SEASON 9 THEME: CRAVINGS

The Beautiful Thinkers Podcast | IU Edition

A Manifesto on Cravings

From the moment we are born, we crave. We cry out for food, for love, for touch. We do
not yet have words, but our hunger speaks louder than any language. Craving is not our
weakness; it is our proof of life. It drives us forward, pulls us toward growth, and ignites
that flame of desire. Craving is the song in our blood and the inferno in our chest.

As we grow, our cravings evolve. We crave connection, belonging, laughter that shakes
the room. We crave beauty in chaos, meaning in silence, freedom in a world that cages.
We crave the taste of risk, the thrill of becoming more than we were yesterday.

But cravings cut both ways. They can light the path or burn it down. They can drive us
closer together or leave us stranded in isolation. They can build us or break us. Every
craving comes with its shadow.

The question is not whether to crave, but how. How do we honor the hunger without
letting it consume us?

Season Nine of The Beautiful Thinkers Podcast features IU alumni who have wrestled
with desire—who have been shaped and reshaped by what they've wanted, what
they've been denied, and what they've discovered along the way. They've learned that
craving doesn't make us weak; it makes us alive.

Do not shrink your hunger to fit into a smaller world. Let it move you. Let it break you
open. Let it build you anew

Because craving is not the end. It's the beginning—the spark before the fire.