This opening episode establishes why storytelling matters in the first place. Erik and Ty begin by looking backward—to the stories that shaped us as children: Robin Hood, Star Trek, superheroes, Scripture, comics, movies, campfire stories, and the people who helped us encounter those stories.
But the conversation quickly becomes more than nostalgia. We explore how stories quietly form our imaginations—teaching us what justice looks like, who belongs, what courage means, and what kind of people we might become. Ty shares the powerful story of a librarian who falsely told him he wasn’t capable of reading King Arthur, and how his father responded by helping him find the book anyway. A book that still sits on his shelf today reminding him that with a community that supports you and a story that says you matter, society’s ableism’s can be overcome.
Together, we begin asking an important question:
What can a story give us that facts, arguments, and lectures sometimes cannot?
As the conversation unfolds, stories become more than entertainment. They become places where we wrestle with truth, identity, faith, community, and the possibilities of becoming. And perhaps most importantly, you begin to uncover the connection between storytelling and disability: the stories we hear can either expand our imagination of human possibility—or quietly teach us who we believe is capable of belonging.
This is where Season 3 begins: by asking not simply What is your story? But… What are the stories that made you who you are?
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Every contribution, big or small, helps us keep creating spaces where disability, dignity, and hope can flourish. Thank you for being part of this community—and for helping us draw a little deeper together!
Chapters:
00:20 Introduction
03:20 Stories That Shaped Us
05:37 Stories of Jesus, the Bible, and the Church
12:29 Power of Storytelling
17:25 2 Types of Stories
22:40 Experiencing the New
Resources:
Three Weeks Until We Gather at the Well!
The countdown is on and I am getting very excited! In just three weeks, we’ll gather for the beginning of Thy Tender Care in Conversation—an online journey of reading, reflection, and meaningful conversation about disability, faith, and what it means to be human.
