Pockets of Joy

Pocketing Joy; A Writing Festival; Book Launch Event, and More

Welcome to Belonging and the Human Experience! I write about belonging, loneliness, culture, migration, faith, race, and community. I’m so happy you’re here! You’re receiving this email because you signed up when you received a free resource or some other way. (Please make sure you move these to your primary inbox if you’re viewing via email.)

Dear friends,

I’m so looking forward to this every week, a mini-conversation with you. Welcome, new folks!

My thoughts are swirling, to be honest. With a new book releasing in just over a week, I’m feeling it all right now (joy, exhaustion, anxiety, grief). But I am also filled with gratitude! Where does this note find you today?

Joy: over the book release
Exhaustion: life is full
Anxiety: phone calls (like with insurance companies for example) and other kinds of conversations I dread

And grief. Grief as I think about a dear friend who lost her 16 year-old niece. It happened all of a sudden. Asthma. She went into a coma and never recovered. It’s heavy. The loss, the grief. Sudden, with no warning. The devastation.

Amidst the heavines, the sorrow, and the anxiety, I am going back to keeping a gratitude list. I did this some years ago, and I need to go back to this practice as a reminder, to ground myself, to restore hope, to focus on the beauty of what’s good. To remember what’s true.

Pockets of Joy

Question for you: How do you remember what’s good and true? How do you document joy?

Otherwise, other people’s traumas, dysfunctions, problems, the world’s problems, bad news, our own stuff, etc., can attempt to overshadow what’s good and true, unless we stop and take a moment to remember.

There’s much talk about self-care nowadays, and truly it can go either way (too much or too little). But self-care is essential.

Other ways I am taking care of myself right now include: regular exercise, eating no processed foods or sugar, and intermittent fasting (which may or may not be good, I don’t know for sure). And when I have to have a difficult conversation, I call someone I enjoy talking with afterward. I am taking walks (when weather permits), I am looking at pictures of spring, flowers, and art. I am listening to music I enjoy.

l think of it as a little pocket. I am finding pockets of little things that bring me joy. Something I can tuck in, and tuck away. It’s like a little recharge to my soul.

When I think of how I want to be in this world, I think of someone who has joy. It isn’t a shallow thing. It’s a deep, abiding sense of hope and peace.

Does it mean life is full of all happy things? Oh heavens no. Life is pretty darn hard and difficult.

But there are joyful things. Such as:

-the little purple flowers I saw blanketing the ground on a walk last week
-the Canadian geese dunking their beaks in the river
-the friend who calls me regularly for no reason, just to check on me
-the friend who agrees to go with me to an important event
-a delightful book that makes me laugh
-my morning cup of tea
-a handful of sweet blueberries
-a little girl showing off her sparkly nail polish
-making a new friend
-singing with the radio
-an invitation to speak at a community event
-laughing at myself

It doesn't have to be a monumental thing that brings us joy. It can be as simple as a laugh with a stranger. A conversation with a friend who isn’t easily offended. Witnessing (or performing) a kind gesture. It can be as small as a tiny spring flower.

What little pockets of joy are surrounding you? How can you document the little moments that bring you joy?

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The Eclipse

Are you going to see the eclipse happening on April 8? Are you in the path of totality? Share your photos and videos, please, so we can live vicariously through you! Seriously, I would have planned to attend if I could!

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One Week + One Day Until Release Day!

It’s just one week + one day until Book Release Day! Thank you all for sharing and preordering and for some of the reviews already coming on Goodreads and Barnes & Noble! Just one more week left for preorders - don’t forget to claim your preorder gift here!

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Festival of Faith & Writing

This week, I’ll be among literary folk, writers, readers, authors, people who nerd out over Oxford commas, sentences, words, and books at a large writing festival. In other words, people I like to be around, because we nerd out over these things. The last festival (in-person) was 2018, and it’s been a long wait. When I went in 2018, I only knew a handful of folks. Now, I know dozens more. I can’t wait to go and be with people I haven’t seen in years, people I’ve only met online, and to meet new friends. I’ll be leading one of the Festival Lunch circles on Friday and Saturday and I’ll be at the Redbud Writers Guild table on Saturday from 2-3 pm - if you’re there, please stop by and say hello!

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Book Launch Event

I’m thrilled to be at Boswell Books Bookstore in Milwaukee, WI, on April 26, at 6:30 pm for my official book launch event. The event consists of a conversation, Q&A, and a book signing. Come and see me there if you’re in the area! The event is free and is cohosted by the AAPI Coalition of Wisconsin. Register here. And please consider supporting an independent bookstore by preordering books from Boswell Books.

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As I wrap up for today, I want to bring us back to the idea of joy and add in my word for the year, which is “connection.” How can we share a bit of joy with someone else this week? Is there a way to connect with someone else and bring joy to them? This is where my mind is today.

As for me, I’m choosing joy. Yes, I have to choose it. I have to choose to seek it. I have to choose to find it. I have to choose to see it- because it may not be easily found amidst the muck and dirt of living our messy lives. I have to choose it, because the alternative isn’t sustainable.

I’m filling my pockets with little moments of joy. How about you? I’d love to know what joy is filling your pockets!

Much love to you, dear readers.

Peace,