Content that opened my heart in 2023
I love a good resource list, especially at the end of the year. I have many memories of winter breaks where I’d lie in bed for hours on end clicking links to articles, books, films and TV shows, and of course listening to hours and hours and hours of music (those who know me well know that I maintain a prominent position in Spotify’s top 2% of listeners with about 1,500 hours of listening in 2023 alone). Yet, I’ve never made one of these lists myself. Until now!
This list is inevitably incomplete, but I hope there’s something in here that touches you. Enjoy in bed with a hot cup of tea and biscotti for an optimal experience.
Yoga & Meditation Practices
Before you delve into the reading, watching and listening opportunities below, here are some practices to help you get grounded.
Sun Salutations & Meditation with Manoj, Tejal Yoga. My life line. All the classes on Tejal Yoga are great, but Manoj’s especially resonate with me. Absolutely worth the membership, especially because the platform offers space exclusively for South Asian teachers to connect with students who want to embrace all 8 limbs of yoga.
Yogamaya practice 1. When I don’t have time for a full practice with Manoj but I want something to activate my energy in a short time frame, I look to these free practices. Practice 1 is my favorite. (Shoutout to the exceptional book Undrowned by Alexis Pauline Gumbs for exposing me to them.)
Manifesting Calm with the Element of Water, Liza Colpa. I find all of Liza’s meditations to be incredibly soothing, but as a water baby, this one is my favorite.
Podcasts
Though I was an avid podcast listener pre-pandemic, I’m no longer the most qualified in this realm. Subscribe to my friend Ayo’s newsletter, Sounds Like Impact, for a much more comprehensive list.
Water as Source, For the Wild. Veda Austin’s gripping storytelling and unique, vast knowledge set left me in awe. One of her lines from this episode, “We are all holy water,” entered my mind countless times throughout the year.
Codependence: How to Stop Controlling Others, We Can Do Hard Things. I’d never thought much about the concept of ‘codependency’ before this episode was recommended to me by my friend Natalie, but it expanded my understanding of my own experiences and habits in a way that’s supported my healing.
Romantic Longing, Paradigm Shift with Ayandastood. I surprised myself when I randomly selected this from Spotify’s suggested episodes one day, but I absolutely loved it. Ayanda is a stellar host and her reflections on love captured so much of what my heart has longed to express about relationships and maintaining self-respect within them.
Shoutout to How to Survive the End of the World for being my all-time favorite podcast, especially the 2022 season, ‘All About Love,’ which starts here.
Articles
It feels impossible to select only three articles from an entire year of reading about a thousand different topics, but what do they say? Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good? So here’s a few that have stuck with me.
The smell of flesh is everywhere: a dispatch from Gaza, Mosab Abu Toha. The courage and devotion of Palestinian writers to share their experiences while trying to fend for their lives day in and day out is astonishing. I wish this was a piece by Mosab Abu Toha that wasn’t about living through genocide, but we must continue to bear witness and do everything we can to pressure our complicit, power-hungry government to end its support for Israel. We must demand a Free Palestine.
“She/They” – On Being a Non-Binary Survivor of Female Genital Mutilation, Dena Igusti. Covering two topics that are too often misunderstood and misconstrued, Dena Igusti’s vulnerability in this piece is inspiring and clarifying.
Awake in the Scratchy Dark: On Writing Whiteness, Joy Katz. I’ve been doing research for a project I’m working on, trying to find art about whiteness created by white people. It’s not an easy task, so I appreciated discovering this honest, insightful long-read by Joy Katz. I highly recommend it if you’re white, but I think it has something to offer for any curious reader.
I also got really into Substack this year. Shoutout to the devoted writers I’ve learned from and been inspired by. If you want a tip on where to start, I recommend Sharpening Contradictions on How to Cure a Ghost for a sharp and deeply empathic analysis.
Books
So We Can Know: Writers of Color on Pregnancy, Loss, Abortion, and Birth, Aracelis Girmay. This is a rich anthology full of pieces that ignited deep embers of empathy and helped me see the vastness of how “motherhood” can be expressed.
A Recipe for More: Ingredients for a Life of Abundance and Ease, Sara Elise. Ah, the fond memories of cozy Sunday mornings in bed with this book and jasmine tea. Each reading felt like a free-flowing conversation with a friend who models self-discovery and authenticity. Shoutout to my love Eleni for getting me a signed copy!
Tremor, Teju Cole. Maybe I should preface by acknowledging I love everything Teju Cole writes, but his newest novel is delightfully jarring, sometimes confusing, and ultimately enlightening – just like life.
TV Series
I almost never watch TV and movies (I type as I cover my face in embarrassment), and most of my watching centered around my Italian language-learning journey this year. But here are a few things that really plucked at my heartstrings.
Sex Education Season 4. I have so much to say about this season! I drafted a longer piece about it that maybe I’ll complete one day, but for now, a few things I love about it:
I’ve never engaged with content that evokes understanding of what gender dysphoria might feel like as much as this season does with Cal’s character. Given the persistent violence against trans people, this kind of content seems vital.
Some people have said the school culture they depict is “unrealistic,” but to that I say expand your imagination!! The culture we live in is failing us, and we need many, many experiments that imagine alternatives.
The way every character becomes unexpectedly loveable! Who would have thought Adam’s dad is actually relatable and sweet? It reminded me of something I’ve been trying to tell myself when judgment sets in: I don’t hate people, I hate their socializations. Within every socialized being is a loveable human. Our work is to discover that human in ourselves and each other, and I think shows like Sex Education can help us do that.
The Good Mothers. Phew, this one cut deep. A gut-wrenching depiction of what it was like to be a wife of the leaders of the Calabrian mafia, ‘Ndrangheta.
How Cancer Transformed My Crushing Anxiety Into Boundless Bliss, What’s Underneath. It seems like every year I have more conversations about death, and how to live a life that honors its impending ending. This episode was part of those musings in 2023.
Music
I saved this one for last because it’s the best, but also because I have no idea how to approach it – all music is amazing! But here’s where I landed.
All things Beyoncé. I mean, how could I not start here? I know it’s cliché, but our Queen made me laugh and cry and shake and shout so damn much this year. From the brilliant dynamism of Renaissance to the wide-ranging, free-flowing setlist (which is completely incomplete without the transitions and visuals and choreography we got in person) to a revisiting of every album she’s graced us with over 20+ years of making hits, Beyoncé was everything this year (and this lifetime tbh).
Poetics of listening, a playlist by Aja Monet. A compilation of moving tracks at the intersection of music and poetry, by one of the most brilliant poet-musicians of our time.
Move energy with love, a playlist by yours truly. Inspired by the Wild Femme Reclamation cohort I was blessed to be a part of (facilitated by MosaicEye), this playlist captures my take on loving as a daily practice.
Well, I hope that list was as fun for you to explore as it was for me to create. We’re in an interconnected web of learning and inspiration, and I’m thankful to have found so much content that opened my heart and expanded my capacity to care in 2023.
Happy new year, dear readers. I appreciate you.
With care,
Alyssa