The world is out to welcome you.

This is a guiding sentiment for my work here and it comes from something that was said to me as a child. When I was in moments of distress I was told: “The world is not out to get you!” As though that would make it better. As though that was even my fear.

And it was very odd indeed since growing up in fundamentalist evangelical churches the message seemed to be that the world was in fact after out to get me. It was out to tempt me, mislead me, pull me into sin and destruction. There were threats around every corner. If you hear that enough times—and your religion also reinforces the idea that the world is evil—you start to believe it, and never even notice the amount of discord and disconnection it brings.

Until I did see it and I didn’t believe it any more. And finally things started to make sense.

There is abundance and there is work to be done. We will need wonder, joy, compassion, resolve, curiosity, humility and love to do it. Here, I want to practice those things.

Practically speaking, what is happening here?

I started this Substack in the winter of 2023 under the name Peace of the Whole. In the fall of 2024 it had a rebirth as Spiral Bound.

I would love for this to be a conversation with you, dear reader. Please, if you have something to share, join in!

The writer:

I’m Ema. The path that’s led me here has be winding and so far includes: a degree in anthropology, small farms, libraries, botanical dyeing, and care work. I live on the stolen homelands of the Wabanaki in Maine with my partner and twin cats.

You can reach me at: ema@sunshinehouse.xyz.