The Cold Holds So Much Warmth
... if we are willing to embrace it.
Welcome to Love + Travel, a chronicle of adventure for people who aren’t afraid to explore new landscapes within themselves and the world.
Check out last week’s, 3 Wins, 2 Lessons, 1 Plan, for my booklist from last year, goals for this year, and a musing on winter. You can also view the entirety of my writing, here.
A very special shout-out goes to Love + Travel’s newest paid subscriber, ✨Vanessa✨. You are both a sanctuary and a sister to me. Thank you for this meaningful extension of your love.
For my birthday, last week, I stayed local. I awoke early and eager, and used the warm setting on my booklight as I read silently in bed1. The day began with pancakes and ended with tiramisu. Cards, books (♥️), and flowers arrived by mail.
It was different than the way I brought it in last year, least of all due to location.
Since my 25th, I’ve gifted myself birthday travel for two reasons: 1) January in the northeast is cold as hell, and 2) as a guarantee of sorts. Being far and away allowed me to have no expectations. Disappointment can’t walk in through a closed door.
Being open to receiving - letting love in - doesn’t feel as foreign anymore, though it still has its moments. But I’m learning it’s a gift all its own. I’ve been acquainted with the cold, it’s ventured the length of my spine and windswept my hair. Now it’s time to stand in the sun.
In the name of warmth,
R.
STORM WATCH
In the darkness of night winter's breath loosens a leaf's final clutch to a tree. Slender branches stretch like fingers ungloved and destined to freeze. And at an intersection, where paths splinter into infinity, sits a nest cradling the future and awaiting the warmth of spring.
If my work speaks to you and you’re moved to show your support, consider upgrading your subscription, buying me a coffee or adding a book to my shelf.
TODAY’S TIDBIT
I visited The Philadelphia Museum of Art’s “The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure” exhibition yesterday.
28 Black and African diasporic contemporary artists, including Amy Sherald, Danielle McKinney, and Kerry James Marshall, present works around core themes of Double Consciousness, Past and Presence and Our Aliveness. Thomas J Price’s larger-than-life bronze sculpture, “As Sounds Turn to Noise,” is of special note.
The exhibition is on display through February 9th, 2025.
COMMUNITY CORNER
🦃 Birthday on a holiday? The worst. No wonder it landed on SaddieBaddies list of why you hate your birthday every year.
🛍️ wrote about daily survival outweighing future survival in Fuck Shein. This excerpt remains stuck in my brain: “It's easier to shout about "what's wrong" than to acknowledge why people lean into the wrong in the first place.”
📣 Credit the artist! has some thoughts on social media etiquette.
LET ME KNOW
The winter reveals bird nests that would otherwise be hidden throughout the year. What’s a seasonal reveal you enjoy? (It doesn’t have to be specific to winter)
Have you checked out the POETRY tab yet?
Did you listen to the voiceover or enjoy reading in your head?
What’s the lesser of two evils: biting cold or oppressive heat?
A true birthday gift.
Happy belated birthday! I love that you have a poetry tab 😊
That poem wow I’ve missed your writing! Happy belated birthday! Sending warmth from Virginia!