7 Minute Stories w/ Aaron Calafato
7 Minute Stories is Aaron Calafato’s extemporaneous, autobiographical storytelling podcast. This top short story podcast is quick, immersive, and tinged with nostalgia. Each story feels deeply personal and always leaves you with something to chew on—7MS sounds like if David Sedaris and Paul Harvey swapped notes over coffee at a Midwestern diner.
Episodes
April 24, 2025 • 8 mins
Aaron has been preaching the same piece of advice to his kids for years: give a gift to your future self. It’s great advice—until it isn’t. In this episode, a public library talk goes sideways fast, and Aaron learns the hard way that even the best-laid plans can’t stop a surprise bloodbath.
Mark as Played
April 17, 2025 • 8 mins
Aaron shares the story of his great-grandmother—“Little Grandma”—and the Sunday tradition she passed down that became the heartbeat of his family. This deeply personal episode explores the power of food, memory, and how culture gets preserved one simmering pot of sauce at a time.
*Shout out to artist Frank Oriti for helping inspire this story!
https://frankoritijr.com/
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your i...
Mark as Played
April 10, 2025 • 10 mins
As the rest of the world thaws out and rushes outside to soak in the first rays of spring, Aaron heads the opposite direction—back into the basement. In this episode, he reflects on why warmer days fill him with unease, why solitude has become sacred, and how the quiet chill of winter might offer something we’re all starving for: the right to turn off and just be. A story about temperature, temperament, and tuning out.
Make sure y...
Mark as Played
April 3, 2025 • 8 mins
Aaron finds himself stuck in a suburban parking lot, overwhelmed by logistics and burnout after a long weekend of supporting his daughter's performance. But as dusk falls and a chaotic van interrupts a perfect sunset, he’s reminded of perspective, connection, and the small beauty of clean hands and second chances.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up f...
Mark as Played
March 27, 2025 • 7 mins
When Aaron learns of Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy’s tragic deaths, he can’t stop thinking about what really happened in those final days. In this intimate reflection, Aaron explores the space between facts and truth—and the power of storytelling to fill in what logic alone never could.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up for our quarterly newslette...
Mark as Played
March 20, 2025 • 10 mins
This special 7 Minute Stories Cinema collaboration takes you to a small-town Super Kmart, a once-thriving hub that slowly faded into obscurity—only to be reclaimed by an unexpected new population. In this episode, Aaron reflects on a childhood filled with late-night runs, hypnotic store music, and one final transformation that turned an abandoned parking lot into something truly unforgettable.
Soundscape Design & Direction: Isaac ...
Mark as Played
March 13, 2025 • 8 mins
Aaron reflects on the fine line between nostalgia and delusion, questioning whether his love for the past is keeping him grounded or pulling him into a time warp. Through a mix of humor and introspection, he explores how memories shape us—without letting them define us.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up for our quarterly newsletter. Join the waitlis...
Mark as Played
March 9, 2025 • 9 mins
What really happens behind the scenes at a Rent-A-Center? In this 7 Minute Stories: Sunday Leftovers episode, Aaron features master storyteller Shannon Cason, host of Homemade with Shannon Cason, as part of a special story swap. Shannon shares a brutally honest and darkly funny story from his summer working at Rent-A-Center—where the true business wasn’t furniture, but selling payments. From repo runs to ruthless managers, this sto...
Mark as Played
March 6, 2025 • 9 mins
This episode features a 7MS Cinema collaboration with audio producer Isaac Gehring.
After years of chasing a dream in New York, Aaron looks back on the unlikely connections and formative moments that shaped his journey—including a family tie to a professional character actor many of you have seen in films over the last few decades. But when a chance reminder from Henry Winkler jogs a long-buried memory, he realizes there's somethi...
Mark as Played
February 27, 2025 • 8 mins
On a freezing winter morning, Aaron stepped outside to complete the simplest of tasks—bringing in his trash cans. But what started as a mundane chore quickly spiraled into an existential crisis, leading him to question generosity, obligation, and just how many trash cans one man can really take in.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up for our quarterly...
