Don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Munther Isaac! Mary Oliver! Fred Joseph! Cole Arthur Riley!
If you love Let’s Give A Damn and want to see us continue to grow, please scroll all the way to the bottom for a few ways you can help. Thanks. ❤️
Hello Beloved,
It’s Monday! How are you doing today? I’m sending each one of you love, peace, hugs, and all the good shit one needs to continue giving a damn in this crazy world of ours.
Before we get to the latest podcast and some other links, let’s talk about Mary Oliver for a minute. I love Mary Oliver. Like, I really fucking love her. Mary’s words and wisdom and heart have impacted my life and work on an especially deep level.
As I process loads of terrible news from last week alone, one of her poems came to mind and has been helping continue to show up, say the things, and do the work.
DON’T HESITATE
If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy,
don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty
of lives and whole towns destroyed or about
to be. We are not wise, and not very often
kind. And much can never be redeemed.
Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this
is its way of fighting back, that sometimes
something happens better than all the riches
or power in the world. It could be anything,
but very likely you notice it in the instant
when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the
case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid
of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.
Wow. Wow! Wow. I could talk about this poem for days. There’s so much in there. But, for now, I want to focus on the first two lines.
Over the past 13 months, Israel has murdered 44,000 Palestinians, injured 105,000 Palestinians, and displaced millions of Palestinians in Gaza.
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
More than 100 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza over the last 48 hours. More than 30 Lebanese have been killed by Israeli attacks in Beirut over the last 48 hours.
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Trump continues to assemble a cabinet full of billionaires, serial cheaters, liars, sex traffickers, and wildly unqualified buffoons.
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Every single day around the world, 25,000 people, including 10,000 children, die from hunger and other hunger-related causes.
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Last week, actual Nazis marched through the streets of Columbus, Ohio.
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Also last week, my nonbinary friend, Jeffrey Marsh, received a comment on one of their posts that said,” Can’t wait til Trump rounds you up in camps.”
But if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Listen, I don’t know much. But I do know this. If we don’t take care of ourselves, if we don’t care of each other, if we don’t find moments of joy and hope and healing, we’re done for. Finished. Or as my pre-teen children would say, “We’re cooked.”
But I don’t want to be finished. I’m more ready than I’ve ever been to fuck shit up…for good. So, my challenge to you is simple — if you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.
Moving on. Here are a few things I think you should read, watch, listen to, and consider as we begin this brand new week:
🎧 LISTEN / WATCH
Don’t miss the latest Let’s Give A Damn podcast conversation!
Munther Isaac is a Palestinian Christian pastor and theologian. He now pastors the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem and the Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour. He is also the academic dean of Bethlehem Bible College, and is the director of the highly acclaimed and influential Christ at the Checkpoint conferences.
He speaks locally and internationally and has published numerous articles on issues related to the theology of the land, Palestinian Christians and Palestinian theology, holistic mission and reconciliation. He is the author of The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Christian Narrative of Lament and Hope and the forthcoming Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza which will release in March of 2025.
During our conversation, we discuss his childhood and family, why he chose pastoring over engineering, how they get through each and every horrific day in Palestine, what Americans should be doing right now to continue fighting for a Free Palestine, and so much more.
✅ Follow Munther on Instagram and Twitter.
✅ Preorder his new book coming out in March.
✅ Last but not least, Click here to listen to our conversation on Apple Podcasts or click below to watch it on YouTube.
Oh, before we move on, here is the first clip we released of our conversation. It’s so good! Watch, like, and share.
🗞️ READ
A few days ago, my good friend and hero, Fred Joseph, wrote about Trump’s visit to the White House, forced civility, righteous outrage, and more.
“The path forward cannot be paved with decorum and civility. Political theater and symbolic gestures will not protect those most vulnerable to Trump’s policies and ideology. Instead, we must ask: how can we form resistance—political, economic, physical, emotional, and spiritual—that will not only endure but also push back against the tide of injustice? This has always been the only way America has inched, however painfully, toward progress. Resistance, not appeasement, is the lifeblood of any movement seeking liberation.”
Here’s the full post on Fred’s Substack. While you’re there, subscribe. You’ll want to read everything Fred writes.
📺 WATCH
CBS Sunday Morning interviewed 10-year-old Palestinian chef, Renad, and another Palestinian chef, Hamada Shaqoura, about life in Gaza and how they’re using food to bring hope and life to their communities. Prepare to meet two truly remarkable humans.
🧠 PONDER
“Never trust institutions or nations to keep the pulse on morality. Soul is in the people. Our collective conscience must be louder than the delusion of their heroism.” — Cole Arthur Riley
👋🏽 GOODBYE!
That’s it for this week, Thank you for reading. I'm truly grateful. Consider forward this email to a friend? Or send them this link so they can sign up. And you can always email me about anything. I’ll be back next week with good news and steps we can take together to build intentional community and to make our world a much better place. We have a lot of work to do. Love y'all.
Keep giving a damn,
NICK LAPARRA
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