go. You know, when the Drew Barrymore Show offered us a contract. She's a contributor on the show, and so, she'll be on, guaranteed. It was a question that we thought, Do we really want to head to New York every few weeks? But, again, consulting with other people, they say, The world needs as much light and goodness as we can give. And so that's what we want to try to do with her. I hope that answers your question. I mean, it is something that you want your children to exercise their talents. We have a son who would not want to do this, and we're not going to force him to do his thing, and that's fine. You can't force it on someone, but we think that Emmy has the talent and is kind of a natural, and so that's what we do.

Connie (30:36):

I love it. And you can tell that she feels supported, and she's still in that space of the joy of it. She just loves it. It's so fun. And she doesn't feel that you can feel from her, she doesn't feel that pressure or there's this expectation she has to do X, Y, and Z. It's still that space of unicorns and rainbows, and how gorgeous is that? And I echo that. Isn't that what we're trying to do as members of the church, that we want to use our expression of creativity to express our faith, to be able to get it out there and get more good out there. And as Elder Bednar said, To be able to sweep the earth as a flood with goodness, right? To be able to make that, be that pattern that people seek after. This has been so phenomenal. I do have to ask just more of a little side-note question. As I was watching her doing those interviews. So she's sitting on her chair and she's facing the camera, for those that haven't seen them yet. And go watch them, they are darling. She is darling. That one with Derek Hough was just adorable. Oh my gosh. But do you ever coach her? Like, are you scrunched down? Are you giving her pointers or anything, or does she just do?

Nate (31:39):

I'm generally, me and my wife, we're behind the monitor holding up the questions on a paper. So she sees them. She comes up with the questions. We help her. She comes up with the questions, though, and we'll print them off. And so, we do have some right behind there, but a lot of it is so ad-libbed that we don't coach it all. A lot of the stuff with Elmo and Drew, that was ad-lib. Give her the questions, and then she goes. And she ended up having a 30-minute conversation with Mike Rowe, a few weeks ago, of Dirty Jobs. And it was so great that then he talked about her on the podcast. And he ended up doing Show and Tell in his office, like, Oh, look at this Emmy, and look at this. And it just was very organic and came with it. And so, yeah, we coach her a little. We'll say, you know, don't chew on your hair, you know, don't do this. But for the most part, it's pretty much to her.

Connie (32:28):

It's her. And you can tell. And I love that. You know, in writing and in this “show don't tell'' is so important. And I love that, that is such a “show don't tell.” It's her. She is just comfortable in her skin. And, I do have to say, not trying to embarrass you and your wife, but I do have to say, that groundedness, yes, it can be innate, but to be so encouraged by both of you. And she feels so secure in what she's doing, that that is such a tribute to both you and your wife, of the environment that you've created for her and this launchpad for her to really do and become whatever Heavenly Father wants her to be, whatever she feels the desire to be. I just think that's tremendous. So inspiring for the rest of us. You know, this, this podcast we like to kind of close up and wrap up with just one last takeaway of–our whole tagline is the intersection of faith, creativity, and professional skill–and trying to hit that Venn Diagram, sweet spot of being able to be creative, but express your faith and still do it with craft, with skill.

Connie (33:29):

Is there one takeaway that you could share, that you haven't yet, that's helped you, but anybody who wants to go down that way to help you stay in that sweet spot? Because, like you said, it's hard to get offers and the bling and all the things. Have you found something for yourself that helps you stay in that sweet spot? 

Nate (33:50):

That's a great question. And this, I'm in a business where you're taught to question everything and to doubt everything. And there's so much negativity, and you can really get caught up in that and being prideful and trying to one-up everybody else, as you mentioned. And I remember years ago that I was tired of it. And I was thinking about leaving news, just leaving journalism and doing something else. I didn't know what. And I was able to, through a bizarre series of circumstances, catch up with a really big person at the time who was a big, huge network star who's a person of faith. And I told him, I said, I'm thinking about leaving. You know, it's this and this. And I was complaining. And I remember he kind of grabbed my shoulder and he said, Don't leave. We need all the good ones we can get. 

