The Bridge #65

continual experimentation

Hello

First off, brief public announcement to say that every month of this year I’ll be sharing a longer essay in addition to the regularly scheduled Bridge. (Perhaps you’ll remember reading about The Economics of Having Fun, shared 3 weeks ago?)

The next monthly essay will be sent out to everyone for free. After that, I’ll be sharing them only with “paying subscribers” (patrons) because I figure that not everyone is interested in receiving the additional content. If you really enjoy the once-a-month essays and fear you cannot afford a subscription, please be in touch.

Public announcement over.
Let’s keep the good conversation going with…

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Something Practical

If it feels as though I write sometimes about abstract concepts — order, chaos, capitalism, intercultural diversity, intergalactic utopia — it’s true I think talking about ideas can help us clarify what it is we are wanting to do.

We often learn by doing, but
We also ought to know why we’re learning what we’re learning.

Not all who wander are lost, but
At some point the wanderer will benefit from seizing upon a destination
and knowing that is where she or he or they want to go.
They will wander more at ease
because they know why.

When it comes to collective action (people working together for common purpose), each will likely do something a little different than would the others. I want to encourage you to take action, in your own way.

Maybe this week’s edition of The Bridge will give some ideas 😄

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Something Curious

How a Family Heals (NPR - CodeSwitch)

Ever seen a photo of someone with the same last name as you, and you wondered Are we distantly related? It happens fairly often for me, Coleman being a common enough last name.

Craig Woodson had a similar-type experience in the 1980s when he saw the name and face of Carter G. Woodson on a postage stamp. Craig (at that point, in his early 40s) asked his dad about it, and his dad pointed him to the family genealogy. Sure enough, though the family story had long been centered on white European Woodsons coming over to the “new world” as pioneers and that was that, Craig learned there was a genetic bloodline stemming from his Woodson ancestor that led directly to Carter G. Woodson, founder of Black History Week (which later became Black History Month).

At first, Craig didn’t know what to do with this information but eventually he shared the discovery with a music historian friend of his, and that friend introduced him the very same afternoon to an African-American Woodson relative. It was an impromptu, albeit-a-little-strange-but-so-powerful family reunion! Over the decades since, Adele Woodson Bailey (great-grand-niece of Carter Woodson) and son Brett have stayed in close touch with Craig, and vice-versa. It’s a hard-earned renconciliation that is pretty inspiring to learn about.

What would you do if learning about a long-lost relative?

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Something Fun

“It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” by Weyes Blood

Natalie Laura Mering used to go to high school in Doylestown PA, minutes away from where I went to high school and during the same years too. She started making music with an eerie sound and some poetic inspiration from Flannery O’Connor. Her relatives thought the music sounded a little like horror-movie-soundtrack material, so she listened more to that, and also to The Wizard of Oz and chamber music, Joni Mitchell and Harry Nilsson, and whatever else she liked. Recently she released a new album, and the timeless weirdness is captured well in the music video for the lead single “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody.”

I myself feel a little strange knowing that so many talented singer-songwriters (Taylor Swift, Weyes Blood, Catie Turner) grew up in eastern Pennsylvania. Though they felt lonely, they found a way to turn that feeling into a song.

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Something Friendly

Sunday 19 March at 5pm ET I’ll be hosting a virtual party to celebrate you the community and the start of spring. If you want to join or want to send good vibes, please be in touch.

Also, a big thanks to those who have stuck with me these past two and a half years! You have been such an encouragement to me, to know that others are interested in the topics I want to be talking about. Please don’t be afraid to share with your networks what I am writing. If you find value in the words I jot down, it’s likely that some others you know will find value in them too. Plus, you then get to talk with others about topics that interest you :) Thank you again.

Living in the wake of overwhelming changes
We've all become strangers
Even to ourselves
We just can't help
We can't see from far away
…
It's all a part of one big thing

One big thing,

JPC 😎