Mark as Played
February 23, 2025 • 12 mins
In Venezuela, when something breaks, you don’t just replace it—you figure out how to fix it with whatever you have. That’s the mindset Julio Viera (CEO of kluster.ai) grew up with, one that led him to discover programming in a school detention hall, code by hand in a notebook, and eventually build a company making AI more accessible to the world.
As AI models like DeepSeek and ChatGPT dominate the conversation—sparking both excite...
Mark as Played
February 19, 2025 • 9 mins
On a late summer night, Aaron and Cori set out for barbecue, but what should have been a simple dinner takes an unexpected turn. First, they find an unlikely hitchhiker—a panicked bird trapped in their car’s grill. Then, just as they’re leaving the restaurant, a much more unsettling scene unfolds in the parking lot—a woman struggling to escape a car, a man refusing to let her go. In this episode, Aaron recounts two escapes: one wit...
Mark as Played
February 13, 2025 • 7 mins
As a child, Aaron Calafato believed that clouds were made in factories—until his classmates’ laughter shattered that illusion. In this episode, he shares a written adaptation of this story that’s gained popularity on Instagram Threads, along with reader comments reflecting on their own childhood misconceptions. Plus, a guest story by Karl Gerhard (Medina, OH) about the beauty and unexpected complexity of ice sculptures—because some...
Mark as Played
It’s Super Bowl Sunday, but instead of just watching the game, Aaron finds himself making a confession that no true Cleveland Browns fan should ever admit. While his wife Cori is sick and asks him to tell her a story, he ends up revealing something that feels like an act of betrayal—not just to her, but to the entire Dawg Pound. What happens next? Well… some things are hard to take back.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content de...
Mark as Played
February 6, 2025 • 8 mins
Aaron reflects on his childhood visitations with his father and how, in just a couple of hours each week, his dad transformed ordinary moments into unforgettable adventures. From blasting Springsteen in the car to battling "giant squids" in the car wash, this story captures the magic of a parent making the most of limited time.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners...
Mark as Played
February 2, 2025 • 10 mins
As a kid, Aaron spent his days at a church with a red door—first in preschool, then in the pews, listening to sermons that felt more like stories. Decades later, he wonders if the minister who once predicted his future might have been onto something. In this episode, Aaron revisits the church, the people who shaped him, and the stories that stayed long after he left.
Special 7MS Cinema collaboration with producer/engineer Isaac Ge...
Mark as Played
February 1, 2025 • 8 mins
In this nostalgic episode, Aaron reflects on being in a high school band in the nineties, a time when demo tapes and battle-of-the-bands showcases felt like the only shot at stardom. He shares the story of Spice, his high school’s annual talent show, and how it became a beacon of hope for a group of teenage dreamers.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign u...
Mark as Played
January 26, 2025 • 9 mins
On this episode of Sunday Leftovers we examine the question: What does it mean to love someone who isn’t perfect? In this deeply personal story written, recorded and submitted from 7MS listener and aspiring writer Chad Baxter, we journey through a childhood filled with tender moments and lessons passed from father to son. But as Chad grows older, his relationship with his dad becomes complicated by addiction, shame, and longing for...
Mark as Played
January 23, 2025 • 7 mins
During 72 hours of Arctic cold, Aaron and his family hunker down, rediscovering the magic of snow days through games, creativity, and a bread-making obsession. What they find is a discovery of something many of us know but have forgotten...
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up for our quarterly newsletter. Join the waitlist!
https://www.7minutestoriesp...
Mark as Played
January 16, 2025 • 8 mins
What began as a way for Aaron Calafato to pass the time outside a crowded restaurant turned into an unexpected lesson in humanity. In this episode, he reflects on the act of opening doors, the complexities of human interaction, and what it truly means to connect with others.
*We’re creating bonus 7MS-themed content delivered to your inbox, but only exclusively for 7MS listeners who sign up for our quarterly newsletter. Join the wa...
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.