Today, I watched the first woman and the first woman of color sworn in as vice president. I watched a new president speak of hope and unity. I watched the youngest poet laureate ever, wise far beyond her years, speak these words, tears rolling down my cheek:

“We will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one”

…and later…

“There is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.” -Amanda Gorman

This poem strikes me not as naively hopeful, but hopepunk. It’s a hope married with justice, holding up a mirror to our truth as a nation, and marking a path forward rather than allowing cynicism to triumph.

We are facing so many HUGE issues.

It would be easy to throw up our hands and snuggle under the covers to watch Netflix until our minds go dull. But that’s not what the challenge of climate change will require from us. That’s not what the challenge of reconnecting after covid will require from us. That’s not what creating a more equitable world will require of us.

That world, the world we live in, requires courage. It requires rewriting the stories of who we are as people and as a nation.

That’s what this site will be about. It will be about continually developing courage and strength to participate in building up the world instead of simply existing in it. It will be about learning to trust my voice enough to raise it up with confidence… and hopefully helping others do that as well! I don’t teach from on high. I will be walking with those of you who want to make a difference but feel held back by their limitations.

Today, it’s easy to be hopeful.

But I want to be hopeful and encourage hope–a just hope, a strong and nimble hope–tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, when the celebration ends and the real work begins.

I can tell you one thing.

I’ll be watching Amanda Gorman each day as a reminder of my task.