announcements, recommendations, & a playlist
spring things! ☘️ 🌸 🐣
Greetings all - I keep asking myself, what is the proper salutation for these strange, difficult times?
“I hope this finds you coping moderately well with the horrors'“ ?
“I trust you are balancing comfortably between dissociation and rage” ?
“Let me know when you might be free to join me for some screaming into the void” ?
Along those lines, I wanted to share a couple of recommendations for the thoughtful work of others that I’m finding meaningful and grounding in this moment. The first is author and activist Rebecca Solnit’s Substack, Meditations in an Emergency Here’s a quote from one of her recent posts:
“The job isn’t to be happy, sad, angry, unfeeling, or anything else. It’s to do the work to oppose this destruction. But taking care of yourself so you don’t fall apart or wear out or aggravate your allies too much is how you stay capable of doing it…Emotions are the weather that swirls around and changes and changes again. Commitments, principles, are the mountain on which the sun and the rainstorm fall, and it remains a mountain. Pay attention to your storms and rays of light and pay attention to the mountain on which all those things fall.”
I also recommend the podcast “What Now?” with Trevor Noah. At a time when I feel fairly burnt out on podcasts, this one always manages to make me laugh while also teaching me something. A recent episode you might start with is “RIP…DEI” with sociologist and professor Ruha Benjamin.
My final recommendation is the Netflix Original show Mo, set right here in my adopted hometown of Houston. Part comedy, part drama, all heart, Mo showcases what so many of us love about this city—its impossible cultural richness—while also masterfully navigating grief, trauma, the refugee experience, and immigrant family dynamics. It’s one of the best things I’ve seen in a long time.
Last but not least, I made a new playlist that I’d love to share with y’all. It’s an eclectic mix, as my playlists always are, but I hope you find that it fits the moment.
Of course, I would very much love to hear about the books, albums, podcasts, films, and TV shows that are keeping you going right now. Please share in the comments!
Finally, for local folks, I have two stand-alone workshops with Writespace Houston coming up - the first is Spirituality and Life Goals for Writers on Saturday, April 5th from 1:00-4:00 pm and the second is Overcoming through Writing on Saturday, May 10th, also from 1:00-4:00 pm. I’m super excited for both of these - each workshop will include creative exercises (with craft supplies!), readings from a variety of authors, and prompts to generate our own written work. No experience required!
Sending big love - and this photo of a beautiful sleeping baby (whom I am lucky to hang out with three days a week) to soothe your soul.
xoxo,
Nishta