There’s a big push right now to speak out, and before I talk about reading, I want to address this a bit. I definitely agree with speaking out about charged issues that might cause argument, and I also believe that we each need to do so in the way that feels most sustainable to us. For me, speaking out online too often feels unsatisfying and uncomfortably performative, so while I post sparingly, I do my best to speak out in my in-person life. As much as I can without centering my own experience at the expense of others’ stories, I attempt to engage with people honestly about the things going on in the United States, with the goal of fostering connection and learning about others’ perspectives, while at the same time calling out the behaviors, philosophies, and individuals that are actively undermining our democracy.
In addition, I try to focus on actions more than speech, and I try to keep my actions as local as possible, both because that’s where I believe I can have the most impact and because that’s where I understand the situation the most clearly (which admittedly isn’t incredibly clearly; this is a time of great uncertainty and making sure one’s sources are reliable requires effort and forbearance).
Some of the things that I have been doing:
- Volunteering to promote literacy. Each week I visit two early elementary classes. I read the students picture books, and we engage with the stories together, discussing the emotions of the characters and how the students might feel and act in a similar situation. In the coming months, I’m working with a local youth librarian to bring a similar program to our local public library branch. The goal here is to foster a love a reading, to help promote emotional intelligence and critical thinking, and to help children from situations that might be more stressful than usual given the current national situation an opportunity to feel valued and safe. The bonus for me is that I leave these interactions feeling energized, connected to my community, and inspired by the earnestness of these young humans.
- Fostering connections. I have started exchanging phone numbers with my neighbors, inviting people over, offering people rides. Because I noticed that I was forgetting people’s names and as a result was too embarrassed to say more than a cursory hello, when I meet people, I’ve starting writing names down with notes about how I know them so that when I see them again, I can greet them by name and maybe ask about something going on in their lives that we’ve discussed before. This helps me feel more connected and gives the added benefit of forming a foundation of community so we can support each other when the current administration brings their tactics to our city.
- Raising the vibration. Two decades ago, I visited Portland, Oregon, for the first time. While I was there, I observed strangers helping other strangers in various capacities: one person helped a driver push a stalled car out of the roadway, another helped a parent situate a stroller on public transit. What I noticed was that just observing these things left me with a desire to seek out opportunities to help others. I lost that a bit during covid, but now I’m recommitting to acting in a way that might inspire that desire to help others, thereby “raising the vibration.” (Admittedly, this terminology is a bit New Agey, but it’s the best description for what I’m trying to do.) It also involves dusting off an old Personal Commandment: Risk Looking Silly. What this looks like for me is smiling and sometimes waving at everyone I pass on the street, striking up conversations with strangers in parking lots or in line at the grocery store, holding doors, and going out of my way to allow people to merge on the highway. Even if no one else is inspired to be kind in return, I feel better knowing that I’m acting like the kind of person I want to be.
- Writing to my elected representatives in Congress. I am in the lucky situation of having elected representatives who are already actively protecting the democratic process and upholding the Constitution, but I periodically send them notes to thank them for their efforts and to ask them to do a little something more if there’s something I’d like to see more of. I’m not entirely sure that this is effective, but on days I’m feeling helpless, it gives me the sense that I’m doing something.
- Amplifying others’ voices. There are so many eloquent, educated, informed, thoughtful people who are providing valuable guidance and critical analysis that I feel more confident sharing their words than adding to the cacophony from my limited perspective. Below is a list of some of the people who have been giving me things to think about, but there are so many more. If you have people you love to hear from right now, please let me know about them in the comments:
- Historian Heather Cox Richardson and her Substack “Letters from an American,” which provides historical context for current events and includes references (I LOVE references).
- Sociologist Tressa McMillan Cottom who was on an episode of the PBS Podcast Settle In entitled, “The Stories We Tell Ourselves About America,” talking about, well, the stories we tell ourselves about America and how to keep ourselves from feeling powerless in the incessant rush of news.
- Radio journalist and host and senior editor of Marketplace Kai Ryssdal’s dispatches from his shed, which he posts on Instagram. Ryssdal has a way of delivering facts directly and calmly that really help me put things in perspective while staying informed.
And I’ve also been reading, of course! (How’s that for an awkward segue?)
Here’s what I read in January:
January Completed Books:
My favorites from November:
- Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart (reread. You can find my original review from 2010 here. It is disturbingly even more relevant in the Big 26 than it was in 2010.)
- The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy (another disturbingly relevant read)
- Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano (not disturbingly relevant, but an in-depth look at family dynamics)
Currently Reading:
- The Silent Cry by Kenzaburō Ōe
- The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
- Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust
- And a couple of others. I’m really scattered in my reading right now.
To-Read for February:
In addition to my StoryGraph, you can see my Litsy profile for status updates throughout the month.
Imperfect Happiness 