Vol. 41 of Thursday Third Things ☕
Are you thinking about the gift economy too?
For the newbies — welcome to The Third Thing! Every (most) Thursdays I send out a “Thursday Third Things” email full of things I’m reading, thinking about, listening to, watching, and sometimes buying. Enjoy!
Hello this week from Boulder, Colorado!
I made a quick trip to the Front Range this week to see Robin Wall Kimmerer speak in downtown Boulder about her new book The Serviceberry, which explores the idea of the gift economy (as opposed to the market economy) and how we can bring that economy into our lives.
Upon arrival, staff members handed my friend Phebe and me a free copy of the book. We took our seats high up in the balcony of the Unitarian church where I delighted in the rough cut pages of this free book that now sat on my lap.
“It’s wild that she’s just giving out copies of the book at all of her readings,” I said to Phebe.
My beautiful friend lovingly stared at me for a moment trying her hardest to see if I was serious and then finally said, “Well yeah, it’s a book about gifting.”
This is how conditioned I have become to expect a market economy. Even at a talk dedicated to the gift economy, my brain is trained on scarcity and competition. I rarely consider abundance. And when I do have abundance, I squirrel the excess away for myself for times of less abundance. It is hard not to live constantly in the fear of loss.
Kimmerer’s talk gave me so much to consider and I’m still bubbling with the questions that have been floating to the surface of my brain over the last 18 hours like a long flute of champagne:
What would a gift economy look like in my own life?
How could I slowly introduce it to others in my community?
In what ways have I hoarded my abundance?
How can I be more present in my community? How can I prioritize community?
In what ways have I shut myself off to the help and gifts of others?
Maybe you’ll also consider those questions and join me in thinking through their answers.
Cheers,
Anja
I was pretty light on internet reading this week. (Or, rather, I read a lot, but not much hit me).
—The End of Social
—Act Fast
—World’s Oldest Known Wild Bird Lays an Egg at 74
—I am almost finished with American Bulk: Essays on Excess and can say with certainty that this is a book you’re going to read, especially if you grew up in the midwest. There are moments that make me squirm with uncomfortability, her stories too close to my own. And yet, this is not a self-help book. It is merely a painting of life that many of us know all too well.
—I’m not sure how I got through so much of my life unfamiliar with the desert writer Ellen Meloy, but I finally dug into her work this year and have loved its quiet presence as I also settle my home on the Colorado Plateau. I’m nearly finished with The Anthropology of Turquoise: Reflections on desert, sea, stone, and sky and find myself longing for this tranquility she creates. Meloy died fairly young (58) in 2004 and I feel an immense sadness that we’ll never get to hear her contemporary reflections. So I’m lingering on what we do have from her.
—I don’t necessarily have a holiday cookie-making tradition (maybe it’s time to start one?), but I do love a day of cookie-baking. Phebe and I are making a smatter of cookies this week and the two I plan to bring to the table include these iced peppermint cookies and these lemon turmeric crinkle cookies.
—I saw this recipe for pumpkin dumplings come out back in October shortly after we got our Robin Wall Kimmerer tickets and begged Phebe to make them with me when I came to visit. Tonight, we feast!
—The Moonchild radio station on Spotify has been a welcome companion this week.
—I become less and less a fan of holiday music every year, but last year my brother introduced me to Andy Thorn (of Boulder!) and his holiday album has been a sweet reminder that not all Christmas music sucks.
—Have you ever wondered who the heck buys luggage at the airport? We FINALLY have an answer in this week’s Search Engine podcast.