It’s OK not to be OK

A startling discovery about 2024—this year has 53 Mondays, not the standard 52.

2019: 52 Mondays
2020: 52 Mondays
2021: 52 Mondays
2022: 52 Mondays
2023: 52 Mondays
2024: 53 Mondays
2025: 52 Mondays
2026: 52 Mondays
2027: 52 Mondays
2028: 52 Mondays

This means the ratio of Monday newsletters (41) to weeks in the year (52) is not 40/52 (77%), but 41/52 (78.8%).

I’m not changing the name of the newsletter this year (or in 2029, 2035, 2040, or 2046).

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ION2BOK

A short message this week: “It’s OK not to be OK.”

At (almost) every Saturday service, I hold up a sign with this phrase.

It’s OK not to be OK.

Sometimes, as you can see in this composite image, I amend the “be,” turning it into the word “feel,” making the phrase “It’s OK not to feel OK.”

And it’s true—IT’S OK NOT TO BE OK. IT’S OK NOT TO FEEL OK.

It’s an important message.

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I Am Not Okay Today
by Jarod K. Anderson

I am not okay today.
So, in the absence of okay,
what else can I be?

I can be gentle.
I can be unashamed.
I can turn my pain into connection.
I can be a student of stillness.
I can be awake to nature.
I can sharpen my empathy
against the stone of my discomfort.

I am not okay today,
but I am many worthy
Things.

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Let’s keep this in mind.

We don’t have to shine the brightest at all times.

We can be OK even when we are not OK.

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💙rB

Slow Down, Good Sam

May 27, 2026

In 1973, researchers John Darley and Daniel Batson at Princeton University conducted a study based on the biblical story of “The Good Samaritan.” ✧✧✧ A little background on the story: Samaritans, in the biblical world, were not considered “good.” The phrase “Good Samaritan” would have sounded like a political oxymoron—something like “compassionate MAGA” or “patriotic liberal.” In the story, a

A Letter

May 4, 2026

Beloved, Let me tell you something I often say when counseling those mourning the loss of a loved one. “Unless you are a rabbi or minister, you shouldn’t be good at writing eulogies.” And then I add: “Let me give you a pro tip—think about writing a letter. Because you know how to write a letter and this way you

With Bread