Love & Work
A notebook about how we work, learn, love and live.
Desmond Tutu described hope as the ability to see light in spite of the darkness. We are a learning species, which in and of itself is a good reason for hope.
Happy Friday.
How We Live
"Good relationships lead to health and happiness. The trick is that those relationships must be nurtured."
"You don’t have to examine scientific findings to recognize that relationships affect you physically. All you have to do is notice the invigoration you feel when you believe that someone has really understood you during a good conversation, or the tension and distress you feel after an argument, or how little sleep you get during a period of romantic strife.
"In this sense, having healthy, fulfilling relationships is its own kind of fitness—social fitness—and like physical fitness, it takes work to maintain. Unlike stepping on the scale, taking a quick look in the mirror, or getting readouts for blood pressure and cholesterol, assessing our social fitness requires a bit more sustained self-reflection. It requires stepping back from the crush of modern life, taking stock of our relationships, and being honest with ourselves about where we’re devoting our time and whether we are tending to the connections that help us thrive. Finding the time for this type of reflection can be hard, and sometimes it’s uncomfortable. But it can yield enormous benefits." - Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz
Book Excerpt: What the Longest Study on Human Happiness Found is the Key to a Good Life
Teaching
Three films offer a multifaceted view into the life and work of Thich Nhat Hanh.
Thich Nhat Hanh: mudra of compassion. This photo was taken while his monks and nuns were offering the compassion chant at his European Institute of Applied Buddhism in Germany. c. 2009, © Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism
"Global conflict, racial injustice, threats to democracy, a pandemic, and a refugee crisis — the 1960s have many lessons for today, including what was then an emergent interest in mindfulness. While many people helped raise the profile of this practice on a global stage, an important nexus of teachings is the venerable Thien (Vietnamese Zen) Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, who died at the age of 95 just about a year ago, on January 22, 2022. He left a tremendous legacy as one of the major figures to bring mindfulness to the West and to expound the principles of engaged Buddhism as part of his own peace efforts during the Vietnam War.
"Last April, filmmakers Max Pugh and Marc J. Francis worked with Plum Village, Nhat Hanh’s spiritual community, to produce A Cloud Never Dies, the first film about his life. Two weeks ago, Pugh released I Have Arrived, I Am Home, about Nhat Hanh’s final years. Together with 2017’s Walk With Me, the filmmakers’ documentary about life at Plum Village, these three films offer a multifaceted view into the Thien teacher’s life, work, and passing." - AX Mina
Review: The Buddhist Monk Who Brought Mindfulness to the West
Social Messaging, Communications Design
Can we prioritize design without sacrificing faith?
Saint Church in London borough of Hackney Photography by Andrew Hughes, Copyright © Saint Church, 2020
"Have you noticed an uptick in religious iconography being used in design? Or maybe you’ve seen the reverse: religious institutions paying a touch more attention to their visual output? Clearly, something is in the air – and it’s not just the wafting Nag Champa incense. Birth charts, healing crystals, Tarot readings and Neo-pagan practices seem to be becoming increasingly common in the Gen-Z visual landscape. And while it’s true that divinity is undoubtedly chic (Fleabag’s hot priest springs to mind), it’s not just the vibe that people are drawn to: it’s the tantalising possibility of navigating worldly matters with some divine oversight, this time on our own terms. Spirituality is sexy – again." - Roz Jones
Article: Does Spirituality Have What it Takes to Change Design for the Better?
Community
Social interactions may shape the composition of our microbiomes.
Photo by Ricardo IV Tamayo on Unsplash
"By studying stool and saliva samples from thousands of people, researchers have discovered that the human microbiome is heavily influenced by our social interactions — a discovery that could help us treat or prevent microbiome-linked diseases." - Kristin Houser
Article: Your Microbiome is Influenced by the People You Hang Out With
Public Health
A swipe card that covers the cost of fresh produce
Image via Fresh Connect
"When a patient experiencing food insecurity and an illness like diabetes comes to a clinic at Boston’s Mass General Brigham, they might leave with a prescription for fruit and vegetables. Around a week later, they’ll get a debit card in the mail that they can use to buy the produce at local grocery stores.
"The card, called Fresh Connect, can automatically recognize fruit and vegetables when someone checks out at a store. It’s designed as a tool to help prevent and treat disease, and to help people who struggle to afford healthy food. 'The reason healthcare needs to get in the game, driving billions of dollars of avoidable costs, is simply because people don’t have the money in the bank to afford all the foods that they need,' says Josh Trautwein, cofounder and CEO of About Fresh, the Boston-based nonprofit that created the debit card." - Adele Peters
Article: This Debit Card Lets Doctors Prescribe Free Fruits and Vegetables.
Design, Visual Identity
There's a reason that most cars look alike.
Image credit: Hippo Leasing
A car leasing company used AI to mash-up 250 current car models from 32 different car brands to create "the car of all cars". They used the same tech to create a logo. Ouch. Are we really that afraid to express individuality?
Article: What Do You Get if You Combine Every Car on the Road?
Related Article: Why is Everyone So Boring?
Graphic Design, Animation
How movement changes perception
In April of 2020, just as the world was locking down, animator Henning M. Lederer launched his “Books & Sleeves” project in which he turned turned the abstract geometric patterns from vintage book and record covers into moving images. He's just launched a second collection. It is so cool to see design that alludes to movement actually move.
Article/Video: Vintage Book & Record Covers Come to Life in a Mesmerizing Animated Video
One-liners
Article: Study: With Additional Funding, Public Radio Stations Can Counter Decline In Local News Coverage.
Article: Planting More Trees in Cities Could Cut Deaths From Summer Heat, Says Study
Article: Baby Boomers Have Dominated America. What Happens When They’re Gone?
Article: Why We Made Fewer Memories During the Pandemic
Article: Australia is First Country to Recognize MDMA and Psilocybin as Medicines
Playlist
Norah Jones has a delightful podcast series called Norah Jones Is Playing Along. On it she plays and chats with artists like Jeff Tweedy, Mavis Staples and Valerie June.
In this episode she plays with Brian Blade, a polymath musician better recognized as an ace drummer. In fact, he's been her drummer for several tours and albums. But this time they play his songs while she backs him.
Video: Norah Jones, Brian Blade - Nature's Law (Live)
Mitch the editor in his a new role as Mitch the DJ.
A playlist of music that is good for what ails you
I mixed this music to work to, to chill to, or to back a dinner party. I think of it as music that soothes without the borders of genre. This is the third post in my new weekly series of mix-tapes, Big Sounds from a Small Planet.
Mix-Tape: Easy now, No. 1
Image of the Week
"A beautiful series capturing the women in Minnesota’s African diaspora community by photographer Yasmin Yassin. Based in Minneapolis, Yassin focuses on community-based stories and subcultures with the goal of telling stories as authentically as possible and with integrity for those that invite her into their lives. Her work aims to show the commonalities and connections within communities from the eyes of a storyteller — an approach embedded in the tradition of her own East African oral-storytelling heritage."
Photo Essay: “Adornment” by Photographer Yasmin Yassin
What's Love & Work?
Love & Work is the weekly newsletter by me, Mitch Anthony. I help people use their brand - their purpose, values, and stories - as a pedagogy and toolbox for transformation.
If you get value from Love & Work, please pass it on.
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