# How A Mother Learned To Connect Without Language

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/embodied-477109/how-a-mother-learned-to-connect-without-language
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/embodied-477109/how-a-mother-learned-to-connect-without-language.md
Podcast: [Embodied](https://stenobird.com/podcast/embodied-477109)
Published: 2026-05-07T09:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://play.prx.org/listen?ge=prx_1580_d0765e72-5115-467e-b3dc-ec4520465e47&uf=https%3A%2F%2Fembodied.feed.wunc.org%2F
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/https://mgln.ai/e/1331/dovetail.prxu.org/1580/d0765e72-5115-467e-b3dc-ec4520465e47/20260508_E_AnthroMom_Pod_Pt1.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/embodied-477109/episodes/how-a-mother-learned-to-connect-without-language
Duration seconds: 3021

## Resource

How do you care for someone you struggle to communicate with ... and can never fully understand? That's the question anthropologist Danilyn Rutherford has been wrestling with for decades — ever since it became clear that her daughter Millie would never speak, sign or use symbols to express herself. Danilyn talks with Anita about how mothering a multiply-disabled child challenged her beliefs about the importance of language for human connection. Meet the guest: - Danilyn Rutherford is the author of “ Beautiful Mystery: Living in a Wordless World ” Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platform Follow Embodied on Instagram Leave a message for Embodied

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## Transcript

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