Welcome (again) to Observing Hope

Hello friends,

Welcome to the new chapter of "Observing Hope" - or as I like to think of it, the conversations I'd be having with you over coffee if time and space allowed us to sit across from each other.

You know those friends who feel like sisters? The ones where you can pick up exactly where you left off, even when it's been months? The people with whom you have conversations that run from stomach-laughter to deep thought and reflection. That's the community vibe what I want to build here.

I've been a bit quiet in your inbox these past few months, and for good reason - defending a PhD dissertation tends to consume every available corner of one's brain. There were moments when I wasn't sure if I remembered how to think about anything that wasn't directly related to exoplanets! But I'm through to the other side now, doctorate in hand, and finding myself craving these conversations again.

So I'm back, with a slightly different approach. Instead of separate issues on what I'm reading, what's giving me hope, and what's on my mind, I'm bringing it all together - because that's how we actually talk to each other, isn't it? A little bit of everything, woven together in ways that sometimes only make sense in hindsight.

This Substack is my love letter to hope-finding, to meaning-making, to noticing the small and large ways we can transform observation into action. I'm so glad you're here.

Let's begin again, shall we?

With my eyes on the stars and hope in my heart,

Emma

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In My Library

Books and words that showed up exactly when I needed them. The passages I've underlined twice and why they might be exactly what you need right now too.

Earlier this year my friend introduced me to the incredible writing of Ava Reid. Ava’s bestselling A Study in Drowning is a masterful dark academia meets magical realism meets love story (and I’m so excited for the sequel to come out later this year). In the meantime, she released Fable for the End of the World which is a stand-alone dystopian romance about survival, sacrifice, and love that risks everything.

I had the chance to listen to Ava speak about the book at the Ripped Bodice in NYC a few weeks ago and was struck by how she described wanting to write a book not about the downfall of a dystopia, but about how love can exist within one.

“because we've lived in this drowning world all our lives, I realize that we have to make our own hope. And I think maybe we can.”

I tore through the book in a day and loved every page.

Link to Fable for the End of the World (affiliate)

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|glim mer | noun a moment in your day that makes you feel hope, peace, joy, or gratitude

The moments, stories, and discoveries that made me pause this week. The kind of good news I'd text you about immediately because it's too smile inducing not to share.

Last week my calendar consisted of guiding coalition and committee meetings, a stacked day of meetings on Capitol Hill with Senators and Representatives to talk about the importance of science funding, and piggy pilates!

My Saturday pilates class was joined by Gilbert, Dot and Sprinkles, and while my form was particularly terrible, the serotonin and laughter were incredible. Piggy pilates follows in the tradition of goat yoga and featured these adorable little animals running around the studio while we did our crunches and kicks, trying not to bop a pig.

10/10 would recommend.

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On My Mind

Questions I'm sitting with and thoughts that won't leave me alone. The stuff I'd bring up at a coffee chat.

My favorite account in my Instagram feed right now is run by

Stephanie Harrison

, the philospher and founder of New Happy. Through engaging and clear graphics she breaks down what happiness is, how we cultivate it, and where we can rebuild systems in the world that prevent it.

The premise of the organization (and related book and Substack) is the distinction between New Happy + Old Happy. Stephanie beautifully breaks down how Old Happy is tied to hyper-individualism, consumption, isolation, and the worst parts of capitalism and how by redefining happiness around three truths—you are enough, you have unique and important gifts, and using them to help other people leads to your happiness— brings the joy many people are searching for.

In the world we live in right now (gestures all around) the idea of happiness deriving from using our gifts to help others strikes a chord with me. All around me, I see people, and especially women, leaning into this and saying where can we make a difference right now. Starting book clubs, bringing people together to strategize, community organizing in all forms.

If you’re looking for practical hope right now, I highly recommend

• reading New Happy

• following Stephanie on Instagram

• subscribing to her Substack

And I’m very curious if her messages resonate with you. There is a lot to unpack in Old Happy vs New Happy and we need to now more than ever.

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One Small Action

A simple practice that's helping me right now. The kind of gentle nudge I'd give if we were walking side by side through whatever you're facing.

During the pandemic I started mediation for the first time in my life. I used Headspace and successfully made it 365 days straight of practicing for 10 minutes each morning. As the world opened back up and life got busier, I lost touch with that practice and while I still use visualization tools regularly, I didn’t have a morning meditation routine.

As the anxiety in the world builds every minute, I’ve returned to this practice. Popping in my airpods when I wake up before getting out of bed, turning on the daily meditation from Open (no decision fatigue if they pick it for me), and spending 10 minutes focusing on being present in my body is my new morning start. I’m not as consistent as I was in 2020, but it is a moment of grounding that is much needed.

Let me know in the comments if you already do or are going to try meditation.