Tracy K. Smith's Hopes For 2026, And Yours

Summary

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Podcast Summary: "Tracy K. Smith's Hopes For 2026, And Yours"

Podcast: All Of It (WNYC)
Host: Alison Stewart
Date: January 1, 2026
Guest: Tracy K. Smith (Pulitzer Prize winner, former U.S. Poet Laureate)
Special Episode Format: Community call-in with hopes for the new year

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Episode Overview

This New Year’s Day special explores personal and cultural hopes for 2026. Host Alison Stewart welcomes acclaimed poet Tracy K. Smith, who reads poetry, discusses the healing power of poetry in turbulent times, and shares her own aspirations. The episode then opens up to listener calls, capturing a mosaic of wishes, reflections, and goals for the new year from across the community. The episode is both a celebration of creative thought and a testament to collective aspiration.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Setting the Tone: Poetry as a Starting Place (00:27–13:17)

• Tracy K. Smith reads “The Crystal Gazer” by Sara Teasdale (01:43).
• Reason for Poem: Chosen for its resonance with feelings of fragmentation and the resolve to “gather myself into myself again.”
• Interpretation:
  • Tracy: “The speaker of this poem resolves to bring herself back together into a state of coherence, authority, and to claim a kind of perspective on time... it’s such a powerful wish with which to begin the year.” (02:38)
• Symbolism of the Sybil: The act of gazing as claiming agency and perspective, especially as a woman.
• Distinctive Thought: Reclaiming “poise and power that is often denied women in the collective imagination.” (04:25)

2. The Healing Power of Poetry (04:25–06:01)

• Tracy’s New Book: Fearless: Poetry in Perilous Times
  • NYT review: “Can Poetry Heal the Divided Nation?” Alison asks Tracy to make the case.
  • Tracy’s Response:
    • Poems teach us to listen earnestly and generously to others, encouraging encounters with difference and empathy (04:41).
    • Poetry invites us to “turn our attention away from ourselves, our wishes and our obligations.”
    • This practice, she believes, can translate into real-life engagement with others—something urgently needed in today’s social and political environment.

3. Personal Testimony: How Poetry Heals (06:01–07:12)

• Tracy’s Example:
  • Louise Glück’s “The Undertaking,” used during a period of grief (06:08).
  • Memorable moment: “That poem opens with the line, ‘the darkness ends. Imagine in your lifetime.’ …that a poem could invite me to do a mental exercise of imagining that sorrow and weight could lift in the foreseeable future...” (06:08)

4. On Writing and Creativity (07:12–10:23)

• Advice for Aspiring Writers in 2026:
  • Focus on “small steps”—one question, page, or line at a time (07:34).
  • Avoid getting paralyzed by the scope of a “big project.”
• On Her New Projects:
  • Working on a poetry collection, “The Forest,” to be released in 2027, and ongoing prose books.
  • Central theme: Reconciling with violence in the world; considering “counter logics” and letting “lyric imagination” guide over strictly linear logic.
• Divine Feminine vs. God of War:
  • Tracy invokes feminine figures as counter to the cultural archetype of the (male) god of war.

5. Hopes for 2026: Expanding the ‘We’ (10:23–11:39)

• Tracy’s Hope:
  • Challenge oneself to expand “us” and “we” to include people outside one’s usual tribe: “Every time I do that... I try and say, no, no, no. That’s a subset of a larger us and a larger we that is this cacophonous multitude. And it includes people that I don’t agree with and that I feel I don’t understand. And I’m trying to do the work willingly, to say, those are my people too.” (10:30)
• Ultimate Wish:
  • Each person recalibrates their sense of belonging to promote compassion, attention, and introspection.

6. Poetry Closes the Segment (11:39–13:17)

• Tracy Reads “Hymn” (Original poem):
  • Alludes to the earlier Teasdale poem, invoking the Sybil.
  • Themes of interconnection, cyclical journeys, and the nature of creation.
  • “Circle we travel from life to life. Circle of light the candle casts that is not itself the candle.” (12:46)

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Call-In Reflections: Hopes and Intentions for 2026 (14:39–41:51)

Why Open the Phone Lines on New Year’s Day? (14:40)

• Producer Kate Hines: It’s a moment when people “are thinking and taking stock,” plus the inauguration of a new mayor provides a civic backdrop.

