January | 2022 | Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

1. Thich Nhat Hanh, Monk, Zen Master and Activist, Dies at 95 on The New York Times. “A monk with global influence and an ally of Martin Luther King, he championed what he called ‘engaged Buddhism,’ applying its principles in pressing for peace.” In related news The Life of Thich Nhat Hanh on Lion’s Roar. “Lindsay Kyte tells the story of what is perhaps Thich Nhat Hanh’s greatest teaching — his courageous life.”

2. We asked how you are finding joy in the pandemic. Here are 12 surprising ideas.

3. 100 Millionaires And Billionaires Sign Open Letter Pleading For Higher Taxes. Yes, please. I’m not sure how anyone who cares about other people, wants to ease suffering, is even able to accumulate that kind of wealth, especially when helping feels SO much better than hoarding.

4. Animal shelters flooded with donations in honor of Betty White’s birthday. You know she would have loved this so much.

5. 20 Famous Writers on Being Rejected. Rejection isn’t a failure. It’s part of the process. Rejection also doesn’t necessarily mean what you submitted isn’t good. It might only mean it’s not the right fit for that particular spot. Try again.

6. The Rest Principle: On the Necessity of Recovery, in Fitness and Writing.

7. You’ve heard of Wordle — now get ready for Sweardle and Absurdle. In related news, Meet Lewdle – the dirty version of the viral word-guessing game Wordle, and Play This Autostraddle-Themed Spinoff of Wordle for a Good, Gay Time, and The Rot of Candy Crush and The Rest of Wordle.

8. The 3 things you learn after your mother dies.

9. Life, in Dog Years. “My father always pampered his pets. So when he fell ill and moved in with us, it was no surprise that his corgi came to rule our home. What I didn’t expect was for Trilby to care for me after Dad was gone.”

10. How you can help—or get help—after the Marshall Fire.

11. How to Reuse N95, KN95, and Other Disposable Masks. Also, in case you hadn’t seen this yet, The Postal Service is now taking orders for free COVID-19 test kits.

12. Losing a Father to the Mountains. “In a new documentary, ‘Torn,’ Max Lowe grapples with the death of his dad, and the presence of the man who replaced him.”

13. People Are Hiding That Their Unvaccinated Loved Ones Died of COVID. “It’s a classic control mechanism, like our knee-jerk desire to know if someone who died of lung cancer smoked, or if someone with liver disease drank: If so, we can believe they were responsible for their own fate, and because we’re making a different choice, that fate won’t befall us. But of course that belief comes at the price of blaming and even vilifying the deceased … As a result, survivors might sacrifice honesty in order to protect the loved one’s image, at potential cost to their own emotional needs.”

14. 22 tips for 2022: Get creative, even if you aren’t feeling inspired.

15. 11 Podcasts for Poetry Lovers. I think they forgot one: Poetry Unbound with Pádraig Ó Tuama.

16. With Somebody Somewhere, Comedian Bridget Everett Finally Gets Her Breakout Moment. “After years of stealing scenes as a foul-mouthed sidekick, in ‘Somebody Somewhere’ Everett finally has a vehicle that takes full advantage of her talents.”

17. Before Macro Photography, This Scientist Used to Illustrate His Microscopic Findings.

18. 40 Movies People Praise As Great But Too “Emotionally Traumatizing” To Be Watched Again. I think it says a lot about me that I’ve seen all of these (some more than once), except for Hachi: A Dog’s Tale, which I KNOW I couldn’t watch even one single time.

19. Aspiring Neurosurgeon to Have his Medical Illustrations Showing Black People Published. Representation absolutely matters.

20. Tender Embroidered Portraits by Ruth Miller Are Tinged with Expressive Colors. The amount of hours, effort, and patience it would take to finish just one of these is mind boggling.

21. How I Freed Up Time to Daydream on The New York Times.

22. What Is Love? A Tender and Poetic Illustrated Celebration of the Elemental Human Quest.

23. 42 Comfort Food Vegetarian Recipes.

1. Morning walks. This week was cold, gray, and icy, and it was absolutely gorgeous.

2. The pool. I went for many many years avoiding being in a a pool, saying I “hated” the water, that it was nice to look at and I didn’t need to get in it to appreciate it. I started taking aqua aerobics classes when the arthritis and various injuries in my knees would no longer allow me to run (another activity I used to “hate” but learned to love), and I started to enjoy being in the water.

When I turned 50, I decided I wanted to learn to actually swim. I’d taken lessons as a kid, but only learned to be afraid and embarrassed and had a lot of lingering shame about it. I had some real resistance as well — fear of drowning, not liking the feel of my face in the water, the claustrophobia and panic it triggered.

I got a really good coach who understood that I needed help with the mental/emotional stuff as well as mastering the physical skill. He was kind and funny and a really good teacher. I eventually got goggles, a nose plug, flippers, and a swim snorkel (the fear of drowning and claustrophobia, learning to breathe in the process, in the water, is something I haven’t mastered yet, and a snorkel in particular allows me to bypass that in the meantime).

When COVID hit and the gym closed and I couldn’t get in the pool, I got out of the habit of swimming. When things opened back up, I went right back to aqua aerobics but haven’t been consistent about swimming. To get back to it and give myself something to work towards, I’ve set a goal of being able to swim a full mile by May. To give you a sense of the difficulty level: a mile in my pool would be about 64 laps (with one lap being up and back) and right now I can do about 10 before I start feeling dizzy and have to stop. Wish me luck.

3. Wild Writing with my beloved friend and teacher, Laurie Wagner, and all my writing friends, my sangha. It’s so dear to me, so necessary, and we are finally back together again after a break for the holidays.

4. Healthcare that I can access and afford. For us humans and our dog(s). Physical therapy and vaccines are on the top of the list.

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5. My tiny family, tiny home, tiny life. Always.

Bonus joy: the hydromassage chair, sitting in the sauna with Eric, roasted vegetables, good TV, listening to podcasts, chocolate covered graham crackers, that corner of the couch, down pillows and blankets, headlamps, other people’s dogs, my smartphone, my laptop, being able to stream TV without commercials, calendars, orange juice (in particular mixed with cranberry pomegranate juice), good music, good good books, the fur that grows long between Ringo’s toes in the winter, laughing with Eric, gummies, canceled plans, coffee with hot cocoa and tiny marshmallows, a big glass of clean cold water, pain medication, good friends.