New Year's Day is my favorite holiday; I love the idea of a fresh start, or this significant moment to acknowledge the growth of myself and of the world. I loved January 1st of 2018, a day spent listening to jazz standards in Lulu’s sunroom and going to see Ladybird in theatres for the 6th time. I loved January 1st of 2024, a day spent with my head in Erin’s lap, reading a book I love in the backyard while Grace takes a nap upstairs. I loved January 1st of 2022, a day spent picking lemons from my neighbor’s tree and trying to skateboard outside my first house in Los Angeles. I know I will love January 1st 2025 no matter what because it will be a day spent with the love of my life. This is the second New Year’s Day in which I get to choose a book to share with you. Last year, January was the first EVER month of the Ella Luna Book Club, and I chose to read Marigold & Rose by Louise Glück because it’s an adult fairy tale. This year I want to open book club with something of equal tenderness and magic, and there was only one answer: Mary Oliver. 

It’s upsetting to admit that the person to introduce me to the work of Mary Oliver was none other than the girl I lost my virginity to, but lucky for me, when I love an artist as much as I do Mary Oliver, it is impossible for me to associate them with anyone but myself. While I was familiar with her poetry via Blue Iris (gifted to me by said girl for my 18th birthday), I had my come-to-Jesus (or rather, come-to-Mary) with her after my breakup with the girl I was in love with (not to be confused with the girl I lost my virginity to) when I was 19. I picked up Owls & Other Fantasies, I had a spiritual connection to The Kingfisher, specifically the line “I think this is the prettiest world - so long as you don’t mind a little dying, how could there be a day in your whole life that doesn’t have its splash of happiness?” Which is to say, I was not in the best frame of mind, and was desperate for hope, and Mary Oliver was the light at the end of the tunnel.

This year, there is an overwhelming presence of fear and hate in the world, and it’s easy to get drowned in helplessness and hopelessness. Let this poetry collection be a reminder to you of all that is good in the world. And there is SO MUCH good in the world, I see it everyday. I see it in the poetry-reading-turned-proposal in the bookstore I work in. I see it in the smiles of my music students. I see it in the messages I get from people all around the world who like my music. If you know where to look, you will see the good in so many places and so many people. This is the prettiest world. Happy new year my friends! I cannot wait for another year of sharing books & music together.​