Listener Highlights

Listening as Poetry (Peter from Tampa, 17:48)

• Wishes to listen as intently in daily conversation as when hearing poetry:
  • “Why don’t I do that? As if that person talking to me in regular conversation has that much intent… I think it would be a good habit that we don’t be sloppy with our speech, but think of it all as poetic.” (17:48)

Sharing and Creativity (Claire from Brooklyn, 18:58)

• Key Word: Sharing
  • More personal sharing, more curiosity about others’ projects and dreams, “because I want to see everybody shine. And I want to shine, too.” (18:58)
  • Claire is making an email newsletter to connect with friends and spread creative energy.

Environmental and Artistic Activism (Claire from Hartsdale, 20:19)

• Book-to-Film Dream: Her poetic prose work focusing on climate change will be filmed in Costa Rica.
• Emphasizes environmental advocacy and the artistic shaping of social messages.

Preservation and Civic Engagement (George, 21:45)

• Cultural hope: Advocates for historic preservation in NYC, worrying about “affordability” overtaking legacy and preservation concerns.

Solidarity and Public Service (Bob from Brooklyn, 25:22)

• “I hope we will find many, many ways to be in solidarity with the poor and downtrodden, underfed, under housed, unhoused of New York City and the rest of the world.” (25:22)
• Advocates for better role models in leadership.

Reconnecting with Family Across Differences (Joseph from Nolita, 26:16)

• Story: Reached out to a sister after four years of estrangement due to political differences.
• 2026 goal: “Just be kind and have conversations and not get upset.” (26:16)

Childlike Wonder (Mary Grace, 26:59)

• Working with children has inspired her to “return to my childlike wonder,” slow down, and feel more connected.
• Desires to create or work in children’s media.

Education and Moral Character (Linda from Brooklyn, 30:16)

• Wants a shift in public education towards “awareness, self-awareness, belonging, care, compassion, generosity, forgiveness and gratitude” (30:16).

Repairing Parental Relationships (Paul from Brooklyn, 31:13)

• Hopes to reconnect and improve his relationship with his daughter.

Environmental Advocacy and Consumerism (Raul from East Elmhurst, 32:22)

• Wishes more New Yorkers will focus on environmental stewardship: “You don’t have to buy all that. Just recycle, reuse.” (32:22)

Building Self-Esteem, Overcoming Comparison (Susan from Summit, 33:40)

• Goal: Stop comparing herself to others, develop self-acceptance.

Youthful Ambition (Sadie, 35:04)

• 11-year-old caller: Wants to attend art camp, start an Etsy, “and yeah, get money for it.”

Staff and In-Studio Reflections

• Team Resolutions: Hobbies (knitting, sewing, piano), travel, exercising, reading major biographies, and creative projects abound.
• Broadway Wishes: Hopes for original musicals, return of body positivity, another big summer movie moment like “Barbenheimer.”
• Book Anticipations: Upcoming works by Ann Patchett, George Saunders, Tayari Jones, and Emily St. John Mandel.
• Third Space Advocacy:
  • “We need to be in community with each other. We are living in isolation… and experiencing things together in so many ways is more powerful than experiencing them alone.” (40:24)

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Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• Tracy K. Smith on poetry’s power:
  • “My notion is that if we become willing to [listen] more and more with the speaker of a poem on a page, it rubs off on the ways that we deal with other humans in real time. And I think that’s something that we very much need right now.” (05:16)
• On New Year’s aspiration:
  • “Let’s slow down. Let’s come back to the fullness of our true selves and be patient and courageous and generous with ourselves and one another.” (02:57)
• Listener Peter (Tampa):
  • “I think it would be a good habit that we don’t be sloppy with our speech, but think of it all as poetic.” (18:44)
• Listener Joseph reconciling with his sister:
  • “My hopes for this year is to just be kind and have conversations and not get upset about it all.” (26:18)
• Producer Kate Hines on third spaces:
  • “We need to be in community together… experiencing things together in so many ways is more powerful than experiencing them alone.” (40:24)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Opening—Setting the agenda for 2026 & introducing Tracy K. Smith: 00:27
• Reading of “The Crystal Gazer” & interpretation: 01:43–04:25
• Poetry as a tool for healing & empathy: 04:25–06:01
• Personal story on poetry’s impact: 06:01–07:12
• Advice for aspiring writers: 07:12–08:14
• New projects and poetic themes: 08:14–10:23
• Hopes for expanding communal “we”: 10:23–11:39
• Original poem “Hymn”: 11:42–13:05
• Community goals/Listener call-ins: 14:39–41:51
• Notable individual goals and staff reflections: 23:43, 29:10, 33:40

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Tone and Style

The episode is reflective, earnest, at times intimate, and often uplifting—balancing the contemplative energy of poetry with the diverse, sometimes quirky aspirations of New Yorkers and listeners.

