Jessica Kantrowitz
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jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Jessica Kantrowitz
@jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
1.4K followers 560 following 290 posts
Author, table draw-er, she/her
Books: The Long Night, Blessings for the Long Night, 365 Days of Peace, Good Morning, Friends, Open Things
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jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
A sign on poster board that reads, When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen. 1 Samuel 8:18
June 14, 2025 at 2:08 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
This gorgeous book is out today!

www.amazon.com/Sparking-Pea...
April 19, 2025 at 9:22 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
A tiny, blonde toddler in a car seat gives some serious side eye. Text reads: All the autistic folks who just did their taxes.
April 17, 2025 at 7:04 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Real authors use em dashes. AI trained on the work of real authors. Real authors — myself included — still use em dashes.
April 10, 2025 at 2:04 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Babe, are you okay? You haven’t touched your shoeshi.
April 3, 2025 at 7:11 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
I wrote you a poem
March 9th, 2025 Jessica Kantrowitz The birds are singing— what a grace! We are destroying the earth destroying democracy We hate and hurt each other— listen, the birds Are singing, and the sun sets later and later I should be filled with despair, should I not? But the house is filled with light and the birds are singing And my heart, despite everything my heart soars with hope Listen. I’m trying to tell you— The birds are singing Don’t be afraid.
March 9, 2025 at 4:43 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Love getting cheerful messages from my Lord of the Rings walking app
A picture of a hobbit-like figure trudging along a weary, gray road. The caption shows that she is on day 728 of the journey, and has traveled 518 miles, and reads, “Each day the land looks much the same as the day before.”
January 31, 2025 at 5:52 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
I walked a mile on the indoor track at the Y, which is 15 times around, and MapMyWalk was completely confused by the situation.
A map showing my walk in red, but instead of the neat ovals of the track I walked it’s a chaotic tangle, as if a cat had played with yarn.
January 29, 2025 at 12:15 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Okay, this would be WILD
January 24, 2025 at 5:52 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Love each other fiercely, friends, today and every day.
Peace to those who are lonely because they equate love with power and try to fill their empty hearts with adulation Peace to those who know that only love can drive out hate and who love each other fiercely Knowing that this love is the only true power despite all the pomp and circumstance
January 20, 2025 at 4:35 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Can you find it? It’s funny how your brain just “fixes” it.
course catalog how to be sad (101) how to be sad and not fall into despair (201) how to be let others be sad and not try to fix them (311) how to be angry (102) how to be angry without hurting anyone (202) how to turn your anger into the fiercest of love (grad seminar)
January 17, 2025 at 5:49 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Peace to that one thing tonight the thing that was too much on top of all the other things Right when you thought you were doing pretty well, making something of your day & life Peace to the thing that took you out for a few minutes & peace to the new, softer pace afterwards
January 16, 2025 at 2:10 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
(It’s you, you’re the friend)
Prayer for a Friend May you be given a goddammed break May the crises decrease to at least one-month intervals May you be able to breathe through your nose for fuck's sake May there be good news interspersed with the bad May you get back on your feet finally without yet another thing knocking you off of them And while you are knocked down may your community be there the whole time not just at first May we hold your hand and pick up your work as if our own hands and our own work were at stake.
January 10, 2025 at 4:25 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Actually this is a great idea for a tattoo—I might do it! @katemapother.bsky.social
A text conversation between me and Kate 🦮 Mapother., “I’m going to get an M – tattoo. Only writers will understand 🤣” I say it’s like the semicolon tattoo but more literary. “What does that line on your arm mean“ “oh it’s a “by Emily Dickinson.“
December 31, 2024 at 7:16 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Cheers to the person at Whole Foods who restocked the sold out candle with Laughing Cow cheese!
December 31, 2024 at 5:57 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
I'm definitely not of that belief, and would never equate darkness with evil. That poem is about those of us who experience seasonal depression and struggle with the short days. Here's some of what I've written about the gift and beauty of darkness:
December 21, 2024 at 4:26 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
A starry sky background with white text that reads: Winter Solstice Did you know that the first day of winter is when the days stop getting shorter and your hemisphere begins to climb toward light and life again? So exactly the moment when winter begins it also begins to end. Just when things feel the bleakest is when they can turn around at any moment Or, to put it another way as my dear friend Laura says, “Hopelessly lost and nearly found feel exactly the same.” Hold on.
December 21, 2024 at 3:24 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Always.
A starry night sky background with white text that reads: Peace to those whose hero has fallen from our pedestals, our hope, our grace Peace to those who don’t live up to their art who taught us something vital they themselves cannot yet understand Peace to those who mourn as if a real world was lost Your love is real Always Jessica Kantrowitz 365 Days of Peace
December 20, 2024 at 2:10 AM
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You’ve heard of Elf on a Shelf, now get ready for
A photo of an orange with white background
December 16, 2024 at 5:59 PM
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December 15, 2024 at 1:01 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Peace to the happy tonight.
Starry sky background with the following in white text: Peace to the happy whose brains are making good chemicals or at least adequate ones To you who have fallen in love or discovered the right size shoe (or friends) after years of wearing the wrong ones To you who cannot enjoy your happiness for fear you will scare it away Jessica Kantrowitz 365 Days of Peace
December 13, 2024 at 10:25 PM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Peace to those in pain. 💙
Starry sky background with white text that reads: Peace tonight to those in pain, the injured who are healing slowly, those who keep turning the same ankle, again & again. Peace to you who have been in pain for longer than this poem can describe, who wake in pain & sleep in it, & try to remember when you last took your meds
December 13, 2024 at 1:08 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
So sad to hear of Nikki Giovanni’s passing. This is a poem I wrote for Mary Oliver, but now it belongs to Nikki, too.
For Mary (and Nikki) Jessica Kantrowitz When a poet dies, her words brighten & fall like leaves We must run & gather them, press them in books Iron them between wax, preserve, but also reuse Rush to make poems of our own so we are not alone here for long Write, quickly, write We must all become poets.
December 10, 2024 at 3:20 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Peace.
A starry sky graphic with the following words in white text: Peace to those who have faith Peace to those who don’t Peace to those who had to chose between loving the God they were sold & loving themselves, & chose themselves Peace to those whose love of God lets them love others enough to trust their choice Jessica Kantrowitz 365 Days of Peace
December 10, 2024 at 12:20 AM
jfkantrowitz.bsky.social
Penguin says happy holidays!
A cartoon entitled Heralds of the animal Kingdom. There are four animals, the bear of bad news, the antelope of useless information, the penguin of glad tidings, and the seal of unsolicited advice. Each one has a small animal graphic to go with it. The bear of bad news has a speech bubble that says sorry.
December 7, 2024 at 5:46 PM