finding light & carrying on

words for hope and holding each other close

Hello, my dears! Happy Sunday. I hope you’ve been taking care of yourself.

This week has felt turbulent to say the least. A seismic political shift in the US has left many of us reeling, heartbroken, and deeply disappointed.

I have found it difficult to write (or do much of anything, really¹): carrying on doesn’t feel quite right when everything feels so heavy.

But while it might feel awkward and clunky and imperfect, carrying on is so, so essential.

Kamala said on Wednesday, “There is an adage: Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.” Carrying on in the face of darkness — practicing creativity and connection, cultivating joy, caring for each other — allows us to call in the light, offering a peaceful sort of resistance to forces beyond our control.

I know that the waves of anger and grief will eventually alchemize, burning steadily to stoke a fire for compassionate action as we tend to ourselves and to our communities. But I also want to offer a gentle reminder that there’s no rush to arrive — to allow yourself to feel the waves, as they surface, for as long as you need.

Today’s letter is short and sweet. I wanted to share some of my favorite articles and podcasts from the week, in the hopes that they offer you a healing balm of sorts as I know they have for me:

• We have nothing to fear from despair by

  Katherine May

• A box full of darkness by

  Elise Loehnen

• Today by

  Aubrey Hirsch

• The Imperfectionist: How not to freak out about American Elections, Part Two by

  Oliver Burkeman

• What happens now? by

  Andy Borowitz

• Post-Election Family Meeting on We Can Do Hard Things

• Practice is a rehearsal by

  Lisa Olivera

And some snippets, first from

Anne Helen Petersen

of Culture Study:

“Unlike them, we are not animated by fear or cruelty. We are audacious in our faith that a better world is possible. That faith is not rational, and the last eight years has consistently rattled it. But it endures, as it has endured for hundreds of years. We must not be the ones to lose it.”

And second, interpreted from the Talmud:

Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief.
Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now.
You are not obligated to complete the work,
but neither are you free to abandon it.

As we walk together, one step at a time, onto the next and most necessary thing, I am sending everyone so much love.

Xo,

Eden

1. Suggestions for coping with the state of the world:

• Eat one full bowl of oven-baked mac n’ cheese at 2am, in bed, before promptly falling into the deepest of slumbers.

• Form a massive crush on a stranger in order to distract yourself from the anguish of world events.

• Clean the whole entire apartment and even ferociously scrub down the grimy outside of your windows as you cling very precariously to your rickety 4th floor fire escape. Adrenaline does wonders for clearing the head!

• Scroll on Instagram reels for 4.9 hours, or until your nervous system is calm again, whichever comes first.

• Channel your wrath into violently chopping carrots for a big batch of soup. Even if it’s an unseasonably warm November day, as it seems the climate-denying president elect would like to abolish crisp fall weather as well as our bodily autonomy. Yay!

• Cry.

• Sign up for a workout class. Do the best you have ever done because you imagine you are training for a Special Ops Unit assigned to defeating the patriarchy. Hiiii-ya!

• Say hello to your neighbors. Smile at them. Ask how they are doing. Listen.

• Tip generously.

• Consider a recurring donation to your organization of choice (like the ACLU or The Nature Conservancy, perhaps).

• Find someone to kiss! And love! And cuddle with! Give yourself a big hug!!!!! This can be a friend or a pet or anything really. The point is: practicing love is very very essential. I am sending you all of mine. 💗