Let's Gather, Renaissance Women
Essays, recommendations, discussion points & fun facts!
More than two decades ago, I spent a significant amount of time hovering over a book titled (something along the lines of) 50 Best Jobs For Future You! This book was for young adults, and it contained explanations of paths that your life could possibly, maybe take. While this book could easily be considered an early indoctrination of "dreaming of labour," on the other hand, it proposed more possibilities of what a life could (potentially) look like than a seven-year-old could on her own conceive. Despite not remembering the exact title, I recall possessing this book distinctly because I dog-eared approximately 42 out of the 50 options. Everything seemed fascinating.
Why wouldn't you want to be a biologist, chef, lawyer, and documentary photographer all in the same life?
Twenty-two years later, the impulse has yet to dissipate, with my intrigue about the world only continuing to grow. What has been revised is the belief that you must pick one speciality and think of only that for the rest of your existence. This isn't to say that expertise isn't something to be valued and honoured (in 2022, that seems paramount to make clear). However, it is to say that our work shouldn't be our sole interest, our hobbies aren't required to remain the same year after year, and our curiosity about people, things, systems, and matter can be as passionate as when we were in single digits.
The term "Renaissance Man" has been in the lexicon since the 14th century when Europe (led by Italy) decided it was about time to come out of the Dark Ages and experience a "rebirth" or, as the French call it, a "renaissance." It had a lot to do with art & culture, history & philosophy, creativity & learning, and some things that may fall into the "finer things in life" category. A Renaissance Man was one who took a profound interest in those things.
Women were never extended an invitation to be a part of this club. (Presumably, this isn't remotely shocking to you, Dear Reader. Many centuries later, we are merely hanging on by a thread of being classified as human beings with rights.) Yet, it has always struck me as unfortunate that we haven't grabbed the term and added our own flair to it. Perhaps, if I were more imaginative, I would conjure up a fresh phrase rather than feeling satisfied with being a copycat. But, in my defence, the expression is pretty and pleasing and has seven centuries of history behind it, so I'm certain that I want to pinch it specifically.
We, Renaissance Women practice cultivating many interests and being open to new ideas in order to deepen our capacity for learning and become more well-rounded. To be interested and interesting. Our interests cross disciplines and break down silos. We aim to stay informed. We understand the importance of constructing a global worldview through literature, film, music, food, and culture. This helps us to build our communities, to broaden and deepen our relationships, to notice similarities and appreciate differences between us and our fellow beings.
None of this is feasible without prioritizing our own mental, physical & emotional wellbeing, meaning we nourish all aspects of our personal development. We care about ourselves, our neighbourhoods, and our planet, so we strive to make choices that help make them all a little bit better - sustainability, slow living, ethical consumption, and lots of love. We learn, we grow, we question, we think, we connect. Our North Star is achieving fulfilment, contentment, and satisfaction in all areas of our lives.
We, Renaissance Women is an attempt to figure out how you and I get there and to celebrate, document, and make sense of the squiggles along the way. There shall be essays, and there shall be interviews. We will share tips and recommendations with each other and explore strategies and tools for being the person we want to be: an individual who spends their brief time on earth in ways that make sense for ourselves and our values.
In addition to this weekly Thursday newsletter ft. a short essay, curated recommendations and any other fun little features I decide to throw in, there will also be a bi-weekly series with a cultural snapshot of each country in the world moving in alphabetical order - the first (Afghanistan) edition is coming next week! That series alone will take me eight years to get through, so we have some time to figure it all out.
At some point I would like to play around with interview podcasts and guest writers. But, for now, we will start with this.
I also want to state that for the month of August all content will be free as I play around with some ideas and get this off the ground. After that, there will be some content that will only be available for paying subscribers. This is because I don’t want to try and sell you things nor have this be funded by affiliate links, sponsors, or anything else like that. I am committed to keeping it 100% reader run.
To finish this first foray off…
While there won't be too many men quoted around these parts, this description of Cleopatra from Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra is something my Mum used to say to me and still remains one of my favourite descriptions of a woman.
Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale
Her infinite variety. Other women cloy
The appetites they feed, but she makes hungry
Where most she satisfies
- (Act II, Scene II)Love,
Jennifer
One) The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak: Turkish-British author Elif Shafak’s latest novel (released last year) moves between England in the 2010s and Cyprus in the early 1970s, when intercommunal violence between the Turkish and Greek communities escalated. In Cyprus, we meet Kostas (Greek and Christian) and Defne (Turkish and Muslim), two teenagers who must keep their love a secret. In England, we meet their daughter Ada (“island” in Turkish), who is struggling to understand her parents and put together the pieces of her familial history. And, of course, we can’t forget the fig-tree narrator. Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction, the book incorporates some of my favourite themes: displacement and home, the intelligence of nature, and the power of storytelling.
“I can tell you one thing about humans: they will react to the disappearance of a species the way they react to everything else - by putting themselves at the centre of the universe.”
Two) Nature Is A Human Right Edited by Eileen Miles: One of the most powerful books I have read (so far) this year, this collection of original essays, interviews, drawings, and poems is a celebration of the Earth and a clear call for the work that needs to be done to save it. I read a lot about nature, development, inequality, and human rights, but this is one of the best books I have read that brings all those topics together. Divided into three sections ("Welfare: Why We Need Nature Around Us," "Injustice: How We're Being Deprived of Nature," and "Change: What We Can All Do"), the collection features a variety of voices, ensuring that any reader will discover new perspectives and potential solutions. I especially loved reading about the impetus for London to become the world’s first “National Park City.” Hoping many more cities follow suit!
“Nature is not an inconvenience or an other; it is not a luxury or a frivolity - nature is a human right.”
Three) The Janes on HBO: Released a couple of weeks before Roe was overturned, The Janes tells the story of the female activists in the pre-Roe v. Wade era who built an underground network to provide low-cost and free illegal abortions to women in Chicago. The group called themselves “Jane” and managed to stay under the radar of the Chicago Mob and Police Department for several years while they provided necessary services to an estimated 11,000 women. It is absolutely devastating to know that we have returned to times when this type of network is once again going to be necessary. Keep the learning going with this interview with the directors of the documentary and Judith Arcana’s (a member of the Jane Collective) list of relevant books, films, and resources.
Inside Istanbul’s underground queer scene. More research shows that what we eat - not how far it traveled to our plate - determines our dietary carbon footprint. The 15-minute Le Voyage dans la Lune (A Trip to the Moon) is a 1902 French adventure film directed by Georges Méliès that is widely regarded as the earliest science fiction film and one of the most influential films in cinema history. Passerby Magazine is one of my favourite things to read on the Internet. The first Tiny Desk Contest winner whose winning song is in Spanish, Alisa Amador is very cool and put on a wonderful show. Colombia’s children are learning how to defend their land and way of life. A very good video explanation of what happened with Sri Lanka’s economy. Pretty fascinated by these French citizens who in 1518 (unfortunately) danced themselves to death.
Fun! Fact! #1: Let’s start with something seemingly basic but that is (not surprisingly) rather complicated…how many countries are there in the world?
Currently, there are officially 195 sovereign states in the world. This total comprises 193 countries that are member states of the United Nations and two countries that are non-member observer states: the Holy See (Vatican) and the State of Palestine.
UN Members: 193
UN Observer States: 2
Total: 195
Additionally, there are eight non-UN states that have recognition by at least one UN member. These controversially-claimed countries are usually labeled on world maps as disputed territories or may not be on the map at all. These eight states with partial recognition are Taiwan, Kosovo, South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Northern Cyprus, Western Sahara's Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics tied to the Russia-Ukraine war.
UN Members: 193
UN Observer States: 2
States With Partial Recognition: 8
Total: 203
Then, there are three "de facto" sovereign states that aren't recognized by any UN members at all, but still operate independently from the countries that claim them. These states are Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Transnistria, and Somaliland.
UN Members: 193
UN Observer States: 2
States With Partial Recognition: 8
Unrecognized de facto Sovereign States: 3
Total: 206
And there are also different numbers for Olympic Nations, FIFA countries eligible for the World Cup, and country codes. You can read more about all of this here.
* If you want to learn more about the countries of the world, stay tuned for the new series starting next week profiling each of them one-by-one!