Nate (34:46):

And so, no matter what profession you're in, no matter what you're doing, you have to think about how can I contribute this for good? How can I do this to help make the world a better place? And if you're serving McDonald's hamburgers, you can make the world a better place by contributing to the good. And too often, I just said a few days ago, I'm just going to leave news and go serve everybody ice cream, ‘cause then everybody's happy. Everybody’s happy! And I'll be happy, and I don't have to think about it. Maybe I wouldn't be happy, but even at that point. I don't know if that really answers your question, but that's something I've thought about over the years that no matter how dark it gets, no matter how horrible it is in the world, no matter what we're doing, we can be the good ones. We can be the ones that are bringing the light to others. And that's something that I try to keep in mind  no matter how dark the days may be or how dark the stories are. There can be a way to share light, if you have a platform, as this podcast is doing, you know. You never know how many people you're going to reach, or if it's just one person you reach who needs to hear it.

Connie (35:55):

I know exactly what you’re saying, because look at what Carol Makita did for you. Look at you reaching out and then that domino effect of suddenly she reached out, she sent things to you. You've been in contact. Now, how you're helping Emmy. It is that beautiful rough stone rolling, it's that domino effect. And the thing that came to mind where you were sharing that beautiful takeaway was. I know, the work that I do with women, we do a #ForHim. Everything we do, we just put on #ForHim at the end, whether you're doing photography or gardening or whatever it might be. And it reminds me of President Eyring where he shared a story. I believe it's in the book…I can't remember, Drawing the Powers of Heaven? I can't remember, but he shared the story about his father. 

Connie (36:37):

Do you remember when he had cancer? His father had cancer in both hips and he was over the welfare farm and he was getting people to pull, I think it was beats. They had to go pull the weeds. And so they were going, and he was in so much pain, he was pulling by his elbows. He was flat on the ground, prostrate, and he was pulling himself by his elbows, just in excruciating pain. And at the end of the day, no offense, but some bright spark comes up and says, You didn't pull those, did you? Because those were already sprayed, so they were going to die anyway. And afterwards, President Eyring asked his dad and said, I know you laughed. I know you chuckled, but I know that couldn't have been easy. That was not a pain-free day for you. That was hard.

Connie (37:14):

He said, why could you just laugh that off? And I'm paraphrasing. And I remember his dad saying, because, Hal, I wasn't there for the weeds. And I think what you're saying is exactly right. We're not in the industries we're in for our own gain, for our own aggrandizement. We're in it for Him. And whatever He wants us to do with it, however He sees fit to use us as instruments in His hands, that's what we're to do, and that's where we'll find the fulfillment. And I know we have a lot of choice. And I love that you've shared those switch points in your journey and in Emmy's journey. But each time you can see and feel your ability to say, Hmm, what's the high road? What's the best way? What does His will want? And you can feel that, and you can see it on your faces, the joy, the happiness, the contentment of where you are, notwithstanding the stresses along the way. So thank you so much for sharing your journey and Emmys just to inspire the rest of us.

Nate (38:07):

Oh, well, thank you. Interesting you mentioned President Eyring. He a…Art Rascon, who's a news anchor in Houston, who I believe is an Area Authority now, he wrote a book called The Heart of News. And he began the book by talking about a conversation he had with President Eyring at the time. And President Eyring told him, the two industries, the two professionals that will affect, and I'm paraphrasing here in a big way, that will affect the world more than any others in the coming decades will be communicators and educators. And we need good communicators and we need good educators. And there can be bad communicators and bad educators. And, basically, which ones are you going to be? So you're very kind. I mean, I look at it every day as I'm just doing my job, I'm just trying to raise my family. Please don't think we're perfect in any way. We're just lucky that this has happened, and we can share it with the world, and we do appreciate you having us on.

Connie (39:05):

It's been an absolute delight. And when I feel something so truthful and wonderful, I get goosebumps up and down my arms. And it's been several times in this interview. I'm going to go back and relisten and share some things with my kids. This has just been fabulous. Thank you so much, Nate, for taking time with us today.

Nate (39:20):

Thanks, Connie. Take care. 

Connie (39:23):

Thank you. And as always, for our listeners, we hope you've enjoyed this as well. If you have, go below rate, review and subscribe and get more of this good stuff. And then share it with your friends so you can keep sharing these voices of light. Keep sharing how we can pursue our faith and creativity and professional skill and be in that sweet spot in that intersection of those good things. Thanks for joining us today.