Issue 39: Frozen, In Time
And a brief love note to poetry
Worth Considering
Frozen, in Time
At our house, we have been deep in the Frozen universe for several months now—my 2-year-old is firmly in her Elsa era—and while I’m not sure I have seen either of the movies in their entirety, I am extremely well-versed (pun intended) in their musical scores. The songs swirl in my head while my kids are at preschool and I often find myself testing my vocal range to “Show Yourself” in the shower. Hey, it’s a bop.
The idea for the poem below came to me in some sort of fugue state—the song titles really lent themselves as a backbone to the piece, and made this a fun creative endeavor. I’ve loved poetry since I can remember—Jewel’s book was my gateway, which I still have and recently revisited (not as brilliant as it seemed when I was 15, shockingly). I’ve written some bad poetry over the years, and have thankfully expanded my exposure a bit beyond the moody pop star’s work.
There is something about seeing yourself in a poem that feels so life-giving and moving—the universe’s way of reminding us that the things we feel have been felt by others on this little planet many times before us, that we are both extraordinarily special and also not special at all. Poetry puts words to experiences and emotions we can’t find on our own. Great poems are like friends who have known you since childhood, who after witnessing the unraveling of a life can pull meaning from the lose threads, weaving them into something you can hold in your hands.
Most people think they don’t like poetry, which I’m not quite sure is accurate; I think they’ve actually never given it a chance, or taken the time to seek out poetry that speaks to them. There are plenty of poets that I don’t “get” or would take many more years and brain cells to understand. But there really is something for everyone if you poke around. I recommend popping into the library and grabbing a few books of poetry, and flipping to a random poem or two each day. Take what you like, leave the rest.
If you’re looking for a place to start—and now is the perfect time as April is National Poetry Month!—I love the Poetry Foundation and Poetry is not a Luxury to get exposure to a wide breadth of artists without a lot of effort or overwhelm. I still feel like I’ve only just scratched the surface of the poetry world, but here are a few contemporary poets I love: Kate Baer, Joy Sullivan, Ocean Vuong, Andrea Gibson, Lyndsay Rush, Ada Limon, Amanda Gorman. All so different and wonderful.
Whew! I hope you enjoy this poem—I’m including an audio version of me reading it so I can seep deep into a vulnerability hangover the second this newsletter is sent, fun!
On the 107th Viewing of Frozen
some days
motherhood feels like a cherry popsicle
In Summer.
cool on your lips, sweet on your tongue
the warm light sets the whole thing aglow.
other days, the snow is falling
the sun sets as soon as it rises
you merely crawl through the blackest of hours trapped inside your
Fixer Upper
paint peels, walls bow
and just when you think you can't last another day
you realize
For The First Time In Forever
the window has been ajar the whole time.
and while the air outside is crisp
and the rain has not yet stopped
the muddied ground will hold you.
Let It Go
the expectations
the yearning for a different season
one with more time and space and light
fewer negotiations and tears and sticky fingers to be wiped.
Let It Go
all of it
a myriad of alternate realities swept away
you are here now.
put on your slicker, the warmest hat you own
grab your hope and patience and awe
turn the handle to find
Love Is An Open Door
let's cross the threshold together.Worth Reading
You Could Make This Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith (Amazon // Bookshop.org)
Memoir is such an interesting genre when you think about it. Hundreds of pages written about a life we did not live ourselves—often full of pain, grief and loss. As readers, we knowingly decide to journey into that pain, grief and loss, experiencing it alongside the writer with each turn of the page. I’ve always been drawn to memoir—of course partly for the salacious, voyeuristic element—but more so out of curiosity, a wondering if parts of myself not yet named or inspected may be waiting for me inside the book; an experiment of knowing another to know ourselves.
It felt almost masochistic to pick up Maggie Smith’s memoir—a very honest retelling of the collapse of her marriage and the brutal realities of the divorce thereafter. It was that, sure, but it was also insightful and universal—these small epiphanies gained throughout the course of a life. Smith’s writing is as wonderful in prose as it is in her poetry—lyrical, profound. This book won’t be for everyone, but I think anyone who has experienced heartbreak, or unexpected turns, or even the valleys of a partnership will appreciate the mining of self done by Smith to, maybe, reveal something of ourselves to ourselves in the same way.
