Bittersweet Paradox

@bittersweetparadox.substack.com

67 Followers 80 Following

The human side of the @capitalismforgood.bsky.social account & Capitalism for Green (The Refill Shop Podcast) https://www.patreon.com/BittersweetParadox Cheerleader of: community-focused consumerism, eco-conscious efforts, and relatable humanity.

A white background with "Bittersweet" in orange cursive letters, "Paradox" in pink bold letters, "Prompt of the Week" in black bold letters, and "(POTW)" in regular black letters.
An orange background with the following quote in pink letters, "Alright. That's enough. Let's go leave this place better than we found it." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "This isn't school. You don't need to get a good grade." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A white background with "Bittersweet" in orange letters, "Paradox" in pink letters, "Prompt of the Week" in bold black letters, and "(POTW)" in medium black letters.
A golden background with the following quote in pink text, "Journaling doesn't have to look a specific way." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow: "I have to actively practice not judging and editing my own thoughts in a way that arbitrarily produces an unnecessary barrier to the simple accomplishment of journaling." "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A golden background with the following quote in pink, "Even my stream of consciousness is almost always a continuation of considerations that are on double digit iterations at minimum." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "More often than I'd like to admit, my Marco Polos to friends end in 15 seconds of silence and then, 'ok well you just watched my brain fart out... so that's it.'" "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A golden background with the following quote in pink, "Sometimes half-baked ideas are just fine." "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A journal entry in the background with the following text white with a pink background as the overlay, "The recording from today's live Prompt of the Week response is officially up! If you want to participate on your own time, click the link below! I cross-posted it as a bonus podcast episode through Patreon for anyone interested in an audio guided version of this writing prompt. Let me know what you think!"
A white background. "Bittersweet" is in orange letters. "Paradox" is in pink letters. "Prompt of the Week (POTW)" is in black letters.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow in the middle, "Alright. That's enough. Let's go leave this place better than we found it." "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the following quote in pink, "I feel most at home when I'm with my people and my people are all over the place. And sometimes they move." "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A white background with the following text: "Bittersweet Paradox Prompt: Introduce your younger self (you choose the age) to your current day self. Join at Patreon.com/BittersweetParadox"
A white background with "Bittersweet" in yellow letters, "Paradox" in bold pink letters, and "Prompt of the Week (POTW)" in black letters.
A beige background with the following in blue, Hey folks! The July 2026 Community Giveback Partner is Hand2Hand. This means that 10% of all profits from all projects within the CFG universe (Bittersweet Paradox, Capitalism for Good, & Capitalism for Green) will be donated to Hand2Hand."
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "I've learned that I take my home with me no matter where I am." and "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A gold background with the following quote in pink in the middle, "It may seem chaotic, but it feels quieter." and "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in gold letters in the middle, "I don't know that I'II ever really feel like any one place is a true home.'" and "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A golden background with the following quote in pink in the middle, "I've always had a complicated relationship to 'home' and answering the question, 'so where are you from?" "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "I identify with hermit crabs" in the middle and "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A gold background with the follow quote in pink words in the middle, "I'm grateful for quality. time I don't think I would have had if life hadn't forced me to slow down." "The Blog" is in white in the bottom right corner.
A gold background with the following quote in pink in the middle, "Gratitude, grief, pride, and slow acceptance: that's the bittersweet paradox." and "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following in the middle in yellow, "I grieve that loss with tears in my eyes, mixed with the understanding that I wouldn't be who I am without it." "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the following quote in pink letters, "Thank you to the future me that will take this reflection and put it into action as I inevitably start these steps all over again and over again and over again as many times as I'm allowed to." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A smiling redhead in glasses sitting on a screened in porch with a MacBook laptop.
A pink background with the following quote in orange, "In fact, I've been really proud of myself for all the doing that I've been doing. That's a nice feeling." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A woman doing in handstand by a tree with the words, "The Anti-Steps [Patreon logo] Bittersweet Paradox Patreon.com/BittersweetParadox"
A yellow background with the following quote in pink, "The midwesterner in me is still very terrible at saying goodbye or ending things, but I believe it's important to do it awkwardly rather than never at all." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A white background with the following in pink & orange letters: Step 15: move on to the next era. "At some point, l've got to land the plane. The midwesterner in me is still very terrible at saying goodbye or ending things, but I believe it's important to do it| awkwardly rather than never at all."
