Electing Care
Facebook can be so profound, like it was with the post I saw last week that simply said, “Next week has been exhausting.” Well, friends, here we are at exhausted.
I’m writing this the day before election day, and it feels like the calm before the storm. The day I actually voted was so emotional for me and I really didn’t see it coming! I didn’t realize how worried I am about the future. So many of us are concerned about what’s really on the line, from our individual physical safety to the security of our democracy.
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The thing is, when the voting is over, I don’t think we’re going to feel any better. Well, not for a while. In these trying times, we need a little care. If you’ve read my earlier posts on self-care, you know I’m all about self-care as a community care. While we might not have the capacity right now to do the long-term work to relieve the sources of our current stress, we can do a few things to feel a little better in the short term, particularly at work where we’ve been so careful about what we say. I’ve a few suggestions, would love to hear more. Most of these suggestions are distractions but if you’re ready to go hard core, there are a few of those, too.
1. Don’t be afraid to unplug. If you do read or listen to news sources, pay attention to words and phrases that are emotionally charged.
2. Build a (communal?) Post Election Playlist
3. Challenge yourself (and a colleague?) to get more steps, drink more water, or read more pages
4. Print off and share a few coloring sheets or crossword puzzles
5. Slip motivational quotes in random books around the library
6. Bring in snacks for everyone
7. Volunteer to do something you wouldn’t normally do
8. Treat a colleague to lunch or a movie
9. Bring in a massage therapist for 5-minute free massages
10. Plan media literacy workshops that address finding credible sources
11. Develop passive programming to learn how your community members engage with AI
12. Use Class Tools to create fake media for your library along with a few analytical questions
13. Build a book display on scorpions. C’mon! It’s November!
Filed under: Professional Development, self care
About Edith Campbell
Edith Campbell is Librarian in the Cunningham Memorial Library at Indiana State University. She is a member of WeAreKidlit Collective, and Black Cotton Reviewers. Edith has served on selection committees for the YALSA Printz Award, ALSC Sibert Informational Text Award, ALAN Walden Book Award, the Walter Award, ALSC Legacy Award, and ALAN Nielsen Donelson Award. She is currently a member of ALA, BCALA, NCTE NCTE/ALAN, REFORMA, YALSA and ALSC. Edith has blogged to promote literacy and social justice in young adult literature at Cotton Quilt Edi since 2006. She is a mother, grandmother, gardener and quilter.
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