Attention, generosity and what we do.

A mug filled with pens and pencils, and a feather.

Hello Sweet Community!

I found this quote by Simone Weil the other day: Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.

I thought yes. Thank you.

I’ve been trying to put my finger on the essence of Firefly. What IS it that we do, when everything else is pulled away? What’s the white heat at the base of the flame?

I think this may be it — attention.

• We want to create groups that pay attention to each other in ways humans often forget.

• We want to create spaces where writing can let us pay attention to ourselves, especially in our quietest, most tentative places.

• We want to create a community that invites us to receive that attention, to grow with it, and to let our voices root down and reach up in that nourishment.

I tell you this just to remind you, right now, that your attention is like the sun — it lets things grow. You decide where to shine that light. You decide what to tune out and turn up. You decide what to turn your gaze on. (And for the record, it’s totally cool with me if your attention is going towards Netflix or online shopping right now. This is not about judgment, it’s about choice.)

If you’re curious about Simone Weil, she was a French writer, anarchist, mystic. Albert Camus called her, "The only great spirit of our times.” She passed away far too early. Her life warrants a lot of attention.

Here’s to all the things that will grow in the light of your attention.

Heart & more heart,