Stretch & Repair: Finding Security in Connection with Jen Andrew

I've been wondering...what if social security wasn’t just a government program, but something we build together with the people in and around our lives? In this episode of the Social Security series, Jen Andrew, a disability rights advocate, herbalist, and guest from The Myth of Knowing series, joins me to explore another reframe: relationships as a form of social security, and how showing up, stretching, and repairing can create the support systems we all need. Jen and I talk about the complex, confusing, gratifying, and very real work of connection: balancing self-responsibility with reciprocity, holding space for discomfort, and learning how to give and receive care without losing ourselves. We talk about different levels of closeness, accountability, repair, and the subtle shifts that transform relationships into a social safety net. If you’ve ever wished for a variety of relationships that can sustain as well as support you, and wondered how to navigate the discomfort that comes with being in community, this conversation is for you. Together, we rethink connection, care, and what it truly means to be secure with each other.Lovette Jallow The Lovette Jallow Perspective  WebsiteRepentance and Repair Book by Danya RuttenbergGloria Alamrew Healing is Making Us MeanDave Meesters Dining Halls Now!Adam Wilson The Peasantry School Newsletter Sand River Farm WebsiteGarrett Bucks The White PagesBen Folds Capable of Anything This song isn't mentioned in the episode, but when Jen says “I had a therapist say to me once, this might be controversial, but everyone is capable of abuse. Not that everyone’s an abuser, but that everyone actually can engage in abusive behavior, and talking about how are we responsible to each other, recognizing that in ourselves instead of … this person is good, this person is bad" I immediately thought of this song, so I wanted to include it.