Welcome to Joy Ride, a monthly dose of joy, good things, creativity prompts, and gratitude by writer Jennifer Chen. If you like it, please share this newsletter with someone who might like it too.
Your Pep Talk 🛒
I’m writing this newsletter from a Holiday Inn Express in New Jersey. I’m visiting a long-time friend in my old hometown. Today, we walked a trail and saw deer, tiny baby frogs, a snake (!), and the bones of a raccoon. On my drive back to this hotel, I was happy to discover that the Super Food Town still exists.
My ahma (Taiwanese for grandmother) used to walk every day to Super Food Town for groceries. It was a good 1.2 miles each way. When I got my driver’s license, I offered to drive her, but she insisted. She liked to walk.
My ahma passed away before my twins were born. When I was pregnant, I would get sad, thinking that they’d never meet her. How she would’ve loved them! While pregnant, I had a dream I saw her in my childhood home. I told her that I was pregnant with twins. She said, “I know.” I woke up, feeling at peace.
I share this because seeing that grocery store made me smile. It made me feel like for a moment, my ahma was still with me, in her little white hat and white sneakers, all four-feet 10-inches of her.
It’s the tiny moments that matter, that remind me that there is grace and beauty even in the seemingly small—like a Super Food Town that most people drive by every day.
I hope today you come across something small yet significant. Take a moment to appreciate it. Let it occupy space within you to remind you that you are loved, you are seen, and you deserve to feel at peace.
My Latest News 💝
My publisher is sending me advanced reader copies of Hangry Hearts (officially out March 18, 2025). Stay tuned for a giveaway in next month’s newsletter!
Check Out This... ✨
TV SHOW: Only Murders in the Building (Hulu). Season four of this wonderful show is out now. I absolutely love the core cast and the guest stars. For mystery fans, this show is a must-see if you haven’t already begun.
MOVIE: Jurassic Park and Jurassic World. These two movies aren’t new, but my family and I rewatched both of these over the Labor Day weekend and loved it. I love this franchise and can’t wait for the next one in 2025.
BOOK: The Moth Presents: A Point of Beauty: True Stories of Holding On and Letting Go! My friend Andrea Collier has a beautiful essay in this nonfiction collection. I’ve always loved The Moth podcast so getting to read each of these stories is a true delight.
ORGANIZATION: I’m part of Authors Against Book Bans in California and wanted to highlight the Texas Freedom to Read Project as a place to lend financial support against the growing book bans in that state.
I'm Grateful For... 👰🏻♀️
Tiny baby frogs. My friend Meghan and I spotted several tiny baby frogs when we went on a nature walk. They were on logs, rocks, on the edge of a pond. Just chilling out.
And my wedding anniversary! Sixteen years ago, I married my best friend (hi, Brendan!) and celebrated with family and friends. If there’s any day I could live all over again, it would September 20, 2008. Grateful to have a partner who is there through thick and thin, who is a wonderful dad, and a talented writer.
Happy anniversary!