We started back to school this week, and it's always an adjustment to schedules + expectations. The first book Julia is reading for school is the one I couldn't resist picking up in Bend...The Wildlands by Abby Geni. There was a review on the cover that read, "Think Silent Spring by way of Celest Ng"...and I was sold. (Next up...Crime + Punishment. There are similarities.)

The rainforest is burning. How we can help.
Migrant families to face indefinite detainment. "It all comes together like a beautiful puzzle." 
Seeking asylum is not a crime.
​1619.
Plastic water bottle ban. Why would anyone need one?

​Hope you enjoy a beautiful weekend on this planet we share.

Love,
Jane

This week has been cool enough to throw the windows open wide + let the breeze flutter the curtains. We've spent evenings at the pool reading books + chatting + soaking in vitamin D. We've picked more tomatoes than our stomachs can hold + ate all the kinds of berries. Sunflowers bob above my head + make me smile every time I see them. The cicadas + crickets are singing boisterously + the lightning bugs can still be found. It's glorious summer.

​I'm reading Simplicity the art of living by Richard Rohr. It's a lovely read that has prompted me to fill many pages in my journal. I am trying to absorb things slowly + thoroughly. How do I free myself from myself? 

A simple capsule to sew + to dance in.

Biodegradable, plant-based shoes.

Four major car makers agree to higher fuel efficiency standards for themselves.

Today, garment manufacturing is one of the largest contributors to modern day slavery.

​I would happily live here.

Things need tending + using no less than buying + creating. Paying attention to use isn't some sort of ineffectual, alternative thing to do. But it's about how we might dress, how we might live in uncertain times with optimism, lightness + principle.

May you experience some of the beauty of summer (or winter) right where you find yourself this weekend, friend!

Love, 
Jane

Every so often I check out a few of Maira Kalman's books from the library. I like revisiting the colorful paintings + quirky words in each one...like yummy conversation-inspiring + thought-provoking picture books for all ages. Relatable sadness + laughter are often wrapped up together...always in a magnificently, aesthetically pleasing package.

Ms. Kalman is a master at pointing out the magic in the mundane...the beauty of the unremarkable...the wonder in the everyday. These pages remind me to stop to remember that my great grandmother gave me handfuls of blueberries out of the pie she was making...even though she never really could put her finger on who this small girl in her kitchen was. I feel a comforting kinship with Maira, because I too tuck bits of the everyday into spots for my future self to discover + treasure. Just this week, I found a note from my much younger Julia that offers a glimpse into a regular...yet now untouchable...day many years ago.

We often look at life as the spectacular paintings in an art museum...as major events + accomplishments. I love that Maira's books prod me to paint the everydayness of a much used kettle with the same care as vacation memories. Oh, how I love to come awake to the beauty in my everyday...the moments that make up a life shared with those I love most.

Love, 
Jane

We did a little sun printing this week. The collection of bits for printing was a great way to add a little more observation + awareness to our regular walk around the neighborhood. (I came across this paper at our local plant store, but have used this type as well.)

Empathy rooted in action.
​Sacred economics.
​A favorite summer treat.
​Wearing the same thing every day.
Fashion + sustainable development goals (free online course).
A different approach.
Windows = solar panels.
Two years until no more single use plastic.

Have a spectacular, simple, summer weekend, friends!

Love,
Jane

The biggest little farm sounds important.
Zero-waste sewing patterns.
Like swallowing a meter of plastic rope.
​Turning carpet into clothing.
​I trust the wind. I trust the sun.
Why should a deodorant she'd use for a few weeks or months come in a plastic case that would be around for longer than she'd be alive?

Enjoy the weekend, friends!

Love,
​Jane

I enjoyed reading Outside the Gates by Molly Gloss this week. It's a short, thought- provoking tale about those who find themselves on the outside. This is a beautiful adult read, but I could imagine reading it + talking it over with a child as well.

The Monocle Guide to Cosy Homes is packed full of inspiration + juicy insight. I'm slowly poring over this one + enjoying every minute of it. 

Closed loop tees.
Saving 200 pounds of plastic per flight.
​All clothing is handmade.
Compostable bags three years later.
Ethical shoes for littles.

Enjoy the weekend, friends!

Love,
Jane

One of the main hindrances to recycling shoes is that the various parts of a shoe are made of different materials + the glue used to hold it all together contaminates much of the otherwise recyclable parts. This new Futurecraft Loop shoe is made entirely of the same material + uses no glue...which means the entire shoe can be recycled into new shoes! The shoes won't be sold until 2021 + at the moment the recycled material can only constitute 10% of a new Futurecraft Loop shoe...but closed loop technology for shoes is almost here!! Adidas vows to only use recycled plastic in their shoes by 2024.  

