I feel deep gratitude that my life allows me to write, to be in community with writers, to support writers, and to bring writing into the world. And part of being in writing community—writing with and alongside others—is knowing intimately how much can undercut and derail us as writers. Many pressures weigh on our writing and ourselves as writers. And, as writers, we often need inspiration to bring us back to writing. So, this post shares a form of inspiration: ... Read more ...
care
Q&A with Sarah Gettel: Consultant, Operations Support, and Capacity Coach for Heart-Head-Hands
I am excited to introduce Sarah Gettel, a good friend and accountability partner who’s been working behind the scenes with Heart-Head-Hands: Everyday Living for Justice. Sarah and I met in 2019, soon after I’d left my faculty career, through mutual contacts engaged in racial justice organizing in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We deepened our relationship in the early days of the pandemic, forming an accountability pod and meeting regularly with Rasha Diab ... Read more ...
Befriending Fear and Cultivating Courage
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about Maya Angelou's often-circulated quote about courage being the most important virtue: "Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency." This quote's been coming to mind (again and again) as I find myself experiencing fear or saying "so much is scary." And so much is! There's so much injustice. What and who we care about are being attacked, fired, dismantled, criminalized, disappeared, hidden, abducted, ... Read more ...
Q&A with Candace Epps-Robertson, Ph.D.: Introducing Full Circle Writing, LLC
Many of you know Candace Epps-Robertson, Ph.D., a collaborator with Heart-Head-Hands, facilitator of writing groups, and co-creator of pathways through burnout. Candace has previously shared her work through the Q&A blog post “On Seasons of Life, Writing, and Career.” In January, Candace made a career transition, leaving her faculty position and launching Full Circle Writing, LLC. So, this Q&A blog post shares her business launch and new offerings to support ... Read more ...
Reflections on Helene: Sharing a Poem “In Gratitude” from Dandelion Scribes
I am so grateful to have a poem included in the collection “From the Holler to the Sea: Hurricane Helene Survivors Speak Out”—a collaboration of the Appalachian poetry space Dandelion Scribes and local organizing collective Rednecks Rising. Through reading the collection, I am really appreciating the opportunity to reflect on experiences with and changed lives from Hurricane Helene. The framing around “solidarity amidst ongoing global polycrisis” serves as another ... Read more ...
Coaching as a Way of Working with Fears
Recent coaching sessions have been addressing fear in one way or another. Surely, fear is pronounced in these times -- with threats coming from many directions; with uncertainty, suffering, and crisis amplified; and with cruelty, cuts, and a coup all central to everyday experiences. In this week's writing group, one member said that they're having to make decisions about how to show up at their institution, and this question aligned with questions I'm hearing in ... Read more ...
Love in Action: Sharing Protests and Prayers for These Times
This Valentine’s Day, let’s come together and share some of the protests and prayers we are writing for these times. We’re in times when what we love—people, the earth, and justice itself—are attacked with great force. The first weeks of the new administration have brought intense cruelty and terrorizing assertions of dominance. We respond in many ways, including with efforts to block harm, to build liberatory futures, and to be present with and for each ... Read more ...
Care as an Amulet Against Cruelty
I've wanted to offer a gift for today, heading into the inauguration here in the United States and knowing that this time is so tender and troubling for many, many reasons. Like many of you, I am stretched so far and feeling so thin that I haven't pulled off my gifting hopes. But I have been playing with the word and learning more about CARE, because I hope care will be a balm for these times. Here's my word play. A poem perhaps? Maybe this feels like a soft landing ... Read more ...
