Jan and Ruth

In this podcast recording titled "Jan and Ruth profile," Jan Wilson and Ruth Busch engage in an in-depth conversation with interviewer Gareth Watkins, touching on their personal backgrounds, careers, experiences with aging, and their life together over the past decade. The recording spans a conversation from the 1960s through the 2010s and captures Jan's reflection on their upbringing in New Zealand, their trajectory from being a teacher to becoming a counsellor, and the development of their identity and relationships. Jan recalls a long marriage that ended in 2000, after which they openly embraced their ability to love irrespective of gender, leading to their relationship with Ruth.

Ruth, on the other hand, shares experiences of coming out as a lesbian later in life after a previous marriage and discusses the complexities of navigating societal expectations, career, and motherhood while being true to oneself. They recount struggles related to being out, like facing challenges with family and the broader community, as well as gender-specific expectations in education and the workplace during earlier years.

The couple reflects on the concept of aging as a lesbian couple, emphasizing the ongoing significance of companionship and support, the contemplation of mortality, and the consideration of arrangements for the future such as wills and powers of attorney. They also discuss the notion that older lesbians may be perceived as non-sexual by society, allowing them a unique kind of freedom in public displays of affection compared to younger individuals.

The podcast also touches on intergenerational relationships within the LGBTQ+ community, subtle persistences of homophobia, and the evolution of societal norms and laws related to same-sex relationships, including the right to marry and have children. They both appreciate the greater equality in their current partnership compared to their previous relationships. The recording concludes with acknowledgment of the privileges they enjoy as a couple, despite the challenges they and others in the LGBTQ+ community may face with access to resources and recognition by family members.

This summary is created using Generative AI. Although it is based on the recording's transcription, it may contain errors or omissions. Click here to learn more about how this summary was created.

Jan Wilson Ruth Busch

1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 2010s, abortion, adoption, adrienne rich, ageing, ageism, alison laurie, aorewa mcleod, aotearoa new zealand, arts, asexual, asia pacific outgames (2011), auckland, auckland lesbian business association (alba), auckland pride festival, australia, building, butch, canada, charlotte museum, charmaine pountney, children, cloudburst (2011), coming out, companionship, cooking, counselling, culture, dance, dating, death, divorce, domestic violence, drugs, dyke, earthsong (eco-neighbourhood), education, elder care, elder issues, elders, ellen degeneres, employment, family, feminism, finances, friends, garnet station (auckland), grandchildren, grandparents, hamilton, health, health system, heavenly creatures (1994), heterosexual, hinewirangi kohu, hiv / aids, holidays, homophobia, honesty, human rights, income disparity, intergenerational, judaism, juliet hulme, labels, language, law, lbd (lesbian bed death), legacy, lesbian, lesbian elders village, lesbian feminist circle, lesbian parents, lesbians inside the system (lis), leslie feinberg, lisa prager, love, lynda topp, margaret escott, marriage, marriage amendment act (2012), maryan street, monogamy, māori, nigel christie, oppression, pauline parker, peter jackson, pride, pride parade (auckland), privilege, public display of affection (pda), relationships, ruth busch, school, sex, shame, stroke, surrogacy, theatre, travel, united kingdom, united states of america, university, virtual elder village, wills, winston peters, women, women's common room (auckland university), women's liberation movement

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