Hey friend!

I hope you are well.

You know 2026 arrived loudly in my neighborhood. I promise someone in North Memphis owns a cannon or some artillery that rocks small houses. I lay in bed attempting to peacefully meditate and jot down in my journal what plans I wanted to bring into this new year - what I wanted to see and everything I wanted to leave behind. 

Ideally I'd planned to leave all the foolishness of 2025 behind, the fear and anxiety from news alerts every hour sending me into a stress ball that unwound at the end of the day into a hot bath. 2025 was exhausting and not in a rewarding way. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten to turn off my news alerts. As I lounged this weekend in a relaxed “good vibes” mindset,  the new year's “invasion” popped up across my lock screen. I sighed in annoyance and familiar tiredness. 

We change the things we can. We also work to carry the burden of what belongs to us. The state of all geopolitical affairs aren't my weight to carry. What burdens are mine: My neighbors who might soon be threatened by immigration, the new data centers popping up in my city causing severe health issues, the number of unhoused folks rising everyday. What an experience we're having. There are solutions to these problems. I believe in them because I want to see you well and thriving. I want to see me well and thriving too. So I pitch in doing what I can in hopes we build something better. Action stops anxiety for me. What are some steps you're taking for your peace of mind this year? 

Some of my steps are:

Commit 3 more hours a week to community involvement 

Read more journals and essays and skip the comment sections on social media

Put my feet in the grass as many times as possible (with this weather...I may have to put some grass inside)

Turn those pesky news alerts off

Thanks for reading. 

Love Aybil

P.S.

If you're in the Memphis area I have a show coming up at Sheet Cake Gallery. It's a preview party for those of us representing Memphis at the Folk Alliance International Conference. Hope to see your faces. Stay well.