Being an identical twin is kind of like having a parallel world right on top of ours, one in which there is another version of you running around. Dana Chivvis has the story of the Sklar twins, and a 48-year-old mystery.

A nurse giving instructions to her partner in case she dies from COVID-19; a brother and sister talking every day, all of a sudden. (9 minutes)We first heard about nurse Elise Barrett in a story by Eric Boodman for STAT.

What it’s like inside a small New York apartment with a toddler and two parents who are very sick with COVID-19. Producer Ben Calhoun talks to his brother-in-law, Elia Einhorn.

It turns out winning the lottery is only the first step in trying to come to America. More than half of the people who win each year never make it.

David Sedaris comes from a big family, who for many years growing up, took annual vacations to the same beach house. In this story, David tells us about losing a sister, and how her death prompted a family reunion back at the beach.

Producer Miki Meek tells the story of a phone booth in Japan that attracts thousands of people who lost loved ones in the 2011 tsunami and earthquake.

Mitchell S Jackson profiles Ahmaud Arbery, who was 25 years old when he was shot to death by three white men in Georgia earlier this year.

Abdurahman Tohti left his home country, China, behind 7 years ago to move to Turkey, safe from the Chinese regime that discriminates and arbitrarily detains Uyghurs, specifically, which Abdurahman is. Reporter Durrie Bouscaren talks to him about what happened to his wife and children and extended family in China, and the endless challenges he faces trying to be sure they are safe.

Writer Kimberly Jones provides context with a brief history of the American economy, told through a popular board game.

Host Ira Glass talks to a direct descendent of Thomas Jefferson about treating Monticello as his personal playground and about whether monuments to Jefferson should come down.

Writer Etgar Keret tells a story about his father, who was constantly imagining parallel universes. In a way, they saved him.

Ben Calhoun talks to a man in ICE detention in Louisiana about how he and people around him are following the election. But right as the results are coming in, the man’s case takes a serious turn.

Ira talks with Connie Rex about the deer she and her sisters kidnapped and ended up putting into their school’s Christmas pageant in Woodruff, Utah, in a starring role.

Jonathan Goldstein tries to convince his uncle and his father to get into the same room and have a conversation for the first time in decades, before it’s too late and one of them dies.

Dana Chivvis’s story on the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners continues with Dr. Michael LaPaglia’s contested case hearing.

An incredibly accomplished 25-year-old, two-time Olympic boxing gold medalist Claressa Shields, achieved a big dream of hers this year. A dream that had nothing to do with her sport.

Ira talks to producer Elna Baker about the time she and her siblings found themselves trapped in a hotel room with an unexpected visitor.

We meet the doctors. Rana Awdish spends hours of each day walking the floors of the ICU checking in on her co-workers, which means that maybe more than any single person in the hospital she knows best what the staff has been going through at each stage of this pandemic. One doctor that has deep ties to Detroit is Geneva Tatem.

Comedian Mike Birbiglia talks about the time he ruined a cancer charity event by giving the worst performance of his life. Here's a hint: He improvised.

Writer Danielle Evans has been almost completely alone all quarantine — and she’s had time to think about grief, and loneliness and what might come after this pandemic is over. (17 minutes)A version of this essay first appeared in the Corona Correspondences series at The Sewanee Review.

The statistics on first time gun ownership are higher than ever in America.

Producer Neil Drumming tells the story of his dad and his family’s timeshare in Orlando, Florida.

For years one group of people has been trying to push a giant boulder to the top of a hill, like Sisyphus. But in this case, it looks like they’ve actually succeeded! David Kestenbaum spoke with four scientists who have been working on a coronavirus vaccine, one that was just shown to work.

Khristen, a single mom, decides to secretly record her home inspector to catch him sexually harassing her. Eight years later, reporter Jessica Lussenhop checks in with Khristen to talk about what the recording meant back then versus now.