The Bridge #104
in which we shine light on carework
Hello
& Welcome ! The Bridge is a newsletter connecting the professional and the personal creatively across cultures and a diversity of topics, until we are not only full of ideas but also ready to take action. Thanks for joining in the conversation.
Today we’re gonna celebrate the little things and the big things. Gratitude to the max!
Something to Read
10 Ways We Find Hope (Ann Friedman Weekly, Aug 2024)
When a very accomplished writer takes time out from their newsletter to finish up a book, and then she gathers together reader input into a hope-full listicle that’s more refreshing than a sugar-sweet popsicle, we learn to treasure it as a gathered pile of wisdom that we the collective have gifted ourselves.
It’s really a rather life-affirming thing to read a list of ways we find hope and realize that these are ALREADY the ways that we do it. It’s not aspirational, it is… what it is. (It is real.)
Especially loved #4: We find hope by hanging out with a kid.
Kids. They are more than alright. Their enthusiasm for the tiniest things is a microdose of hope. They are growing, so is everything else. We tell our nonbinary kiddo that there has been progress, even if it looks bleak now: "Small moves." Taking them to look for turtles. Teaching them to be kind and grateful. Tucking them into bed at night. It’s all hope.
Something to Consider
Last edition I said that I would be talking about non-profits I currently support and want others to learn about, and I am going to do that here and for the next few weeks. The idea is to tell a story that might inspire you to ask questions, quietly at first, and then out loud. How might we look at “recurring donations” (which are more than one-time and consistent enough that the non-profit can count them as “reliable” for their organizational budgeting) as more of a relationship-building exercise? Giving regularly to non-profit organizations, especially small ones that are desiring to grow, is a way to involve yourself in their future. It opens up a relationship of trust because the non-profit’s leadership team is trusting you to continue supporting their work, and you are trusting them to continue doing the work they have set out to do.
Here today I want to share a little about JAIA Youth Empowerment, a non-profit based in NYC and founded by Gena Jefferson. I’ll start by quoting from their website: “JAIA is a personal development and leadership program for teens and young adults ages 16-21. We co-create with youth to build healthier communities by promoting mindfulness, mental health literacy, and moral/ethical development.”
One of the things that has felt to me so powerful in this mission is that JAIA isn’t telling teens and young adults how to live, isn’t dictating for them the correct ways to be healthy in their minds, isn’t evaluating them on their performance or setting rules that most adults don’t follow. Instead, JAIA is co-creating with youth and promoting the skills that help young people listen to themselves and understand how to grow in an ethical way. It’s deeply empowering because it allows young people to trust themselves, even while they learn how to relate better with others. It’s not based on an authoritarian structure where “adults know best” and instead encourages youth to co-create healthy communities (them participating in us all living in healthier community). I love this vision.
Gena Jefferson, the founder/director, is someone I met at a one-day hackathon for local non-profits in NYC, where I was a volunteer. This was in 2019. It turned out Gena Jefferson grew up in a building I used to live in (The Ebbets Field Apartment Complex in Crown Heights Brooklyn); we are both alumni of Fordham University; and she has studied inter-religious dialogue which was a main focus of my studies (though mine were more in a historical context). We became friends, which is maybe unusual since I am much younger and we look quite different, but it felt quite natural. I started donating to her non-profit as a way to participate in the support she and others give to young black women and men to grow in confidence and kindness, to find their voice and to contribute positively to their communities. I recently joined the Board after 5 years as a donor, and I am learning how to deepen my commitment to the organization as they grow and scale.
If you’d like to learn more, I would love to share.
If you have a story of building a relationship with a small non-profit founder and would like to share what you’ve learned from that mutually-supportive journey, then I’d like to hear.
Something Fun
I featured this song in The Bridge in 2021, back when I was on mailchimp, but some of you weren’t following then, and more importantly it’s a song worth revisiting.
Little Simz was born in London to Nigerian parents, and youth centers played a major role in helping her up-level (including introducing her to her producer) and become an award-winning musician. At 30 years old she has released already 5 albums and an EP. Her first three albums had no major record label backing them, and still she rose to prominence. Her album Sometimes I Might Be Introvert was recognized in many ways as one of the best albums in the UK for 2021, and she won the Brit Award for Best New Artist in 2022. Her inspirations include Nas, Lauryn Hill and Kendrick Lamar all of whom have publicly recognized her talent in one way or another. Her energy is impressive!
The song here “Standing Ovation” (like many other songs she’s created) expresses appreciation for spiritual teachers. It talks powerfully of her rise to fame and resistance of what can confuse, her commitment to stay in the game and bring attention to her community. Sometimes we only hear successful singers talking about themselves, and I love the way she shines the light around.
We built the pyramids can’t you see what we are blessed with /
From the hieroglyphics to the hood lyricist /
the Priests the Imams /
The Good Books you live with /
The Rumi quotes The elder sisters /
The tribal mantras The jazz players /
Holistic doctors Spiritual teachers /
Doers and the Dulas /
The protectors and the rulers /
The kids of the future The immortal soldiers /
And the fearless protesters To the motivational speakers /
And the honest black leaders The divine healers /
The everyday low paid believers /
The overachievers in the shadow of the gate keepers /
Came down to teach us /
Blessed blessed blessed
Something to Practice
What from your childhood are you grateful for?
In what ways have you been blessed?
Thanks for reading,
JPC