WE ARE 'TO DO LIST' PEOPLE ...
We feel an inherent satisfaction in striking out an item and marking it as 'complete'.
But the last 18 months have reinforced how 'the work' is never 'complete'. There are not just tasks to accomplish, there are systems to dismantle and rebuild, which require continual cycles of rest, reflection, and recalibration.
In fact, completion itself has been taught as a binary - done or not done - when it is, more truly, a circle. Anyone who has revised a piece of writing, reworked a recipe, made a home, cleaned up a mess, been part of a human relationship, etc., will recognize the circular nature in all of that work. Yes, there are satisfaction points along the way, but if you look closely, you might notice they have less to do with being 'done' than with taking a rest.
When you feel your to-do list becoming more of an enemy - a source of overwhelm, guilt, or even shame - instead of the supportive, helpful comrade it is supposed to be, you might rethink the 'to do list', as we are feeling called to do this month. How can that list better serve the ongoing work that we are committed to in the coming weeks, months, and seasons?
Feeling bogged down by the status quo will use up all of our resources if we let it. That sense of overwhelm can lead to complacency or hopelessness. But it is each of our individual responsibility to renew our sense of hope when it feels lost, to check in with our motivations (as Monique Melton reminds us to do in her Anti-Racism 102 course), and to either take a rest, or make the next step in carving out time, space, and money toward positive change. (Hint: the rest will lead to the next step if you check in with your hope and motivations.)
We saw the strength of forward movement in 2020. In a new year, we challenge ourselves and each other to reflect and to re-commit. We ask questions: What have I learned? What have I changed? What more can I do?
Put yourself in new situations. Walk a different way. Make a new friend. Speak up. Challenge yourself to work. Challenge yourself to rest.
Wherever your contributions to social justice lie, let them build on the work of 2020. Watch them cascade out in ripples that may appear to disappear, but can always be called back again.
In food, justice, and food justice,
Tay + Dor
photo of by Amanda Lopez for GFJ Stories
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