A beige background with the following in blue letters, "Hey folks! The May 2026 CFG Community Giveback Partner is City of Hope Hospital. This means that 10% of all Patreon membership dollars from all projects within the CFG universe (Bittersweet Paradox, Capitalism for Good, & Capitalism for Green) will be donated to City of Hope Hospital."
A pink background with the following quote in orange, "I soak in all that I can observe and allow it to funnel in an unending stream of volumes entering the library of my brain folds only to be reorganized routinely as makes most sense for the current version of the plan for my life." "The Blog" in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the following quote in pink, "The midwesterner in me is still very terrible at saying goodbye or ending things, but I believe it's important to do it awkwardly rather than never at all." "The Blog" in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "I try to remind myself that goodbyes don’t have to be sad... Walking away doesn’t mean that you’ll never walk back again. Goodbye can just mean goodbye." "The Blog" is in white letters at the bottom right corner.
A white graphic with the following words in pink, "Step 14: Finish what you started." The following quote in orange, "To all the people who’ve crossed my path, I’m so thankful for everything and I owe you as much as I can give back to you."
A photo of the back of a redhead in a black sunhat & black dress walking down the streets of New Orleans with the following words in white at the bottom: "Step 14: Finish what you started. [White Patreon logo] Bittersweet Paradox Patreon.com/BittersweetParadox
A yellow background with the follow quote in pink, "I’m determined to make a positive impact in the world. I’m still chasing being a life long learner." And the words, "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "Once again, my people pulled me into a pathway full of a lifetime of good through all seasons" and the words, "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the following quote in pink, "That's why the best plans are built to adjust and adapt based upon the wild card of the people involved." "The Blog" is in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A white background with the words, "Step 13: Pull the pins out." in pink letters with the following quote in orange underneath: "Once again, my people pulled me into a pathway full of a lifetime of good though all seasons. This is a true theme of life that I'm incredibly grateful for."
The pink heading says, "Reading old journal entries..." With the following quote in orange below it: "I really didn't expect to have such a mind-bending experience going back to read my old journal entries for the Bittersweet Paradox Writing Club entries. Maybe some nostalgia for the good times or re-lived sadness. for the tough times, yes. But it's been truly so much more than that. I notice how much my mind wanders starting with one topic to abruptly jump to another. Lists. So many lists. Some self-fortune telling of hopes and dreams and ponderings of what the efforts of one day may become months and years later. So here's today's advice that you didn't ask for: read your old journal entries"
A pink background with the following quote in yellow letters, "My sell to you, should you happen to be one of those folks uncomfortable in the winter, is to find the good that exists simultaneously. I'll promise to do the same in the summer. Even when I very much don't want to." And the words, "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow letters, "Go ahead and hibernate. I'll take it from here. I'll handle the cheer and the good vibes. And I'll tag you back in for the spring. Deal?" With "The Blog" in white letters in the bottom right corner.
Pink letters that say, "Step 12: Love the current season even if it's not your favorite." and orange letters below that say, "I can be deeply uncomfortable and also incredibly overjoyed at the same time. Even in your least favorite seasons... we can find the good. We can find the light. We can find the joy."
A yellow background with the following quote in pink letters, "So I remind myself that the bully voice inside my head is none of my business." and the words, "The Blog" are in white in the bottom right corner.
A pink background with the following quote in yellow, "My business is using my big fat brain that has thoughts about things and a big fat soul that cares about the other humans around it" and the words, "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the following quote in pink, "...there is still a voice that exists in the back of my head that tells me all the things that are wrong... Today, I kind of think that it's none of my business why it exists, why it's so grumpy, or if it'll ever go away. It is, however, my business to mind my own business." and the words "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A white background with pink letters that say, "Step 11: Stand on the soap box & be proud to do it" and orange letters with the quote, "I have this uncompromising, yet evolving, vision of what is growing here. I'm carefully curating the seeds I'm planting...especially in the early days before they grow into the permaculture of my dreams."
A pink background with the words, "I am learning to use the things that make up who I am as my super powers" in yellow letters and "The Blog" in white letters in the bottom right corner.
A yellow background with the follow words in pink, "There seems to be a trend of realizing that you care less in your 30's which is solidly where I'm sitting these days. And honest, bring it on." with the words, "The Blog" in white in the bottom right corner.
A white background with pink letters that say, "Step 10: Ask people to help me" and orange letters underneath that say "The scary ask wasn't as scary as I had feared because the jump is never really as scary as I think it is."
An ivory background with blue words that say "Hey folks! The April 2026 CFG Community Giveback Partner is the ALS Association. This means that 10% of all Patreon membership dollars from all projects within the CFG universe (Bittersweet Paradox, Capitalism for Good, & Capitalism for Green) will be donated to the ALS Association."