Happy Sunday. In case you weren’t aware, the video version of The Small Bow podcast officially launched. Our first guest was an easy choice: Jenn Sterger. 

Many longtime TSB readers and listeners might know the wild tale of our friendship. In 2010, I severely damaged her professional life and her mental health when I decided to burn her for a story I thought was more important than either one of our careers. The story: When she was working as a sideline reporter for the New York Jets, she was sexually harassed by Brett Favre when he was their quarterback for one dismal season.  (Insert Jets joke about how most of their existence is dismal.)

When I first did the steps and compiled my 8th, I added Jenn, but when I got to 9 and had to decide if I would actually reach out and “make direct amends,” I was advised by my sponsors to do a living amends instead, given that there was a high probability that I’d retraumatize her. But the universe had other ideas and, thanks to a rescue dog, we were forced to reconnect in 2018.

After everything, we’ve become very close—protective of each other, even—and we both see our shared history as a net good that we keep revisiting and growing from as the years go by. 

Now, for our next What It’s Like series, I’m asking for your own amends stories. Tell us a truly great one. Or one that maybe didn’t go as planned. Or how about one that you’re still afraid to make. These are all anonymous, so don’t hesitate to share something dark and difficult. 

Tell us here: [email protected] SUBJECT: AMENDS

Try not to go over 350 words if possible. 

Any published essay gets three free months of TSB Sundays.

And here’s the first episode of the new season with Jenn. After the jump, you’ll find the original essay I wrote in 2020 that gives the complete origin story of our friendship, plus our usual Sunday recovery rundown, featuring poems, books, gratitude, fears, insecurity, and all the things I leaned into and learned as I navigated this new phase of TSB.

Thanks again for all your support. And please support the pod by subscribing to our YouTube channel. These will begin to drop every Wednesday. Next week’s guest— Joe Buck, who went insanely, generously deep, deep, deep for you guys. So subscribe! Thanks. — AJD