Some thoughts on the world (MM No. 36)

12 Oct 2023

recently,   MM

Hey friends,

To begin, I would feel wrong not to briefly comment on current events: namely, that violence against civilians is horrendous in any context, both in acute and chronic forms. For me, I feel that this is a time to express empathy and compassion to all facing danger, whether enacted by people or nature. It is only human to priotize the most salient events, and this is justifiable— and I think it’s also important to remember that empathy and compassion are not finite resources! In terms of tangible actions: if you have the means, join me in supporting to relief efforts (ICRC, Doctors without Borders, IRC) , and please share any other means of contribution. In addition, I hope we can all be intentional in our balance of listening & learning to people’s lived experiences and actual experts with the need to express our (perhaps less expert or unrepresented) viewpoints. In the long term, once the current acute conflicts have hopefully receded or at least stabilized, I would also like to start sharing my efforts in educating myself about some of the more chronic injustices in the world that are often easier to overlook. With that, I’m always open to listen, learn, discuss, or otherwise connect about anything relevant to this.

On to our regular programming. I have not had many exciting adventures in the past weeks, but have found of assorted readings, some of which I hope catch your interest. It’s been more of a thinking than doing time for me, what with my previous tangent, the academic quarter starting, iterating on project ideas, and contemplating just what to do with all the stickers I bought in Canada.

A few things that have made me smile recently:

What are you most grateful for these days?

Cheers,

Maya


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