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For New Listeners

This special episode encapsulates the values of "All Of It": thoughtful engagement with culture and community, the power of creative expression, and the beauty in shared hopes and honest vulnerability. It’s a snapshot of the city’s collective mood on a landmark day—welcoming a new year, a new administration, and a renewed sense of connection.

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Transcript

[A]

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[A]

This is all of it. I'm Alison Stewart live from the wnyc Studios in Soho on this, the first day of 2026. Happy New Year today. This is a special edition of all of it leading up to WNYC's coverage of the inauguration of New York's new mayor, Zoran Mandani. Brian Le is hosting. We'll have live analysis and reporters on the scenes and we'll take your calls. Live coverage of the mayor's inauguration starts today just before 1pm here on WNYC. Stay with WNYC for special coverage happening in about 40min. But until then, we want to open the phone lines to you, our listeners. What are your hopes for 2026? Personally, what do you want to see? What do you hope to accomplish this year? Culturally, what do you want to see happen? Take a moment to think about those questions and get ready to call in now. To give you a little inspiration, we've invited a great creative thinker to the show, Pulitzer Prize winner and former United States Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith. She's published a new book called Fear Less Poetry and Perilous, and she joins me now. Welcome, Tracy.

[B]

Thank you. Happy New Year.

[A]

Happy New Year to you as well. Will you start us off with a poem?

[B]

Sure. This is a poem by 20th century American poet Sarah Teasdale. I think this poem was first published 100 years ago in 1926, and it's called the Crystal Gazer. I shall gather myself into myself again. I shall take my scattered cells and make them one, fusing them into a polished crystal ball where I can see the moon and the flashing sun. I shall sit like a sybil, hour after hour, intent, watching the future come and the present go and the little shifting pictures of people rushing and restless, self importance to and fro.

[A]

Why did you pick that poem to start 2026?

[B]

This is a poem that speaks to me so powerfully in terms of the feeling of being scattered or shattered into a million pieces, living a life that pulls you in many different directions and where time is something that chases you around. And the speaker of this poem resolves to bring herself back together into a state of coherence, authority, and to claim a kind of perspective on time, on our human you know, dealings. And I feel like it's such a powerful wish with which to begin the year. You know, let's slow down. Let's come back to the fullness of our. Of our true selves and be patient and courageous and generous with ourselves and one another. That's what I hear in this poem.

[A]

Yeah, It's a moment when she can get it together. She gets herself together.

[B]

Get yourself together. Yeah.

[A]

It's interesting. The poem Gazer is spelled G A Z E R.

[B]

Yeah. Well, she's some. I imagine the speaker is, you know, she says, sitting like a sybil, watching the future and the come and the present go. And so I imagine this figure who's saying, I want to sit as if before a crystal ball and gaze into it and discern what is happening and exercise a form of power or control. You know, sybils were these ancient prophets or seers, and they were female figures with the power to explain what was coming, what was on the horizon. And I think there's also a sense of, you know, the desire to reclaim a kind of poise and power that is often, you know, denied women in the collective imagination.

[A]

I want to talk a little bit about your new book, Fear Poetry in Perilous Times. The New York Times said of it, Can Poetry Heal the Divided Nation? Tracy K. Smith makes the case in her new book of criticism. So what's your case?

[B]

My case is that poems are objects that encourage us to listen with earnestness and attention and generosity to the voice and the testimony of stranger. You know, the speaker of a poem, someone who comes up to you and opens up some facet of their experience, some view of the world. And one of the things that happens inevitably, I believe, is that some piece of your own story is illuminated by that exchange. So much in our culture encourages us not to slow down and listen to others, not to give people a sense of, you know, like, priority in our. In our daily comings and goings. Not to turn our attention away from ourselves, our wishes and our obligations. And I think we suffer when that's the stance that we. That we accept and if we let them. Poems can make us feel comfortable, willing and perhaps even grateful for the opportunity to exercise this other form of listening. And my notion is that if we become willing to do that more and more with the speaker of a poem on a page, it rubs off on the ways that we deal with other humans in real time. And I think that's something that we very much need right now.

