To hold joy in your hand means to honor sadness in your heart, for the two are inextricable. This sentiment is one that many of us will recognize after a prolonged period of chaos and transformation. But for poet and author Ross Gay, studying these modes has paved the way for art that will stand the test of time. Enter Inciting Joy, Ross's latest essay collection, which “considers the joy we incite when we care for each other, especially during life's inevitable hardships.”
Through lenses like gardening and grief, Ross charts a loving exploration into what it means to connect in a world that challenges our time, attention, and hope. In this interview, Ross shared more about writing and re-encountering his life, the joys and lessons of aging, and the importance of change and curiosity. This episode also opens with a story from Caro, a multidisciplinary craft artist based in Los Angeles, California.
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Episode Transcript: https://slowstoriespodcast.com/ross-gay
Learn more about Ross's work: https://www.rossgay.net/
Purchase Ross's books: https://bookshop.org/contributors/ross-gay
Learn more about Caro's work: http://carolinerosoff.com/
Follow Caro: https://www.instagram.com/carolinerosoff
Brandon Stosuy and Rose Lazar — "Crying is a cool thing."
Mason Spector — "I find a lot of value in the sadness."
Chelsea Hodson — ”I’m genuinely excited about creating things.”
Katherine May — ”It’s okay to get on with the business of living.”
Tembe Denton-Hurst — ”Growing isn’t always in the big moments.”
Allie Rowbottom — ”The questions in your writing are the questions in your life.”
Tarajia Morrell — ”We imagine our future, our family, ourselves.”
Ella Frances Sanders — ”People ask questions differently, and they also answer questions differently.”
Naj Austin — ”What does it mean to put ourselves on a platform that requires less of us?”
Kayla Maiuri — ”Fiction teaches us so much about reality.”
Jon Staff — ”Our words matter, and our lack of words matter.”
Lisa Taddeo — ”I’ve been there, and you’re not alone.”
Ashley Merrill — ”Design is in service of your rest.”
Coco Mellors — ”If you create something and no one sees it, does it count? Yes.”
Hannah Traore — ”The context is always important.”
Laura Cramer and Starr Hout — ”We’re so capable of realizing dreams.”
Katie Kitamura — ”There’s also incredible power in grief.”
Grace Miceli — ”Slowing down is about trusting myself more.”
Matthew Herman — ”I hope we’re all realizing that we can live by our own rules.”
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