Is Anyone Optimistic?
Notes on movement, meaning, and staying human—when optimism feels out of reach.
We’ve been asking that question a lot lately. And it seems we’re not alone.
The mood in the air feels fractured—more than just uncertain. It’s tense. People are quick to draw lines, name enemies, declare sides. Outrage is ambient. Fatigue is chronic. Even those who try to stay grounded feel like they’re living in reaction mode: absorbing bad news, fielding culture war fallout, trying not to say the “wrong” thing.
It’s no wonder that optimism feels like a stretch.
But maybe the question isn’t whether we’re optimistic.
Maybe it’s whether we’re still participating.
Because part of the philosophy behind Move With Life is the With.
Too often, we live as though life happens at us. Especially now, it’s easy to feel helpless or disconnected—as if what’s happening in the world is too big, too broken, too beyond us to shift.
That’s a reactionary stance. And it creates stress, anxiety, paralysis.
It’s no wonder the wellness industry’s demand for nervous system supplements has exploded (MIJA, we’ll take a bottle of your new Sereno Velo Magnesium Mist, please).
But ‘with’ means something else.
It means we’re here to live in life—not just observe it.
To engage with it.
To recognize that our actions, however small they may feel in the moment, do ripple outward.
And that’s where change begins.
So we’ve been paying attention to the things that bring us back—not into optimism exactly, but into agency. Into connection. Into movement.
Here’s what’s been helping.
1. Volunteer with your community—where you are
This isn’t about some lofty mission. It’s about starting where you live. Help out at your neighborhood public school when education funding gets slashed. Show up at your community kitchen as aid programs shrink. Foster a cat or dog from your local shelter. Support a local neighborhood restaurant over a venture-backed chain restaurant. These aren’t grand gestures. But they’re real. They’re immediate. And they remind you that your energy can do something.
2. Walk clubs, shared time, human connection
The U.S. lifestyle is uniquely individualistic—and it’s made us collectively miserable. We’ve outsourced community to content and replaced dialogue with commentary. Walk clubs push back. Whether it’s with friends, neighbors, or people you just met through an interest or class, these shared walks foster real-life bonding. And they remind us: whatever future we want, it’s going to take all of us to build it—together.
3. Move in the morning—but don’t measure it
No tracking, no gamification, no data. Just freedom of movement. Walk barefoot in the yard. Stretch with music. Dance in your kitchen. Soak in the morning light. There’s value in simply moving—not to “improve,” but to express, to ground, to be present, and to remember this is your body, not a performance.
4. Reading fiction again
Fiction doesn’t necessarily offer answers. It offers interiority. Empathy. Dimensionality. It reminds us that people are more than hot takes or headlines.
Lately, we’ve loved:
The Ministry for the Future – Kim Stanley Robinson
The Idiot – Elif Batuman
August Blue – Deborah Levy
5. Making a drink you care about
Coffee is a daily necessity for many. Adding MIJA Galaxy Cloud Creamer turned it into something more, a self-care ritual: a soft, grounding, plant-based functional blend with L-Theanine and Coconut MCTs that replenishes and nourishes with warmth. And warmth is a radical offering in a culture built on sharpness and performance.
6. The group chats that carry community
They’re not always active. But they’re community. A check-in. A “thinking of you.” A photo from someone’s Tuesday morning. These spaces are real even when they’re quiet or the people distant. They remind you that you’re not alone.
7. A mask that slows things down
de Mamiel’s Restorative Cleansing Balm is gentle enough to use daily, but we treat it like an indulgent ritual. Luxuriously thick and rich, and infused with soothing herbs: Apply, breathe, be still. Even 10 minutes of stillness can disrupt the spiral of rushing and scrolling. Especially when it’s paired with touch, scent, and your own quiet.
8. A face oil for the shift in season
Gentlerist Modern Alchemist isn’t just skincare. It’s comfort. Rich, plush, and golden—this oil meets the skin where it is and holds it there. The first time the air gets a little colder, this is nourishing face oil what we reach for. It makes you feel safe in your own skin.
9. Something golden in the afternoon
Golde’s Turmeric Latte is an end-of-day permission slip. Spiced, soothing, anti-inflammatory, caffeine-free—it’s the opposite of productivity drinks. It says: you can stop now. You did enough. And sometimes that message alone is healing.
10. The real sweater
The Row’s Leilani, or a perfect oversized G. Label cashmere crewneck. Not fussy. Not overtly trendy. Just real—substantial, soft, steady. The kind of generational sweater you wear at home, out into the wind, or under the weight of the world. A reminder that comfort is allowed. That you deserve to feel held, too.
We’re not saying any of this fixes what’s broken.
But it reminds us we’re here. That how we show up matters, and the little bits of comfort and self-care we carve out for ourselves can be where optimism resides.
To live with life is to remember:
We are not just witnesses.
We are participants.
And sometimes the smallest actions are the first shift in a bigger tide.
That, to us, is where hope lives now.
Not in the feeling—but in the doing.
– Move With Life