Oh honey. What a way to end the year. Thank you, for spending all the time you did on this little masterpiece. I need it. We need it. I’ve been sustained by your writing all year. Loving every word. Reading this while listening to a record, drinking tea, by a wood stove, felt extra delicious. This is all so important. I’m sharing it widely and know I will keep returning to it. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being ✨🙏🏽🔥
"like all good dreams, it sits comfortably on the horizon, giving us a direction to walk. We’ll never reach it, not really, but the joy is found in the walking." 💜
Thank you Margaret. Will be printing a copy to keep in my studio for the days when the existential terror is high. I appreciate your generousl sharing of your wisdom and warmth.
Soothing words at a time that I am feeling lesser than, as a 40-something punk still yet to own a house and be financially stable. My life does offer freedoms, joys and meaning that my “successful” peers could only dream about, and your words serve to remind me of them. Thank you
I thought I heard your voice at the O’Hare airport in Chicago. I looked you up online since I’m only privy to your vocal aesthetic on podcasts. I was unable to confirm before the long curly haired brunette vanished without a trace. But it led me to this article which captures a lesson I’ve been trying to eke out of a folk tale I recently learned from Estes’ “Women Who Run With the Wolves”. The Red Shoes is a tale that mythologizes exactly your point about appreciating your own suffering as an aesthetic. The protagonist is poor but she patches together her own pair of red shoes and they give her such pride. When a rich woman adopts the feral orphan girl she replaces the girl’s shoes with red leather ones. The girl soon loses her way thanks to a dancing devil and a curse illustrating that to lose touch with what you personally struggled for to make yourself happy and feel self sufficient is too high a price for convenience. The girl’s new life gives her a sense of security but losing touch with her independence otherwise called the instinctual nature makes her vulnerable to the trappings of modern life. If you haven’t read a version of The Red Shoes or seen the film I think it complements your new resolve wonderfully! I surely enjoy the abridged version and synopsis given in Estes’ book. What you wrote brings the concept of the red shoes to a more direct and urgent matter of my generation, how to start living well despite the paradox of options. Great positive article, Marge, I love that you took up the challenge of finding the mechanisms of living well for yourself and others!
this writing is a spontaneous gathering and touched my little crocheted, patched, overgrown weedy garden of a heart. thank you for putting this way of life into words and sharing them with us.
Thank you for a perfect inner breakfast, and giving us a towards, and everything else you share, and being part of waking up to a world I love to live in. I'm going to feed the cats and then go be bad at some woodworking or painting or chainmaille (being bad at things expands time deliciously) and scroll some less and think about this some more.
"get by more with earnest fervor than with talent, and we can carry that attitude into everything we do" -a wonderful sentiment for the new year. Thanks.
This is so much needed now. I read it before making some hot tea to go out for a walk. And I think this is the right moment to tell you that your words are deeply meaningful to me since I discovered your blog and podcasts and writing two years ago, I wish you all the best Margaret. And maybe one day somewhere on this planet we will meet in person.
Oh honey. What a way to end the year. Thank you, for spending all the time you did on this little masterpiece. I need it. We need it. I’ve been sustained by your writing all year. Loving every word. Reading this while listening to a record, drinking tea, by a wood stove, felt extra delicious. This is all so important. I’m sharing it widely and know I will keep returning to it. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being ✨🙏🏽🔥
"like all good dreams, it sits comfortably on the horizon, giving us a direction to walk. We’ll never reach it, not really, but the joy is found in the walking." 💜
Thank you Margaret. Will be printing a copy to keep in my studio for the days when the existential terror is high. I appreciate your generousl sharing of your wisdom and warmth.
Thank your your open hearted and generous essays. You are a beautiful soul!
It is always such a joy to read your writing. Such an encouragement and such a powerful source of good.
Thank you for being with us in these dark times. I am happy to have you here as a comrade.
This is really, really beautiful. Happy New Year - joy is resistance, do not let anybody steal it! Thanks for putting some more into our world.
Phenomenal, thank you Margaret. It has been a long holiday and I needed this inspiration.
Soothing words at a time that I am feeling lesser than, as a 40-something punk still yet to own a house and be financially stable. My life does offer freedoms, joys and meaning that my “successful” peers could only dream about, and your words serve to remind me of them. Thank you
Hell yeah (also this would be great as a zine!)
I thought I heard your voice at the O’Hare airport in Chicago. I looked you up online since I’m only privy to your vocal aesthetic on podcasts. I was unable to confirm before the long curly haired brunette vanished without a trace. But it led me to this article which captures a lesson I’ve been trying to eke out of a folk tale I recently learned from Estes’ “Women Who Run With the Wolves”. The Red Shoes is a tale that mythologizes exactly your point about appreciating your own suffering as an aesthetic. The protagonist is poor but she patches together her own pair of red shoes and they give her such pride. When a rich woman adopts the feral orphan girl she replaces the girl’s shoes with red leather ones. The girl soon loses her way thanks to a dancing devil and a curse illustrating that to lose touch with what you personally struggled for to make yourself happy and feel self sufficient is too high a price for convenience. The girl’s new life gives her a sense of security but losing touch with her independence otherwise called the instinctual nature makes her vulnerable to the trappings of modern life. If you haven’t read a version of The Red Shoes or seen the film I think it complements your new resolve wonderfully! I surely enjoy the abridged version and synopsis given in Estes’ book. What you wrote brings the concept of the red shoes to a more direct and urgent matter of my generation, how to start living well despite the paradox of options. Great positive article, Marge, I love that you took up the challenge of finding the mechanisms of living well for yourself and others!
this writing is a spontaneous gathering and touched my little crocheted, patched, overgrown weedy garden of a heart. thank you for putting this way of life into words and sharing them with us.
Thank you for this one. Might not agree with it all, but we're on the same sort of level.
Thanks for sharing, as always. Super grateful for your reflections and feeling this vibe. 💕
Thank you for a perfect inner breakfast, and giving us a towards, and everything else you share, and being part of waking up to a world I love to live in. I'm going to feed the cats and then go be bad at some woodworking or painting or chainmaille (being bad at things expands time deliciously) and scroll some less and think about this some more.
"get by more with earnest fervor than with talent, and we can carry that attitude into everything we do" -a wonderful sentiment for the new year. Thanks.
This is so much needed now. I read it before making some hot tea to go out for a walk. And I think this is the right moment to tell you that your words are deeply meaningful to me since I discovered your blog and podcasts and writing two years ago, I wish you all the best Margaret. And maybe one day somewhere on this planet we will meet in person.