letter five
Hello! Happy end-of-December!
I hope y'all are having restful and joyous holidays! I am writing this from the couch where I have spent most of this week, reading and eating and cuddling with cats. Also, re-playing Zelda again in Master Mode, which is much more difficult (but really soothing in a hunt/forage kind of way). When I haven't been on the couch, I've been in the kitchen, making Peking duck and biscuits and croissants; all kinds of yummy goodness. My word of 2018 is tsundoku, aka I-bought-too-many-books-and-I-keep-buying-them-and-one-day-I-will-read-them-all. This year I think I read 150+ books? Some of them were better than others.
This month
Work-wise, I resubmitted my portrait to a journal + my Ford application, and now I'm turning towards my field statement (a little behind, I know). The last few weeks, it's also been nice to read things that have been on my list for a long time, as well as to start thinking about what the next few months will hold. Starting a fresh new Bullet Journal is always exciting. :) Cooking-wise, I'm hoping to make more croissants in the next few weeks. Yoga-wise, I've finally found balance in pincha mayurasana (forearm stand) for the first time. Now to hold it for longer...
Some things I read + appreciated
Lots of bell hooks + Grace Lee Boggs. Participatory design research. Classrooms as communities of practice. Making and equity. Tell me more. A culture of craftsmanship. A surprisingly dark comic. A surprisingly dark graphic memoir. Children of blood and bone. Wicked like a wildfire.
Finally, a quote
"Love in the classroom prepares teachers and students to open our minds and hearts. It is the foundation on which every learning community can be created. Teachers need not fear that practicing love in the classroom will lead to favoritism. Love will always move us away from domination in all its forms. Love will always challenge and change us. This is the heart of the matter." - bell hooks, Teaching Community, p.137
Here's to 2019! I'm looking forward to doing good work, spending more time with friends, and building community together. Thank you for reading--I appreciate it.
<3 - P.