Monday Matter: Apocalyptic therapy, the heart of Europe and climate trauma
Your weekly Foreign Bodies roundup
Every Monday, we send subscribers and gift recipients of immigrant mental health and storytelling newsletter Foreign Bodies stories we recently inhaled and adored. This is also a chance to do some housekeeping and give shout-outs and all that jazz. Roundups are usually written by Fiza and edited by Farah.
First things first
A little housekeeping
A huge congratulations to Farah!
Foreign Bodies copyeditor Farah just graduated with her Master of Science in Mental Health from the University of Edinburgh and I couldn’t be more proud. Congratulations, Farah! We *love* to see it.
A musical start to your Mondays 🎧
One international song to groove to, cry to, drive to and share
This week’s pick, which my brother included in his annual birthday mixtape to me, is Brazilian singer Elza da Conceição Soares, known professionally as Elza Soares. I fell in love with Soares’ 2015 studio album, “A Mulher do Fim do Mundo,” which translates to “The Woman of the End of the World” from Portuguese and quickly went down a rabbit hole to learn more about her. From this Guardian profile: “Ever the optimist, Elza is inclined to think things will change for the better, in spite of everything she has been through – later in life, she’d go on to lose another son, a child she had from her marriage to football star Mané Garrincha. When I ask what’s kept her going all these years, creatively and personally, she doesn’t miss a beat: ‘Other people inspire me.’ She tells me singing makes her feel ‘alive, because it means I get to spread joy. Singing motivates me. It feels like giving birth; like sharing a piece of your happiness, of your voice. I sing for everyone.’”
Resource(s) of the week
Something helpful and interesting and cool (*storytelling opportunity)
Global Mental Health: Agents of Change: A 3-day virtual conference from the University of Michigan’s Generation Mental Health Campus Chapter focused on discussing mental health among immigrants and refugees, as well as incarcerated individuals, mothers, and LGBTQ+ communities. Tickets for the Nov. 19-21 event cost between $5-$20. More information here.
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