“Love in a F*cked-Up World is a resounding call to action and a practical manifesto for how to combat cultural scripts and take our relationships into our own hands, so we can stick together while we work for survival and liberation.”
The Grove is a monthly reading circle where folks gather to read and connect. Together we carve out a space to drop in, reflect, and be moved/challenged/inspired.
This book club is open to anyone who wants to deepen their reflections on and understandings of relationships. It is run by a local relationship therapist. Join us for a community discussion based on authors’ wisdom and the group’s collective experiences with relationships.
Our featured book for March is Love in a Fucked-Up World by Dean Spade.
From Dean Spade’s website: Around the globe, people are faced with spiraling crises, from the pandemic and climate change-induced disasters to the ongoing horrors of mass incarceration, genocide, racist policing, endemic gender violence, and severe wealth inequality. More and more of us feel mobilized to fight back, often dedicating our lives to collective liberation. But even those of us who long for change seem to have trouble when it comes to interpersonal relationships. Too often we think of our political values as outward-facing positions again dominant systems of power. Many projects and resistance groups fall apart because people treat each other poorly, trying desperately to live out the cultural myths about dating and relationships that we are fed from an early age. How do we divest from cultural programming that gives us harmful expectations about sex, dating, romance and friendship? How do we recover from the messed up dynamics we were trained in by childhood caregivers? How do we bring our best thinking about freedom into step with our desires for healing and connection?
Container
We will gather in The Apothecary at Shelterwood Collective in Pioneer Square.
Our gathering will loosely follow this flow:
7:00 — Arrive + settle in
7:10 — Setting the frame
7:15 — Quiet reading
7:45 — Group discussion
8:45 — Space for casual connection
Tea and chocolate will be provided. You are welcome to bring snacks, wine, or your favorite beverage to share.
We encourage you to support Dr. Sue Johnson’s legacy and your favorite local bookstore by purchasing the book, before or after the circle. We love our building-mates Arundel Books.
Exchange
All are welcome. $11-22 suggested donation. All proceeds go to our Sustainable Therapy Program. Donations can be made via Venmo: @shelterwoodcollective.
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Please RSVP to support us in preparing the space.
Jill Arndt
LMHC, CTP
The Grove is curated by collective member, Jill Arndt. Jill is a mental health therapist in Fremont, Seattle. She specializes in working with relationships. She is excited to offer this circle to the community as a fellow journeyer in life! Books offer a space for us to connect and to process (or simply be) with others in the daunting questions we often face as humans who are constantly in relationship with ourselves and others.