Dear Reader,

A few weeks ago, just hours after leaving my hometown, my dad called me with a lump in his throat. His companion of twelve years, Emmy, a beloved and yappy little dog our neighbor found running on the side of the highway, was making her way toward death in a sudden and unexpected way. I burst into tears, which as him and I are known to do, made him understand the reality of the situation and he too began to cry.

Later that evening Emmy would peacefully pass away on the living room floor, a place she loved to lay dearly. It shocked our family and yet also brought us together in sharing memories of her with Ethel, our precious dog whose life overlapped, her time with June who as a baby was smaller than her, and beautiful pictures of us all together. Emmy walked my dad through divorce, open heart surgery, Covid, and more.

June watched me unable to sleep that night tossing and turning and crying, and the entire next day she slept in bed. Didn’t get up except to get her dinner. To say a dog knows is an understatement.

When I opened the zoom room of Flexible Office the next day I opened my mouth to greet everyone normally and was flooded with tears. My students and co-horts are used to me crying at this point, but it never ceases to shake me a bit.

On the couch a few days ago I read some of Ilhan Omar’s writing and updates about what’s happening in Minneapolis. I tried reading it to Katy and just wept. Young Liam Ramos taken from kindergarten, hundreds of protestors kicked and pistol whipped and pepper sprayed, still reeling from our now beloved ancestor Renee Good’s murder.

Something about Emmy’s death softened me, reminded me of the swiftness in which we can be here and then not.

Moments before logging on to teach on Saturday, news came flooding in about ICE executing Alex Pretti, in broad daylight, while he attempted to protect someone else against ICE’s incessant violence. As stories swim in about Alex it seems that is who he was, a protector, a witness, a friend. Something about both Alex and Renee being my same age, a young 37, makes it feel even more tender.

I began to weep again, feeling that weeping is one of my only modes the last few weeks. As I dried my tears I opened the zoom room and greeted everyone with my tender face. I do my best in teaching to name what is happening, and in that room and here — I send my love to everyone in Minneapolis, you are treasured as you navigate this horrific time.

By day two of class I felt like we got our flow a little bit, less in the shock and more in the curiosity. We dreamt of using our homes as public places of learning. We visioned community billboards and analog ways of connecting. We wove our values of freedom, redistribution, and liberation into the work we do — no more business as usual.

As death surrounds I try to remember my life, how precious it is to even have one. This addict is on borrowed time and to even breathe today is a miracle.

Last night I couldn’t sleep while I invented a new project that’s been on the tip of my tongue for weeks. I felt grateful for the insomnia, a sign of life.

This week I will be finishing writing, printing, folding, and packing the February edition of PROMPTS, my analog newsletter. You can subscribe by January 31 to get your copy monthly. Ships internationally.

Then next week directly after I finish writing my weekly newsletter I will go under the knife for top surgery. You may recall a few years ago I got a radical reduction and let’s just say it simply wasn’t radical enough. Boobs be gone. Send all well wishes on February 2 at 11am EST.

I’ll be writing more about this decision and embodied process for paid subscribers of this newsletter on Thursday.

I ask where do we go from here? Where do we go to stay in the grief, to move toward the hope, to stay with the hopelessness? Today I’m staying in gratitude, staying in my lane, staying with the people in the turmoil. May you be ultimately blessed today. I adore you.

→ This link has just about every fund to redistribute to in Minneapolis/Minnesota. In times of overwhelm I find it helpful to pick a theme or topic you’re particularly devoted to, pick that one, give what you can, and share it widely. Today I am giving to Underdog Rescue in honor of Emmy — they are providing free pet food to people who are afraid to leave their homes.

→ Alex Pretti’s family is a beneficiary of this GoFundme which has raised over $1mil.

I made a survey so that I know what you like. Consider filling this one out about upcoming classes and offerings 

→ A Mutual Aid Fundraiser + Quilt Raffle for the Al-Nabih Family in Gaza open through 2/1

→ For some cute news, I was on TV ;) Watch me be cheesy and not know where to look on Your California Life

→ In an effort to learn more about my money habits I joined Rachel Duncan’s The Money Reset which starts next week. You may have heard her on Off The Grid or listened to her podcast, she’s an amazing Financial Therapist :)

→ My small business peer support circle FIELDWORK is now open for registration and we start Wednesday February 11. You can book a free call to see if it’s a good fit.

Artists, consultants, small biz owners ~ Want your website to function better or simply be more YOU? Start the year w/a website audit. $30 off w/ YES30

May 2026 plans? A small, founder-led Spanish Language & Culture Retreat in Barcelona. Sobremesa.Institute is opening a few spots. Just saying ♡

Need help with research? Have any boring tasks you need to get off your plate? I’m your person! Check out my Virtual Assistance services ♡

February asks too much. Answer softly: a free 19-day anti-hustle creativity challenge with daily oracle cards in your inbox and optional quiet Zooms.

Want analog art that you can hold in your hands? Join the Snail Mail Art Club and get original Chinese calligraphy in your mailbox delivered monthly.

Want to book a classified ad for next week? Read all about it here

Subscribe now

→ info@codycookparrott.com
→ Pre-Order The Practice of Attention and get The Attention Audit Workbook and seven day No Signal : Digital Detox email course
→ www.codycookparrott.com
→ Follow Along on Are.na

Consider becoming a paid subscriber of this newsletter if you love it. A portion of this month’s paid subscriptions goes to this go fund me for a family in LA where the dad was detained in an ICE raid.

♡  And lastly, RIP Emmy 2014-2026 ♡