1. Things happen, and you go with it, a gorgeous post from Hugh Hollowell on his birthday. I love these lines in particular: “Over the next year I will…commit wholeheartedly to people who will let me down” and “This year I will pray hard for those who are hungry, those who are alone, and those who have nowhere to go, but will pray even harder for those who do not care.” 

2. Why We Write from Jami Attenberg. Check the comments for my response. In related news and also from Jami, 1000 Words Book Cover Launch. P.S. I just preordered the book.

3. How Sweet It Is, a gorgeous poem from Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer. 

4. Good stuff from Seth Godin: The catfight and the construction site, and The simple word replacement for connection, and Too much competition, and Brakes and acceleration, and Falling behind.

5. Doctor Tweets Perfect Example of Weight Stigma from Ragen Chastain.

6. The Kō Strategy No.9: TRANSFORM from Lucian James’s most recent Kō Strategies newsletter. The section on the strategy and the practice offered were just what I needed right now.

7. Out Now: Gentle Writing Advice (How To Be A Writer Without Destroying Yourself) from Chuck Wendig about his latest book, which is right now sitting in my TBR pile (okay, more like one of my piles because I have multiples).

8. Lessons from a Wildfire on Lion’s Roar. “When his community’s beloved retreat center burned to the ground, Anam Thubten took it as a teaching on impermanence. Instead of futilely fighting loss, he says, let it be our invitation to freedom and spaciousness.”

9. An Ever-Expanding Oasis of Links and Recs from Anne Helen Petersen. “A magic cookbook app, a summer salad that’s a meal, a really good tank top, plus all the good reads.”

10. Hear My Story: A GLAAD x Audible Interview Series – Alison Bechdel’s Dykes To Watch Out For.

11. These three poems from Jeanne Lohmann.

12. Francesca Grossman Tells Us About Pain and Its Consequences, the first in a new series from Cheryl Strayed, “in which I invite an author to tell us five things—not only about their most recent book, but about their life too.”

13. Orange Desk: Turn Down the Noise from Patti Digh. “Be willing to go deeper.”

14. 5 Reasons Why Every Introvert Should Elope. Eric and I are both introverts and we eloped 30 years ago and have never ever regretted it.

15. Incremental is Transformational for Healing.

16. Every self-help book ever, boiled down to 11 simple rules. This post is two years old but still a very interesting read.

17. 12 Actually Really Good Things That Have Come With Getting Older.

18. You Might Think You’re Giving Great Advice, but Are You Really Just Projecting Your Own Issues?

19. Rock Hudson Documentary Gets Stirring New Trailer.

20. Saying Goodbye to Petunia. “Anna Marie Tendler’s French bulldog was a constant companion who taught her about the deepest kind of love.”

21. Artist Creates Charming Animal Sculptures From Found Seashells at the Beach.

22. On the Precipice of Worse from Mary L. Trump. “Donald J. Trump vs. the United States of America.”

23. How Childhood Emotional Neglect Hurts Highly Sensitive People. “Sadly, childhood emotional neglect isn’t uncommon. In fact, a growing body of research suggests that many otherwise healthy families raise their children with emotional neglect — a failure to value or respond to emotions. This neglect can create unhealthy outcomes for any child, but especially for highly sensitive children.”

24. YOUR FAT FRIEND a film by Jeanie Finlay – Official Trailer (video). “Your Fat Friend charts Aubrey Gordon’s journey from anonymous blogger Yrfatfriend to NY Times bestselling author and podcast host (@maintenancephase) and the complexities of making change. It’s a film about fatness, family and the deep, messy feelings all of us hold about our bodies.”

25. Exquisite Embroideries on Transparent Fabric Will Transport You to the Forest Floor.

26. Artist Creates Charming Animal Sculptures From Found Seashells at the Beach.

27. Vivid Compositions in Thread Enliven Hollow Spaces in Diana Yevtukh’s Striking Embroideries.

28. Family Reunites with Missing Dog at Pet Adoption Event While Looking for New Puppy.

29. Making Hard Things Beautiful, a live interview with Andrea Gibson offered by Laurie Wagner — two of my most beloved writers, teachers, humans. “It is my great honor to invite you to join me and the truly magnificent spoken word poet, Andrea Gibson, in a conversation about what it is to write from a place of vulnerability, bravery and truth. Not because it’s a good idea, but because it’s the only way to part the veils of our human uncertainty, and to step out onto the page, and into our lives with a rigor and an honesty that makes life more vibrant, and which connects us to ourselves and to others.” Sign up and you can attend the live session or watch later, or both.

30. Burnout, Compassion Fatigue, and Vicarious Trauma from Lindsay Braman.

31. No Time to Lose by Joanna Macy. “Perhaps the truest form of touching the reality of this moment is this: to experience our capacity to praise and love our world, as it is. Even when it’s on fire.”

32. 53 Things I’ve Learned in 53 Years on A Grace Full Life.

33. 7 Lessons My Dog Taught Me About Living Simply from Courtney Carver on Be More With Less.

34. Unhoused residents of Colorado Springs say pets keep them grounded.

35. Hannah Gadsby’s Picasso Show Was Meant to Ignite Debate. And It Did. on The New York Times. “The Brooklyn Museum invited the Australian comedian to help organize a show on Picasso’s troubling life and artistic lens. The reaction was strong.”

36. The 4 Stages Of A Narcissistic Relationship Pattern & How To End It. “Here’s how to recognize a narcissistic relationship pattern, tips for dealing with a narcissist, and how to move toward healing, according to therapists.”

37. Remembering the 49 lives violently stolen in the Pulse nightclub shooting, seven years on. In related news, Andrea Gibson performs “Orlando” featuring Mary Lambert. (video) “If you are alive, raise your hand.”