Currently reading: Come and Get It by Kiley Reid, 1,000 Words by Jami Attenberg, and The In-Between by Hadley Vlahos
Worth Watching
The Last Repair Shop, Disney+ - This is the story of Los Angeles Unified School District’s 64-year-old instrument repair shop, which provides and maintains musical instruments for public school kids. It features four of the dedicated staff, as well as a group of students who have benefitted from the program—a much-needed reminder of how wonderful humans can be to one another, and how lives are forever changed with unfettered access to the arts.
Red, White and Blue, for rent on Vimeo - If that one didn’t make you shed enough tears, can I recommend this 22-minute stunner? The live-action short follows a young mother (Brittany Snow) seeking a much needed abortion in the state of Arkansas (and subsequently, across state lines). It’s incredibly moving, and perfectly positioned for this time in history when our bodies, sadly, are not our own. You won’t spend a better $2 this year.
Worth Sipping
Spicy Peach Margarita (no peaches necessary!)
A little trick for making cocktails with out of season ingredients is to use preserves and jams to capture the desired flavor. In this drink I reduced a 1:1 mixture of peach preserves and water to make a rich syrup that acts as the cocktail’s sweetener.
Ingredients
2 oz jalapeno-infused tequila or mezcal*
1.25 oz peach simple syrup**
1 oz fresh lime juice
1/2 oz Cointreau
1/2 oz peach liqueur/schnapps (or sub with additional 1 oz peach syrup)
2:1 mixture of Tajin/salt for rimming
Assembly
Rim a rocks glass with lime juice, then the Tajin/salt mixture. Fill with ice and set aside. Combine remaining ingredients in a shaker filled with ice; shake until very cold, about 20 seconds. Strain into the ice-filled rocks glass. Garnish with a lime wheel.
*Combine 750 ml of tequila/mezcal with 1-2 sliced jalapenos (seeds included) for 18-24 hours. Strain out solids and discard.
**Combine 1 jar peach preserves/jam with the same quantity of water in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stirring sporadically, simmer for about 15 minutes until the mixture has reduced but only just coats the back of a spoon; it should still be more of a liquid than a syrup as it will thicken as it cools. Remove from heat and allow to cool just slightly, then run through a fine mesh strainer pressing to remove as much syrup from the pulp as possible. Discard the preserve’s pulp. Store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. If the syrup is too thick after chilling, add a tablespoon of water (or more as needed) and shake well to thin out.
Worth Quoting
Robin Wall Kimmerer, from her book Braiding Sweetgrass
"What would it be like, I wondered, to live with that heightened sensitivity to the lives given for ours? To consider the tree in the Kleenex, the algae in the toothpaste, the oaks in the floor, the grapes in the wine; to follow back the thread of life in everything and pay it respect? Once you start, it’s hard to stop, and you begin to feel yourself awash in gifts.”
Worth Noting
This Week’s 10 Honorable Mentions
Collaging will forever be one of the most soothing activities for me. Pro tip: snag used magazines at your local library for $.50!
NYT Sesame Rice Krispy Treats. Yes I made them, yes they were delicious, yes Kyle scolded me for “ruining a classic.”
Outside of the Oscar selections above, I also really enjoyed American Fiction (Prime Video), The Holdovers (Peacock/Prime Video) and The ABCs of Book Banning (Paramount).
Coveting this librarian-chic bookmark sweater (!) - just a cool $245.
Working diligently to bring the luxury martini to my home cocktail bar.
I’m entering year five of parenting and one of my biggest regrets is sopping up all the gentle parenting content like a mindless sponge. This article from The Cut—“The Rise of the Accidentally Permissive Parent”—reaffirmed why I feel so burnt out (and discouraged) by it.
Queueing up Time Capsule: The Silver Chain, an 8-episode documentary podcast series about a 1970s swingers club in Minnesota.
These bookmark watercolor pads are so neat! For kids and grown-ups alike.
Remember “Stolen Car” by Beth Orton from 1999? Lilith Fair vibes forever.
These colorful enamel plates would be such a fun alternative to melamine for outdoor dining this summer.