Tahoe, Maggie Rogers, & Female Farmer Pins

TAHOE

I love all kinds of trips. Backpacking trips. Work trips. Romantic trips. Sitting around a beach with a book kinds of trips. These days, though, my favorite kind of trip looks a lot more like getting a whole bunch of good people under one cozy roof with food, drinks, games, and stories and letting the weekend write itself.

Getting more than three people’s schedules to all line up almost always feels like some sort of wizardry, but I’m okay thinking of last weekend on those terms.

When all your really good friends live hundreds of miles apart, destination weekends really are pretty magical.

WRITING AGAIN

I'll be honest, I've had a challenging time over the past few years putting into words exactly how it is that I want to help people.

Here's what I knew: For years, I wanted a career in international development. I loved to travel and to interact across cultures, and I wanted to do something that confronted the messed-up things going on around the world I kept hearing about. I also knew I wanted a career and a life that integrated well, one that allowed me to apply creativity and storytelling. And now, that's exactly what I get to do every day.

Here's what I've discovered: I'm ready to share everything I've learned in the process of getting there. Everything that I wish I knew earlier.

I used to write a lot. About my travels, about things I learned about justice, and about how they applied to current events. Then I stopped. I ran out of things to say that felt necessary. At least for a while.

But things have shifted again. I'm writing again. And I can't wait to share.

I've been brainstorming more, writing more, and planning a whole bunch. Specifically, I've got two projects coming out later in the year that I've been planning for months. I'll be launching materials designed to help you find ways to work with purpose, to make a sustainable impact, and to travel and share stories ethically and responsibly.

I'll share some bits here on the 'gram, but not everything. I need to save room for puppy photos of Beignet and those great taquerias I keep discovering. If you share my interest in the nonprofit world, in social startups, in travel, in creative work, in advocacy, or most of all, some combination of those things, I'd love to have you sign up to get updates as soon as they roll out. Follow this link, and let's do this!

WEEKEND IN TAHOE

Still feeling pretty good with the help of last weekend.

MAGGIE ROGERS

Based on the one month sample size of January, I’m guessing 2019’s gonna be a year full of fun music. And I’m guessing Maggie Rogers is a good representation of what I’ve been into lately- uncomplicated and sincere fun. That’s kind of what I’m craving from life in general right now

BONJOUR!

Bonjour friends!

It’s been a minute, so here’s a little intro by way of a few odd things about yours truly:

🗂

At different points as a student, I wanted to be a graphic designer, a filmmaker, a speaker, a geneticist, a leader of a nonprofit, a journalist, and a constant traveler who still managed to somehow have an income. That and probably a few other things I’m forgetting.

 
I ended up being Creative Director at an international nonprofit and I end up doing a little bit of all these different activities. Except for the geneticist stuff, but 26 out of 27 ish things isn’t bad.

📰

I’ve ran a newsletter for a couple years that’s currently on a bit of a hiatus, while I revamp it int something even bigger. My aim is to help people like myself who are trying to put together a bunch of different interests into a life that also serves other people. There’s a link in my bio to sign up to get it once it goes live.

🐕

One of the traits that I most admire in other people is resilience a straight up refusal to give up. Coupled with the willingness to adapt and try other means of getting to the same goal, of course.

I try and practice that in my own life and while that usually looks like stubbornly insisting I can squeeze into an unlikely parking space than anything heroic, I try to approach everything from a resolve not to give up.

FREELY GIVE, FREELY RECEIVE

Freely give, freely receive.

Whether it comes to finances, knowledge, opportunities, connections, resources, or anything else, I feel like it’s a good idea to keep a hand open and to hold things loosely.

It’s tempting to hold on to things tightly- to be convinced in the scarcity of things and to not want to let go. It’s also sometimes hard to receive things, even good things, whenever they don’t match our expectations.

I’m trying to live more open handed. I want to be more resilient to when things don’t go exactly to plan and more open to what can happen instead. I want to be wildly generous when it comes to giving away knowledge and resources I know can help other people.

It’s not easy but I try and live my life by a rhythm of freely giving and receiving as much as possible.

FEMALE FARMER PINS

Something I’ve always wanted to make? Enamel pins! I love the way a good pin collection looks coming together and I’ve always wanted to try my hand at making one.

Last month, I started the process of revamping @plantwpurpose’s merch and had a chance to put this piece into production. 

Female farmers are the backbone of the developing world. When they rise, poverty drops like no other. Two thirds of the participants in our African programs are women, and when you invest in women, entire communities are lifted as a result.

Check out this link if you want to order one. The proceeds from each pin go towards women’s empowerment via sustainable agriculture and entrepreneurship training.