So much of what you've written has resonated with me Raj! Particularly your need for a gentle start to the year and your disconnection with Instagram. I feel the same about NEEDING those truthful updates from Gaza, but can't cope with what I have to put up with in order to get that information (ads for apartment pants and silver jewellery, so similar to yours!)
I've been taking longer and more frequent breaks from the platform, and getting more of my news on Gaza and the Middle East direct from Al Jazeera or Associated Press and certain accounts on Threads or Twitter. And on Substack, I've been seeking out authentic writing and discovered The Chris Hedges Report, and Infinite Jaz by Jasper Diamond Nathaniel. I feel that reading long-form content from these more trusted sources has given me a better understanding of what is happening and giving my brain the chance to properly process everything. My ability to respond to the news in any meaningful way was becoming more and more stymied by the way I was consuming content on Instagram.
I'm also very excited about our collaboration, and letting go with my colour choices!
Emma you're SO RIGHT about taking time to absorb more long form content around the important topics rather than just the bite sized reels and short posts that can only give us a snippet of what is happening. I find that sitting down intentionally to connect with the information makes a huge difference to being able to process it. Thank you for those tips and writers you suggest. I'm going to check them out!
You're welcome Raj! Chris does some audio and video versions of his written posts which I have found really useful as I can listen to them in the car or while I'm drawing
So much of what you've written has resonated with me Raj! Particularly your need for a gentle start to the year and your disconnection with Instagram. I feel the same about NEEDING those truthful updates from Gaza, but can't cope with what I have to put up with in order to get that information (ads for apartment pants and silver jewellery, so similar to yours!)
I've been taking longer and more frequent breaks from the platform, and getting more of my news on Gaza and the Middle East direct from Al Jazeera or Associated Press and certain accounts on Threads or Twitter. And on Substack, I've been seeking out authentic writing and discovered The Chris Hedges Report, and Infinite Jaz by Jasper Diamond Nathaniel. I feel that reading long-form content from these more trusted sources has given me a better understanding of what is happening and giving my brain the chance to properly process everything. My ability to respond to the news in any meaningful way was becoming more and more stymied by the way I was consuming content on Instagram.
I'm also very excited about our collaboration, and letting go with my colour choices!
Emma you're SO RIGHT about taking time to absorb more long form content around the important topics rather than just the bite sized reels and short posts that can only give us a snippet of what is happening. I find that sitting down intentionally to connect with the information makes a huge difference to being able to process it. Thank you for those tips and writers you suggest. I'm going to check them out!
You're welcome Raj! Chris does some audio and video versions of his written posts which I have found really useful as I can listen to them in the car or while I'm drawing