I've spent over 65 years on this earth, mainly being a quiet, agreeable, peaceful and reflective person. I've been a bit of a people-pleaser and a consensus-builder who enjoys peace and quiet and shuns conflict.

Just back from a packed Town Hall with our US Sen Merkley and Rep. Hoyle. I passed along all your questions to their staffers. I left feeling mixed, but saw 3 bright spots & 2 dark ones.
1) The main reason the funding freeze got reversed was the massive public outcry - our voices matter.
🧵

"I thought I made myself perfectly clear about no mainstream media in the house, young man!"
Rocket is perturbed by the news.

I think California should seriously consider withholding all that Federal Tax revenue from the US government until it acts better.

The devastation in LA is heartbreaking. I can't imagine what it would be like to lose everything like this. I would be interested in hearing from folks who have had a similar experience in the past and how you navigated through it. What's are the best things we can do or say (or NOT say or do!)?

Top Reads of 2024 for me:
7) A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
6) The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
5) Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby van Pelt
4) The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
1/2

Take good care of yourself this holiday season by tending to your boundaries up front. Read more here:
stevepsyd.substack.com/p/boundaries...

If your sense of hope has faded or you fear you’ve lost it altogether, this piece might be worth reading:

open.substack.com/pub/stevepsy...

I'm mostly active on Threads but dipping my toe in the water here to see what all the fuss is about.
Sincere question for folks: Do you think the concepts of masculinity or femininity has any usefulness these days?

Here's an idea: we all pitch in & pay a beloved figure (eg Morgan Freeman) to listen to the news and then to sit by a fire with a cup of tea & share it all in a kind, compassionate way that doesn't activate our nervous systems in the usual way that news does. Thoughts? We stay informed, but gently.

NOW is the time for men to . . .

Listen in silence: Fully hear women’s shrieks of rage & the echoed cries of terror and unimaginable suffering across the ages at the hands of men.
1/3

These are my musings on shifting our perspective in these troubling times. I tried to make it fun to read as well as (hopefully) wise. Take a look. open.substack.com/pub/stevepsy...