Chats with Aunt Jacki

When the system breaks, we don’t wait to be saved. We build circles.Every week, another story breaks that confirms what many of us have always known—this world was not built with women’s safety in mind.In this episode of Chats with Aunt Jacki, I sit down with Byron Ballard—folklorist, author, and longtime voice in the magical community—for a real conversation about what’s happening right now. Not in theory. Not in headlines. In lived experience.We talk about “Tower Time”—what it means when the systems we’ve relied on are cracking, and why this moment isn’t about fixing what’s broken. It’s about seeing clearly what was never built to hold us in the first place.This conversation goes into hard territory:the visibility of organized harm against womenthe conditioning that keeps us quiet or compliantthe ways fear, isolation, and distraction keep us from actingAnd then we move into what actually matters.Power.Protection.And the truth most people don’t say out loud:We don’t do this alone.If the system isn’t going to keep you safe, then the question becomes—what does?We talk about grounding, energetic protection, and why community is not a luxury. It’s the work. It’s the protection. It’s how we move forward from here.If you’ve been feeling unsettled, questioning what you’re seeing, or trying to figure out where your power actually is in all of this—you’re not wrong. And you’re not alone.And if you’re at a place where you need clarity, perspective, or help sorting through what’s yours and what isn’t, you can connect with me for a reading at AuntJacki.com Listen in. Stay grounded. And start finding your people.