Blue Mind

I have been spending the past 1.5 weeks on a small lake in upstate New York and am feeling a deep sense of clarity being so close to water. I posted about it on Instagram and someone suggested I look up the Blue Mind Theory. This makes so much sense.

For The White person Who Wants To Know How To Be My Friend

The first thing you do is to forget that I’m black.
Second, you must never forget that I’m black.

You should be able to dig Aretha,
but don’t play her every time I come over.
And if you decide to play Beethoven — don’t tell me
his life story. They make us take music appreciation, too.

Eat soul food if you like it, but don’t expect me
to locate your restaurants
or cook it for you.

And if some Black person insults you,
mugs you, rapes your sister, rapes you,
rips your house or is just being an ass —
please, do not apologize to me
for wanting to do them bodily harm.
It makes me wonder if you’re foolish.

And even if you really believe Blacks are better lovers than
whites — don’t tell me. I start thinking of charging stud fees.

In other words — if you really want to be my friend — don’t
make a labor of it. I’m lazy. Remember.

— Pat Parker

From Movement in Black

What Is Intelligence?

(via Kottke)

A Bit of Optimism

I am really loving Simon Sinek’s new podcast called A Bit of Optimism. In this episode he speaks with Seth Godin and his wonderful wife Helen Godin on entrepreneurship.

I can also highly recommend this episode with Bob Chapman.

An Unlived Life

I will not die an unlived life
I will not live in fear
of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid,
more accessible,
to loosen my heart
until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance;
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.
— Dawna Markova

Calling-In versus Calling-Out

“…

Call-outs make people fearful of being targeted. People avoid meaningful conversations when hypervigilant perfectionists point out apparent mistakes, feeding the cannibalistic maw of the cancel culture. Shaming people for when they “woke up” presupposes rigid political standards for acceptable discourse and enlists others to pile on. Sometimes it’s just ruthless hazing.

We can change this culture. Calling-in is simply a call-out done with love. Some corrections can be made privately. Others will necessarily be public, but done with respect. It is not tone policing, protecting white fragility or covering up abuse. It helps avoid the weaponization of suffering that prevents constructive healing.

Calling-in engages in debates with words and actions of healing and restoration, and without the self-indulgence of drama. And we can make productive choices about the terms of the debate: Conflicts about coalition-building, supporting candidates or policies are a routine and desirable feature of a pluralistic democracy.

…”

I Think Call-Out Culture Is Toxic, by Loretta Ross

Falling In Love

“If you think falling in love is only reserved for romantic relationships, then you’re missing out on so much.”
— Ayishat Akanbi

Where are the Black Designers?

This digital conference called Where are the Black Designers, which happened two days ago, is nothing short of incredibly impressive. Huge congrats to Mitzi Oku, the organizer.

Revolutionary Love

“Revolutionary love is a well-spring of care, an awakening to the inherent dignity and beauty of others and the earth, a quieting of the ego, a way of moving through the world in relationship, asking: ‘What is your story? What is at stake? What is my part in your flourishing?’ Loving others, even our opponents, in this way has the power to sustain political, social and moral transformation. This is how love changes the world.”
— Valarie Kaur

What’s The Best Lesson You’ve Learned?

This thread is pure gold.

Revolutionary Love

This. Made. Me. Sob.

Thank you Valarie Kaur, you are a gift to this world.

Yancey Strickler: A Framework for Your Ultimate Self

Loving this talk by former Kickstarter CEO Yancey Strickler. With a simple four-square grid Yancey shifted his entire perspective on decision-making, his sense of self, and his relationship to the world. His concept of “Bentoism”, inspired by the Japanese bento box, is a way of framing your choices with an eye to the future, beyond your own self-interest, and with consideration for your community and the next generation. I’ll definitely be applying this to my life. Grateful.

(One of many talks of 99u’s virtual 2020 conference)

Black Lives Matter CSS

All proceeds of this Black Lives Matter CSS Shirt directly benefit organizations that support Black LGBTQIA+ folks.

To Show Up Imperfectly

I keep reminding myself of this.

The Loss of Chance Meetings

I am feeling this Tweet (and the responses) on the loss of chance meetings by going remote. I personally thrive on the unstructured, serendipitous meetings. Trying to figure out how to create them in a remote context, some folks seem to believe it’s possible.

David Bowie in 1983 Asking for More Black Artists on MTV



(via John Maeda)

Leading with Love

YES!

The Internal Work

(via Kai)

Expression of Love

“When you intentionally make the expression of love a part of your daily practice—that is feeling, receiving, and giving love—not only do you boost your immune system, but you begin to understand that the more you feel love, the more you become love, and when you become the embodiment of love, you can change the world.”
— Dr. Joe Dispenza

I Need To Do Better

Thank you for this gentle yet powerful call to action, Anisa Makhoul. I have to do better.

Black Lives Matter.

Towards a Moral Revolution

“One of the biggest lessons of my life, Krista, has been that we can’t separate the world into monsters and angels and that there’s nothing like loving people and knowing friends who played different roles in the genocide, including being perpetrators, that makes you have to confront that most raw element of what it means to be human. And the only conclusion I could make was that there are monsters and angels in each of us and that those monsters really are our broken parts — they’re our insecurities; they’re our fears; they’re our shames — and that in times of insecurity, it becomes really easy for demagogues to prey on those broken parts and sometimes make us do terrible things to each other.

We’re seeing that all over the world right now. And we have to fight against that. And that’s where the moral revolution becomes a matter of whether we choose to dive into the dark, the perilous path, or whether we choose to create a narrative and make that narrative real, which is our shared destiny, the possibility of collective human flourishment, our repairing the Earth in ways that make it more beautiful — and the choice is ours. And so my hard-edged hope comes from having lived and worked in communities that have had to contend with both. And like flowers breaking through granite, I’m gonna choose hope every time. And I frankly — despite all the dark, I remain a stubborn, persistent, hard-edged, hopeful optimist. I do!”

This is an excerpt of a conversation between Jacqueline Novogratz and Krista Tippett in the most recent episode of the wonderful On Being podcast. Listening to this episode is what my heart needed today.

The Need for A Cry

The School of Life is making a case for a good cry.

68 Bits of Unsolicited Advice

Love these 68 Bits of Unsolicited Advice by Kevin Kelly. You can read them here.

A Hill You Are Willing To Die On

This thread made me laugh. And nod my head in agreement.