Example Annual Letter: Sarah Chen

This is a fictional example of a good annual letter that follows Slowpost's principles.

After years of talking about it, I finally started pottery classes in March. Turns out I'm terrible at centering clay, but I love it anyway. There's something meditative about working with your hands after spending all day staring at screens. If anyone in the Portland area wants to join me for a weekend class, I'd love the company.

Work-wise, I left Google in June to join a climate tech startup called Terravolt. We're working on grid-scale battery storage—it's a steep learning curve coming from consumer products, but I'm energized by feeling like the work might actually matter for my kids' future.

Speaking of kids: Mia (11) has become obsessed with marine biology. Our house is now full of library books about octopuses and she's convinced us to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium three times this year. Leo (8) discovered Dungeons & Dragons through an after-school program and now runs weekend campaigns for neighborhood kids in our basement. I have no idea what's happening down there but they seem happy.

Books I loved this year: "The Overstory" by Richard Powers made me look at trees completely differently, and "How to Do Nothing" by Jenny Odell has been rattling around in my brain for months. I've also been reading a lot of climate fiction—if anyone has recommendations I'd love to hear them.

My mom moved into an assisted living facility in April after her Alzheimer's progressed to where she couldn't live alone safely. It's been hard watching her decline, but the facility is good and she seems content. I'm trying to visit every weekend.

We moved from Mountain View to Portland in August—our new address is 847 SE Yamhill St, Portland, OR 97214. Partly for my new job, partly because we wanted our kids to grow up somewhere they could actually afford to live as adults. We're still getting to know the city but so far we love it. If you're ever in town, please let us know.

I've been thinking a lot about how to balance optimism about technology with realism about its problems. Working in tech for 15 years has given me both appreciation for what's possible and frustration with what gets prioritized. Still figuring that one out.

Looking forward to hearing what you've been up to.

— Sarah