On the very first night, I came across this quote, which is a sentiment that has been making its way into many of my conversations of late (not to mention swirling in my head for the past decade):

'Imagine how less lonely the world would be if we knew and believed that we didn't have to figure everything out by ourselves.'

How many of us carry the weight of the world on our shoulders? How many feel like they are the ones that are holding their households, their families, and / or their places of work together? How many of us wonder how we are supposed to figure out how to stop a genocide - while also worrying about having money in our bank accounts or putting food on our table?

If you feel like it is impossible, that's because it is. The tales of hero worship baked into our entertainment and religion have their origin in the individualism that sneaks into our lives with its burdensome combination of perfectionism (upheld as a virtue) and isolation from communal ways of living (there are many different ways to interpret this nowadays, including online communities like this one). But there is no one person who will conceive and institute a single plan to save the world. 

The task at hand is exactly the opposite: to acknowledge that our individual power lies in our interconnectedness. Strength comes from our ability to share the load and the credit. 

We are here to remind you that you are not alone. You do not have to figure everything out by yourself. Our time in the world will be more beautiful, more bountiful, and more fruitful when we come together to envision and enact creative solutions.

All together now,

Tay + Dor

photo by Sophia Piña-McMahon

tidbits...

resources on anti-racism, environmentalism and food culture AKA stuff we're reading / listening to / watching / noticing / thinking about / captivated by this Tuesday . . .
 

Do One Small Thing . . . each week we highlight one small contribution to the type of world we want to live in: When you think of the phrase 'in it together,' who is one person that comes to mind? Reach out to them today for a chat to strategize about how you can be more powerful together. Let us know how it goes.
 

Here is a poem about 'one small thing(s)', from Keith Leonard.

In time for The Holy Advent, a 4 week Patreon Series with Cole Arthur Riley of Black Liturgies. 

"Differentiating coca from cocaine is first, an act of respect towards the communities that have been historically marked by violence and stigma, and second, the baseline of any conversation that seeks to address the detrimental impacts of the drug and the myriad of tools the plant has to offer our societies." - A Growing Culture continues their series on the impacts of antinarcotic policies on food systems across the globe

Livestream Music and readings to honor Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer on Wednesday December 4th at 5:30 PM. Sign up for link here. 

Some words of wisdom on Adjusting to the Dark, courtesy of Sara by the Season. 

Rice provides more than just physical sustenance for a large part of the world's human population - and this article from Time explores the possibility of a world having to go without it. 

Our family's favorite new nightly ritual is to snuggle up an watch on of Dong Meihua's cooking videos. We have a feeling they will become a favorite in your household, too. 

Co Culture's Field School is offering 'collective recovery from Colonial Fragmentation Disorder' on Friday, December 13, at 5pm EST. 

Loving Black Single Mothers is calling on everyone who cares about reproductive justice to expand their understanding of what it means to advocate for reproductive freedom: "True reproductive justice requires a commitment to addressing the material conditions that shape the lives of Black mothers and women. And it demands a deeper recognition that the material conditions of Black single mothers are especially critical because Black single mothers live at the intersection of systemic inequities that limit their access to so many basic and necessary resources." Learn more.

Listening to this album from Mariem Hassan on repeat. 

Another round of NYC restaurant closures announced over the weekend. A reminder of what we lose when each individual operations closes its doors. 

View and share this free guide to How to Write a More Equitable Job Post, and stay tuned for new resources to deepen this work.

"Plenty has been written about the economic impact of the pandemic on the food industry, but not enough about its lingering effects on the bodies of people whose mission is to nourish us." Read the latest GFJ Story on the creator behind Anjali's Cup, with words by Nicole J. Caruth and photos by Christine Han.

got a tidbit? drop it here for us and we'll share it in next week's newsletter.