4 Things That Bring Me JOY!

Dear Friend,

Hey! How’s it going? No really, how are you? There’s a lot of pain and tragedy around the world and it’s more important that ever to stay connected with friends and family at times like these.

As for me, I’ve been better. On Instagram I’ve been seeing a lot my friends meeting up, traveling, and otherwise just catching up on life… and honestly I’m just not quite there yet. I’m happy for them though, and hopefully I’ll be in a better place once I’m fully vaccinated next month.

In the past few weeks I’ve been trying to write a list of things that brings me joy, and ended up procrastinating with something (anything) else every single time. It dawned on me just how uncomfortable and almost rusty for me to write about joy these days, yet that’s exactly why I need to work harder to better acknowledge the few good things in my life lately.

1. Attack on Titan: I’ve been on and off with this anime for a while, but the latest season for this show is just on another level. The latest season shines a spotlight on war, propaganda, and otherwise the many faults of humanity, and it’s especially interesting to see the parallel between this show and real historical events like the Holocaust and the ongoing China/Taiwan conflict. You can watch AoT on Hulu and Netflix.
2. Nancy Podcast: This podcast was cancelled last year but there is still a huge back catalogue to sift through. As heavy as some of the topics may be, this show is the epitome of queer joy and representation for me. It’s such a joyful experience to hear to queer asians talk about everyday LGBTQ topics with such positivity and realness. You can listen to Nancy on Apple Podcast, Spotify, etc.
3. Shang-Chi Trailer: I know it’s cliché to say “I felt seen” these days, but I didn’t know I need to see a movie where the Marvel super hero is an Asian American in San Francisco, and perhaps most importantly, not played by Scarlett Johansson.
4. Kiri T: This sweet-sounding girl with the spicy lyrics has been on my radar for quite some time, but her latest album is by far her spiciest – the album is even named as Chili T 🌶! She recently had a very cool socially-distance, yet immersive mini concert that’s pretty cool to watch. Almost all of her songs are in English, so be sure to check it out.
5. And just a lot of smaller, every day things. Ian cooking dinner for me, parents being fully vaccinated, sunflowers, Daniel Henney, running, good weather, YOASOBI, etc…

What about you? Reply and let me know what’s bringing you joy lately! I’d love to get inspirations and ideas on how to invite more joy into my life — the more the better! (Not to mention hearing from my friends is by far the best part of writing these newsletters. 😬) Please also share this newsletter if you think other people can benefit from it! They can also subscribe to the newsletters directly below.