It’s…a day.
If this were a work of fiction, I’d have to ask the writers to go back over the plot for today because having the inauguration of a White supremacist fascist felon on the same day as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a bit much, honestly.
I remember eight years ago, signing up for the Anti-Racism Daily, now Reimagined News, and seeing the words, “Your heart is a muscle the size of your fist,” I think at the top. (I may be mis-remembering. The memory part of my brain is a warren of weird connections.) I hadn’t googled past that, but then I learned that lyric is from a 2011 folk-punk song written by Patrick Schneeweis, and performed by Ramshackle Glory. (It’s also the title of a book by Sunil Yapa, released in 2016).
I hadn’t listened to the song in full until this week. (If you seek it out, TW/CW for the lyric content).
Your heart is a muscle the size of your fist
Keep on loving, keep on fighting
And hold on, and hold on
Hold on for your life
My brain, see above re: memory warren, then switches to “Keep your eyes on the prize, hold on.” It’s a terrifically weird jukebox, my brain. The remixes are astonishing.
I do appreciate the message to myself: Hold on. Keep loving, keep fighting, know what you’re working towards. Hold on.
Bree Bridges said on Bluesky on January 14th,
Inviting everyone to join me on Jan 20th in doing one thing you love, and one thing they would hate.
Joy & spite, y’all. Joy and spite.
And I loved this reply from writer and artist Marika Bailey:
We do not need to be an audience for fascist pageantry. Witness your neighbors, your communities, your loved ones. Witness all we need to protect. Be present where you are, dig your toes deep into the earth, plant yourself to endure the oncoming storm.
As Gwendolyn Brooks wrote in her poem “Paul Robeson,”
That time
we all heard it,
cool and clear,
cutting across the hot grit of the day.
The major Voice.
The adult Voice
forgoing Rolling River,
forgoing tearful tale of bale and barge
and other symptoms of an old despond.
Warning, in music-words
devout and large,
that we are each other’s
harvest:
we are each other’s
business:
we are each other’s
magnitude and bond.
“We are each other’s harvest: we are each other’s business: we are each other’s magnitude and bond.”
Plant yourself, be present with yourself and others, and hold on.
So: since the writer’s room for 2025 has clearly lost all the plots, I want to ask you: what goodness in your world are you holding on to?
Amanda: Every morning when my alarm goes off, we can hear our youngest cat Fig meowing outside our bedroom door. We open it to unleash what we call the “Kitty Parade.” All she wants to do is lay on my chest and headbutt me, even when I have to get moving for work. She’ll purr and drool and twist around my legs while I’m brushing my teeth. Our two other cats show their affection differently (or not at all in the case of our grumpy old man). The routine of it and affection and clinginess are the biggest bright spot in my mornings. It just makes me so happy.
Lara: After every bottle my tiny prem daughter smacks her lips. It’s so big and expressive and it makes my day.
Sneezy:That thing in the middle of art, food, and community. People will always try to create beauty, find ways to understand themselves, make delicious things, and share all of that with each other. This is a constant throughout time and space. It holds true today, just as it will tomorrow. Remembering that gives me hope and helps me build resilience. Whether it’s aunties excitedly telling each other about a new pork intestine noodle place, noticing a kid with neon pink stripes on their sneakers, appreciating that people planted giant waxy leaves in the park, all of it reminds me we’re not alone, and we’ll always find ways to enjoy and share nice things with each other.
Shana: My best friend is marrying her longtime girlfriend and I’m so excited for both of them.
Me, I’m holding on to my family and my neighbors, and nurturing the connections that help us sustain and thrive – whether that’s heavy lifting (like snow) or sending some cilantro next door so my neighbor can finish dinner.
Most of all, I’m holding on to all of you here, and holding on to this community where we talk to each other about books and everything else.
What about you? What goodness in your world are you holding on to?
Had a good snuggle in bed with the puppy this morning. I’m holding on to the regularness of everyday life – there is snow to be shoveled and there are chickens to be fed. Also working hard on strengthening community connections.
My family is moving at the end of the month and my husband and I are both determined to volunteer and find community where we can in our new town. I also bought myself one cactus in December (I have a horrible track record with plants) and I bought it a fancy pot and named it (Andor – he’s not a hugger) and let myself fuss over it as much as I want. I’m hoping after the move I can find a good sunny home for it in our house and coax it into blooming. I’ve been fascinated by cactus blooms since I was young and one of my favorite movies to watch with my mom was “Cactus Flower.” If I don’t kill it in 6 months, I’m giving myself permission to buy another.
Staying in my pajamas all day, reading in bed, snuggling with my dogs, spending time with my sister. I’ve read that authoritarians want people to be isolated and fearful. I refuse that with everything I am; I choose hope, connection and joy.
I’ve decided to work today and take the holiday later this year. My work involves things the new administration does not like because it provides evidence of things they’d like to ignore. Who knows whether I’ll even have a job or, if I have it, how miserable that job might be with the new administration. Sending love out to everyone out there doing federal work. We know that the work we do supports the American public every day.
Only a Federal holiday, so I’ll be at work – almost as usual.
My boss voted for this horror, so I will be listening to music that annoys her while she’s at work.
I’m spending the day at the pottery studio. Elbow deep in mud, I can’t look at my phone. Plus functional art is extremely reassuring to me, especially at a time when necessities are become luxury. I want art (and like, food, and civil rights, and opportunity, etc) to belong to all of us, not just the rich. Holding a cup that someone else has made is almost like holding hands with them. There’s an idea of community baked into it.
Maybe I’ll bake something first, speaking of love and joy and community and functional artistry…
@Jill Q– Cactus flowers are amazing. I live in AZ, where I get to see them every spring, but their beauty and the way they look like someone just pasted them on the the cacti never fails to astonish me. I hope Andor thrives in your care and that you can get him a companion.
I’m going to the dentist to have a crown replaced today. Hoping they will just be broadcasting annoying music rather than news.
I’m holding on to my therapy goals, which include going back to our local trans support group and getting my gender marker corrected while that is still possible. We will all need each other, particularly in threatened groups like mine.