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Following celebrations for the historic election of Argentine Pope Francis, it's time to look at the business of leading the world's 1.2 billion Catholics — bureaucracy and all. Host Michel Martin discusses the Pope's future agenda with Reverend Jose Hoyos, of the Diocese of Arlington, and religion professor Anthea Butler.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Now, we want to take some time to talk about retirement. Later this hour, we will hear from someone who decided to retire at the advanced age of 32 and - no, his last name is not Buffett or Rockefeller or Gates. We'll ask him why and, equally important, how he managed to do this. That's coming up later this hour.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

We want to turn now to someone who is thinking about retirement in a very different way. Carl Seidman is in his early 30s, but just a few weeks ago, he quit his job as a consultant in Chicago and hopped on a plane to Chile. He's calling it his first retirement and he says you don't have to wait until you're 65 to retire either, and he's going to tell us more about that.

Katherine Paterson is the beloved author of many young adult novels, including Jacob Have I Loved, The Great Gilly Hopkins and Bridge to Terabithia.

The American Library Association recently honored her with the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for her "substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children."

Paterson, who has been writing for a half-century, tells NPR's Michel Martin that despite all the awards she has received throughout the years, this one means a lot.

Poetry and social media join forces once again in April. Tell Me More celebrates National Poetry Month with its 3rd annual Muses and Metaphor series. We'll feature poems exchanged via Twitter by NPR fans — always in 140 characters or fewer. Tweet your poem using the hashtag: #TMMPoetry.

A candidate has finally been declared the winner in Kenya's presidential election. But the votes were close and the main opponent says he'll fight the results in court. Could the election become Kenya's version of the Bush-Gore battle from 2000?

The Reverend Al Sharpton has moved from controversial street protester to a media activist with access to the president. Host Michel Martin talks with Corey Dade, NPR digital news correspondent, about his profile of 'The Rev.'

Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's Chief Operating Officer, pushed buttons with her new book Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead. In it, she advises young women to 'lean in' to their careers, and be more aggressive in pursuing leadership opportunities. Host Michel Martin asks the moms roundtable if they agree.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin and this TELL ME MORE from NPR News. This is the season of reflection for many religious people around the world. The importance of repentance and forgiveness are often a focus this time of year. But faith leaders aren't the only people who talk about the importance of forgiveness.

Recently, on this program, we talked about the work of psychologist who are trying to teach people how to practice forgiveness. They note that there are often physical and emotional benefits to forgiveness.

Dr. Ben Carson is known for blazing trails in the neurological field — including breakthrough work separating conjoined twins. Now he's making waves for his political views. Host Michel Martin talks with Carson about the current state of health care in America and his upcoming speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

It's been 10 years since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. That conflict drastically changed the lives of Iraqi women. On International Women's Day, host Michel Martin talks with Iqbal al-Juboori, about how the war affected her personally, and what it's like for women to live in a conflict zone. al-Juboori works to provide job training and life skills to women and their families in rural parts of Iraq.

Catholicism is reaching further into the developing world. Will the Church shift its focus to new concerns in those regions — like poverty, education and rural development? Michel Martin talks with Sister Simone Campbell, Father Patrick Ryan and Yale Divinity Professor Lanim Sanneh about whether the Church's priorities are changing.

Was Senator Rand Paul's 13-hour filibuster a smart political move or a total disaster? The Barbershop guys weigh in on that — and how Major League Baseball could be affected by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's death. Host Michel Martin checks in with writer Jimi Izrael, civil rights attorney Arsalan Iftikhar, sports writer Dave Zirin and columnist Mario Loyola.

The city of Detroit has been in the headlines after the state announced plans to appoint an emergency financial manager. But how are smaller cities dealing with a budget that's in the red? To find out more, host Michel Martin speaks with Diana Garza, mayor of Floresville, Texas. Garza is new to the job — a position that pays $100 a month.

Etana is a reggae soul artist whose music is infused with strength and positivity. She talks to host Michel Martin about the inspiration behind her new album Better Tomorrow.

Liberal arts colleges are trying hard to attract minority students and faculty. But what happens when they get on campus? Host Michel Martin talks to the dean and chief diversity officer of Middlebury College, Shirley Collado, and her former student Sheyenne Brown, about initiatives to make schools more inclusive for people of color.

Finally today, I read this sentence a couple of weeks ago and I've been thinking about it since: "When you can't change what's bothering you, a typical response is to convince yourself it's not really bothering you."

Let me try that again: "When you can't change what's bothering you, a typical response is to convince yourself it's not really bothering you."

A rash of public school closings in some U.S. cities has parents and teachers reeling. School officials say the closings are needed to save money, but some argue it's a form of discrimination. Host Michel Martin talks with a Chicago reporter and a Philadelphia activist about how the closings could affect students and local communities.

Hugo Chavez was a controversial but charismatic leader of Venezuela. Host Michel Martin speaks with Dan Hellinger, a professor of political science at Webster University, about Chavez's legacy.

If Michigan Governor Rick Snyder has his way, Detroit will become the sixth and largest city there to come under state control. But steering a city out of crisis can be a tricky task. Host Michel Martin speaks with Jerome Vaughn, of WDET, and Robert Bobb, a former emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools, about the situation.

Skipping $4 lattes will save you some money — but buying into bogus financial advice won't. Finance journalist, Helaine Olen says many of the so-called 'financial experts' are selling you advice to make themselves rich. She discusses her book, Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry with host Michel Martin.

Fewer Americans are having babies. Instead, many are putting their careers or savings accounts first. But experts say the country's low birthrate could be disastrous for the economy. Host Michel Martin examines the trend with her parenting roundtable.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

This is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. I'm Michel Martin. Coming up, it's been called a landmark in the American literary canon. Certainly it's one of the premier works of Chicano literature. Now it's finally made its way to the big screen. We are going to speak with its star, herself a well-loved pioneer among Latina actresses. Her name is Miriam Colon and she's with us in just a few minutes to tell us about "Bless Me, Ultima."

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin, and this is TELL ME MORE, from NPR News. Now we'd like to tell you about a film that took an unusually long and winding path to the big screen. The film is called "Bless Me, Ultima." It's based on the best-selling novel by Rudolfo Anaya. It's both one of the most loved, most popular and most controversial novels in the modern American canon.

Lawmakers failed to avert across-the-board spending cuts to the federal government, and they officially kicked in last week. Host Michel Martin speaks with NPR senior business editor Marilyn Geewax, and The Wall Street Journal's Sudeep Reddy about what it all really means.

The Prophet Muhammad is the central figure in Islam, and thousands of stories have been told about him. Writer Lesley Hazleton decided to dig deeper and get a sense of who he was as a real person. She speaks with host Michel Martin about her biography 'The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad.

The Supreme Court heard arguments this week on the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965. It's been called the most effective civil rights law in U.S. history, but plaintiffs say it's time to throw out some key provisions. Host Michel Martin speaks with law professor Spencer Overton and the Heritage Foundation's Hans Von Spakovsky.

Prospects at the NFL's Scouting Combine were recently asked if they had girlfriends or were married. The NFL launched an investigation into the unusual questions, and warned teams they could be punished for asking about sexual orientation. The Barbershop guys weigh in on that and other news.

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

And now it's time for the occasional series we call In Your Ear. That's when some of the guests on our program tell us about the songs that are in heavy rotation in their music collections.

Today, we get the playlist of Rev. Run. You might remember him from the rap group Run DMC. He spoke with us last December about his transformation from rapper to reverend. After our conversation, Rev. Run told us about the songs he listens to to keep the sparks flying in his marriage.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BEST OF ME")