Learning to Hope
Taking action when hope feels hard
It’s been a tough start to the week.
When a joyous Lunar New Year celebration turns into tragedy, when news of another shooting 5 hours away is reported not 48 hours later, when lawmakers are still poised to ignore a majority of the country who are in favor of common sense gun laws, it’s hard to have hope. It’s easy to feel powerless.
That’s how I felt going to bed on Monday night. That’s how I felt last night as well. It’s how I feel writing this right now.
How can we make sense of things that seem so senseless, when there is a clear answer that is just common sense?
For the last two days, I’ve been sitting here trying to come up with the words or the answer to gun violence, as if the weight of solving this American epidemic rests squarely on my shoulders.
I’ve ranted, I’ve cried, I’ve ranted some more, and I still can’t change things myself (no matter how much I would like to).
But, I’m not powerless. You are not powerless. We are not powerless.
In fact, together, we can be a lot stronger than those who wish to keep us in this cycle of ‘thoughts and prayers.’
I don’t know how long it will take, but in my heart, I am hopeful for an America with common sense gun laws. An America where we can go into a grocery store, a community center, a school, and not wonder ‘what if?’ I believe it is out there because I believe in the people of my community.
A community that is stronger than those who wish to divide us.
I hadn’t intended my second volume of this newsletter to be so heavy. But, I did set out to write my musings about the world.
This is the world we live in for now, so here are my musings on it.
My list of 10 things this week is going to be a bit different than last week's. As my friend Jessica Craven says in her brilliant Newsletter Chop Wood, Carry Water, “hope is an action.”
So, this week, my top ten includes some actions—and some things I enjoy when I need to take a step back from actions.
I wish they bring you hope.
10 Hopeful Things This Week
Follow Jessica’s newsletter mentioned above. Jessica is a full-time activist who started her activist journey after the 2016 election. Her newsletter is a daily reminder that we can all make a difference. She provides scripts for calls to elected officials, letters for RESISTbot, and other ways we all can take action toward creating the world in which we want to live.
Here is the GoFundMe for victims of the Monterey Park shooting should you be looking for ways to support that community, including memorial funds for those murdered.
I am consistently impressed by teenagers in America. Having taught high school for 4 years, I saw firsthand how brilliant and motivated teenagers can be. Another opportunity I have had to work with inspiring teenagers is through the non-profit DemocraShe. DemocraShe is a program for young women who want to be future elected officials and is dedicated to changing the status quo. I have been a mentor to two inspiring young women through the program, and they have changed my life. If you are so inspired, check out the organization, look for ways to volunteer, or donate (they are currently looking for mentors for the next cohort!)
March For Our Lives was founded by survivors of the Parkland shooting. Another example of how young citizens are changing our country for the better.
Full disclosure. I have not read The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control yet, but I ordered it as soon as I saw it recommended. I don’t do well with not being in control, so this title spoke to me. I expect nothing but greatness.
Sometimes in the wake of tragedy, I just need to laugh. And nothing makes me laugh harder than Laci Mosely’s Scam Goddess podcast.
Or Nicole Byer’s Why Won’t You Date Me (If you know Nicole from Nailed It, this is NOT that. 100% NSFW. You have been warned—but it’s wonderful so you should listen anyway).
Or Celebrity Book Club with Chelsea Devantez (The episode on Prince Harry’s Spare. 10/10).
Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman are back with another season of Kids Baking Championship, and goodness, this show gets me in the feels every time I watch it.
This ice cream. No notes.
Melanie