Econyl (the stuff of ocean plastic-cum-swimsuits) is working toward closing the loop as well. Hopefully someday soon our swimsuits + trainers will be returned rather than discarded ...and made into new swimsuits + trainers. Progress feels slow...but is happening. I think that using recycled plastic for trainers + swimsuits is a positive use of closed loop technology at this point, since our use of nylon for swimsuits + cushioned soles for athletic shoes are currently ubiquitous....though further engineering of natural materials toward these specialized uses would be far superior. 

What Operation National Sword means for us.
​Because it's warming up.
We got our day.
In the air.
​Are you saying that just to make me feel better?
The game board is shrinking.
Hope. Vision. Imagination.

Hope you are enjoying life + our planet this weekend!

Love, 
​Jane

"Is true freedom having the right to own a gun, or is true freedom having the ability to live unarmed + fearless, refusing to fight violence on its own terms?" We watched as a piece of a gun was pounded + reshaped into a garden tool in front of our eyes. Powerful.

"It should never be about what you take with you...but about what you might find when you get there."
​The manufacturer pays.
Plus-size ethical fashion brands.
​​Is fear the best motivator?
No packaging would be better, but "100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2025" is engagement.
"It's about what matters most to you in life. It's not just about less."

Hope you are enjoying a lovely weekend, friends!

Love,
​Jane

Sarah Corbett's How to be a Craftivist :: The art of gentle protest asks + answers the question: "If we want our world to be a more beautiful, kind + fair place, then shouldn't our activism be more beautiful, kind + fair?" This gently inspiring book resonates deeply with me. There have been quite a few issues lately that make me angry enough to carry a sign + shout. These gatherings, however, often (not always) feel like more of a way for the picketer to feel less alone + like they have "done something" rather than actually influencing any noticeable or satisfactory change. Corbett offers an alternative.

A better relationship with pants.
Fair-trade, organic cotton sheets + towels.
No new clothes.
Sustainable shoes.
Off-grid sustainable living.

Have a beautiful weekend, friends!
 
Love,
​Jane

Last week, I wrote about Stoicism + its teachings on lessening desire. I read that book during a month spent especially focused on simplicity. I look forward to reading a bit more on different spiritual teachings + practices of simplicity in the weeks to come. This time, though, I thought I'd share a little on the teachings of my own faith...Christianity. I very much appreciate Richard Foster's Celebration of Discipline, from which the following principles come. (Also, Freedom of Simplicity is a favorite of mine on Christian simplicity.)

Many of us have some idea of what Christianity or Christians look like to us. "Hypocrites" is probably the most common word I hear associated with Christianity...and I get it!  Christians are imperfect...sinners...is our word for it (not meant to be an excuse for it). We recognize that we need God's grace. We recognize that He is the only perfect being...our Creator...our King. God + love...that is our mandate. And oh, how I long for "love" to be the most common word associated with Christianity!

The inward reality of Christian simplicity involves what Foster calls a "joyful life of carefree unconcern for possessions". This statement almost takes my breath away. I stop often to contemplate what that could really mean or look like in my life. How can I get some of that?...and do I even really want it?

This joyful life does not mean that we don't value possessions or care for what we have. It involves ::
-viewing our possessions as gifts from God. We live by grace + recognize that we are dependent on God.
-trusting that what we have is cared for by God. Simplicity gives us freedom to trust God.
-believing what we have can be made available to others. 

The outward flow of this inward liberation can be practiced joyfully in these ways:
-buy things for usefulness...not status. Stop buying things to impress people. Impress them with a life well-lived.
-reject things that create an addiction. Learn to distinguish need from desire. A psychological need for cheerful surroundings is valid (yay). Simplicity is freedom...not slavery.
-develop a habit of giving things away. De-accumulate. Masses of things complicate life.
-refuse to be "propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry."
-enjoy things without owning them. 
-develop a deeper appreciation of creation. Get outside. 
-be skeptical of buying things on credit. Credit leads to bondage.
-use plain + honest speech. Follow through. Seek to inform + illuminate rather than impress + obscure.
-reject anything that breeds the oppression of others...and further...let us break the yoke of oppression.
-shun anything that distracts from Christlike living (with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness + self-control). It is easy to lose focus, even while pursuing good things.

Simplicity can sound a lot like austerity...a list of rules, but the words that stand out here are joy, freedom, liberation! It's a gift to be simple!

Like a beautiful closed loop cycle, our inward focus fuels the outward flow + in turn the outward practice deepens the inward shift. I strive to loosen my grip on "things" + at the same time allow God to help loosen things' grip on me. It involves trust + right alignment of heart, soul + mind. 

I love that there are practical principles that one can take from many spiritual teachings. It seems to point to some inherent (or divine) truths that humans have come to recognize regardless of time + place.  :)

Love,
​Jane