I wasn’t planning on coming back to write anything for this newsletter until 2025, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned from a year of doing this, it’s that I’m allowed to change my mind. In reflecting on the first year of writing this newsletter, I can’t stop thinking about this sentence from
in her most recent essay on being a work in progress:Most things in our daily routines drive us away from creating anything at all, so I tend to consider it a tiny miracle when someone is able to sit down and put together some words and decide, in the face of self-doubt and embarrassment and the ever-present fear of failure, to share them.
I look back on most (maybe all?) of my writing and cringe. I see everything I wish I’d said differently, or not at all. I think about all the ways I could have written better, more poignantly, more through provoking. I am never completely satisfied with what I write for this newsletter before I send it, and yet I do it anyway. Why?
Truthfully, because there is no amount of therapy, self-help, yoga, acupuncture, or nature walks that give me the fulfillment I get from writing, and the gratification of sharing that with people who willingly read and engage with it. Plainly, I really f$cking love writing. And it is a blessing that there are people out there (I’m looking at you reading this) that are willing to (financially) support that. Not looking for perfection, but instead supporting progress, growth, ideas…along for the ride.
I wasn’t going to round up my popular essays from this year because I struggle to see past what I could have done better. But Clara’s essay was a reminder that to get to the good stuff, you have to start somewhere.
Here’s some of my writing that resonated the most this year. Thank you for helping to to make that possible.
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10 Most Popular Essays of 2024
The Beauty Secret That Changed My Life: My thoughts are still evolving, but no one has influenced my perspective on this more than
.How To Do A Year Of Buying Nothing New: All I can say is that I hope my writing on this subject continues to resonate with more people in 2025.
The Best Sweaters Are…$1500?: I would love to interrogate and dissect more about the pricing and popularity of fashion brands in 2025.
Fashion Stole My Style: “We can’t individually solve these complex problems, but the average consumer buys 60 percent more than they did in 2000, and keeps it half as long.”
The Inescapable Allure of Influencing: I’m surprised this is near the top of the list given it’s so recent, but I think there’s a lot of interest into the world of influencing
Have We Reached Peak Consumerism? Sadly, I think the answer is no 😞
The Only Child Argument: My only prediction is that I think we will see more people embracing having one or none.
Click. Read. Love. 7.18.24: Pretty sure this being in the top 10 has everything to do with our collective exhaustion from the #NSale.
A New Mom, In Control: “While I was anything but ok, I found ways to trick myself into feeling more in control, mostly by performing ‘good mother’.”
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Just came across your posts today, amazing content and always love seeing a fellow New Englander! I love your humor, honesty and candor, look forward to more in the new year. ❤️
So glad to be able to read you, Jess!!