human x nature [vol 1]—Haley E.D. Houseman & Missy J. Kennedy

three black books with leaves that have eyes outlined in white patterned on it and a pair of hands. In the center of the top book there's a yellow circle with "hxn" and below that a yellow circle with a white circle inside. The background is bright green

Description from website: HUMANxNATURE is an anthology of writers reaching out from beyond the confines of their disciplines to engage the natural world. This anthology of essays is a recognition of the ways the world shapes us—and how increasingly, we leave our own inescapable print on the world. As our relationship to the nature world changes, we ask writers to explore what nature gives to us, and what we might owe in return.

tl;dr

A collection of beautifully written essays and interviews that made me want to go places I really never wanted to go.

working title

how the hell does Missy find such incredible things to work on???

moisturize summarize me

This doesn’t have a lot in the way of summary—the essays are all standalone and frequently delightful—and the interviews are interesting and lovely.

“Megaflora”—Claire Comstock-Gay
“A Guide to Delos”—Lakshmi Ramgopal
“More than Surface”—Missy J. Kennedy
“By Any Other Name”—Alejandra Oliva
“The Archives Need to Breathe”—Chanelle Adams
Purbita Saha interview
Amy Brady interview

getting down to business to [delve surprisingly deeply into your connection with nature, although with the title I literally should not have been surprised]

So I bought a copy of this zine because I’m friends with Missy, so I’m not unbiased, but holy shit is this a wonderful little collection of heartfelt works.

Honestly, it’s got gems like

A changed planet is not just coming—it is already here. It’s time for us to invite nature into ourselves, to know the consequences of our hunger.
Introduction, Haley E.D. Houseman

And that’s just the introduction. And then

Maybe at the very hint of our presence, sap moves through [the trees’] bodies carrying pleasure and fear. Maybe, underground, their roots sense our footsteps, and they feel fear at the destruction our movements portend. Or else maybe they look down on us through their glittering leaves and experience a moment of wordless pity for our young, frenetic foolishness.
Megaflora, Claire Comstock-Gay

And this

Recently, climate change scientists have identified a new phenomenon of “solastalgia,” the anxiety and pain that comes from environmental climate change—more specifically, a change to one’s familiar environment.
By Any Other Name, Alejandra Oliva

Seriously, fam. It’ll be tough to get your hands on this, because they’ve stopped printing, but if you ever run into it. Grab it.