Paths to Each Other: Volunteering, Reflection, & Joy
Vision & Justice: How We Teach the Truth
Dear Friends,
I’m returning to Substack with a full heart following a visit this weekend with one of my college besties, Jennie, in Portland, Maine. She’s amazing. I miss her. We had one of those every-day-needs-to-be-like-this kind of days despite the fog so heavy we couldn’t see fully down the block.
Volunteering
This post begins with musings on justice, art, life, and love because one of the things I want to share—I can’t spill the beans about bestie chat, can I?—is that she started the kind of organization I’d love to see more of called Chickadeeds, after the Maine state bird. It helps people find opportunities to volunteer, and has received all kinds of praise from Governor Janet Mills (yes, hero to many who don’t believe in following authoritarian rule), including the 2024 Maine Governor’s Award for Service and Volunteerism.
I spent a lot of Sunday processing the last few weeks—what it has meant to teach at Harvard during this inconceivable period. One of the things I’ve found to be consistent from year to year is that people light up most about what they *gave* when they were at Harvard, more so than what they got from Harvard. I love that Jennie’s leaving a legacy of giving through her work. I want to salute it here because I’m just so thrilled for how my dear friend is contributing to her local community and the world.
I can’t wait to volunteer more this summer. Where are you volunteering? Have you found time? One place I’ve started is with the Yale Prison Education Initiative. I had one of the most meaningful days of teaching there. I’ve been writing a bit about why. What I can say now is that what my friend Zelda Roland, Founding Director of YPEI, has created is a model for empathy, pedagogy, and courage.
I’d love to hear what you do in the comments and salute another great organization in my next post!
Field Trips
I’ve been on the road a lot lately. One of the times that has stayed with me most was being in New Orleans. It was my first time. (I know, I know). And I can’t wait to go back. I was there to speak at the New Orleans Book Festival, on a panel with Mitch Landrieu, Charles Blow, and W. Kamau Bell. The full lineup is so fun that you want to stay and hear everything else happening! Ours was the kind of panel that made the hair stand up on some people’s heads.
One of the many great programs connected to the New Orleans Book Festival was a podcast series run by Baldwin & Co. I was paired with the phenom that is Alice Randall. As I was prepping, I came across this video and thought: I hope I own my life the way she does when I am her age. And we had a conversation I’ll remember for the rest of my life.
What’s Ahead
The semester is over at Harvard. This summer, I’ll be writing my next book under contract with Random House, Vision & Justice!
I’m also heading to the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival, where I’ll be in conversation with Tyler Mitchell and maybe one more, and the Edinburgh International Festival to speak.
In October, I’m thrilled that we’ll launch the second book in the Vision & Justice Book Series, Coreen Simpson’s monograph. You are not ready for this book. I thought I was ready for it. I was not. The unpublished photographs are just knock outs. Of Diana Ross. Grace Jones. James Baldwin. The abstract, surrealist works. And on and on. She is 83 years old and deserved this monographic treatment long ago.
Have a great day, lovelies! Back to writing.
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