How was your literate life this week? As always, I’m here in your Inbox to celebrate our literate lives with a sneak peek into my own. Here’s what I’ve been reading, writing, learning and exploring this week:

What I’m Reading:

I had a very limited attention span this week, so I reached for books that could give me the quick win of finishing it in a single setting or two. The first was a beautiful short story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie titled Zikora (and it’s only $1.99!). It was highly recommended, so I dove in, completely invested from the first powerful sentence: All through the night my mother sat near me but never touched me. As someone who loved What We Carry by Maya Shanbhag Lang, a beautiful memoir that explored the complexities of mother-daughter relationships, I knew I’d love this book. And I was right. I was so drawn into Zikora’s life and when I unexpectedly turned to the last page (I was reading a digital version of the book), I was heart-broken and still am. I NEED to know how the story unfolds. And I know you’ll feel the same.

Next, I headed to Ghosts by Raine Telgemeier. I loved Guts and Smile, so I had high expectations for this book. And this book did not disappoint. What I love most about Raina’s work is her ability to humanize her characters who deal with real life challenges, like anxiety and phobias and family members with challenging health conditions. I’ve turned to her books more than once when looking for some bibliotherapy and this book did not disappoint. I left with a better understanding of family relationships, the challenges of anxiety and most importantly, a reminder to make the most of every day we have with loved ones.

What I’m Writing:

Claribel Gonzalez and Nawal Casiano sparked my notebook writing this week and I’ve been filling the pages of my notebook with remedy jars. Yes, remedy jars. While Claribel originally tweeted about creating remedy jars for what the word needs, I decided to create multiple remedy jars for myself: What my personal life needs, what my professional life needs, what my children might need and more. It might seem like a simple notebook entry, but it has the potential to completely change our outlook on anything. Try it!

What I’m Learning:

This week, I’m learning no matter how much you plan and prepare for how life is supposed to unfold, some things happen that are beyond our control. I’ve taken comfort in one of my favorite narrative non-fiction authors, Rachel Hollis. Her book, Didn’t See That Coming: Putting Life Back Together When Your World Falls Apart is a must read. I’ve started listening to excerpts of it on The Rachel Hollis Podcast and am waiting for my copy to arrive. If you’re in need of some real, honest advice about how to put your life together after a challenging event (and I think a global pandemic that has shifted the way we work and live qualifies!), then you need to dive into her work.

What I’m Exploring:

I had so much fun indulging in a bit of a passion project around glitter and sparkles last week that I thought I would take just 15 minutes to do it again. I mean, we can all find 15 minutes somewhere in our week, right?! Right. So this week, I decided to explore emoticons and emojis. I learned how they were created, how anyone can create their own, how many exist in the world and why we use them and what they say about us. Fascinating.

There you have it! I hope this inspires you to make space for more reading and writing in your own life. What are the highlights from your literate life this week?