[A]

How has poetry helped you? Can you think of an Instance, when a poem has been really, really helpful for you.

[B]

Oh, I can think of a lot. But the one that pops into my mind first is a brief poem by the late Louise Glick called the Undertaking. And I turned to it at a moment in my life when I was really struggling with multiple forms of grief, and I just felt the weight of sorrow and loss and hopelessness. And that poem opens with the line, the darkness ends. Imagine in your lifetime. I might have flubbed a little bit because I'm not so great at memorization. But that notion that a poem could invite me to do a mental exercise of imagining that sorrow and weight, emotional weight, could lift in the foreseeable future, it opened a door in my heart, I think, to say, okay, this is heavy and real, but I also believe there's something that sits after this. And sometimes the perspectival shift that a poem invites can really feel life saving.

[A]

My guest is Tracy K. Smith, the poet, the professor. We're talking about 2026, the new year. You're a professor at Harvard, and, you know, many people say, I'm going to write more this year. I want to write more this year. What are some of the things that we should do, those of us who want to be able to write more?

[B]

It helps me not to think about the big project and to think about the small steps. You know, what's the question I want to broach today? What's the one page or the one line that can help me disappear into a kind of exploration and lose track of time and lose track of, you know, the sense of difficulty or pressure? And so, you know, chunking the big project in that way, I think can be really helpful for many of us. It's the mental block of this notion of something that's, you know, impossibly large and impossibly difficult that invites procrastination.

[A]

You're working on a book of poems now of your own?

[B]

I am. I have a book of poems that's mostly done. It's called the Forest, and it'll be coming out next year in 2027. But I'm still hoping to bring in some more poems and see what might come in. And then I have other projects, other books of prose about poetry that I'm gathering the courage to say, I can do this. I can finish these books with the.

[A]

Book that you finish, and you may be working on adding additional poems. Is there a them? Were you struggling with something, or is this just a book of imaginations?

[B]

I think it's both, but there is a Theme, because these poems emerge from, you know, a pretty compressed period of time in 2025, thinking about the violence that we witness and that we in many ways are complicit in. And the notion that all of the desire to arrest war and disregard, oftentimes in my imagination or in my writing, it takes the form of argument. I want to think logically about why this is wrong. But more recently, I've come to the realization that it's not that war is illogical, it is claiming a logic that's moving toward an end that I disagree with. And maybe one way of working upon that conundrum is to let go of linear logic and to let the lyric imagination guide. And what I love about the lyric imagination is that forges counter logics. It operates sometimes in the way that dream operates. It brings different time periods and different events and even different voices together into a space and allows them to exert a kind of clarity or invite forms of revelation. And so that's what this book is doing. It's also inviting a figure thinking of the goddess or, you know, the divine feminine presence as a. As a powerful counterpoint to what I'm thinking about is the God of war, which is a male figure in my imagination and I think in many of our cultural imaginations.

[A]

Tracy, as we finish up, what are your hopes this year? Both personally and professionally or culturally?

[B]

I think they overlap in some ways. One of the mental exercises I've been challenging myself to do is to let or acknowledge when I'm defaulting to a notion of us and we that includes only my tribe and only the people that I respect and agree with. And every time I do that, and I think it's a habit that many of us have, I try and say, no, no, no. That's a subset of a larger us and a larger we that is this cacophonous multitude. And it includes people that I don't agree with and that I feel I don't understand. And I'm trying to do the work willingly, to say, those are my people too. And so what does it mean? What's the work that I. That I have to do? And maybe my wish is that each of us, in our ways, can find time or forms of recalibrating our sense of what we belong to and who we're working with and see where that leads us. I hope it leads us to a. A place that's filled with compassion and attention and maybe even more introspection.

[A]

Can we get you to read one more poem before you go?

[B]

Yeah, I have a new a new poem, one of the poems from the forest. And I'm reading it because it in my own in my own way, I'm calling out toward Teasdale's poem. Maybe you'll hear the reference to the Sybil in this poem. And it's called Hymn H Y M N him sickle reaping the light of stars and needle threading it through a curtain's gauze. Single frond of kelp amid its nation of leaves, rejoicing on the bed of the sea. Simple song repeating from the owl's hollow its question only the soul can answer. Sybil gazing off and in spindle winding fleece into thread. Subtle source water plashing the earth supple, spill and rise, Circle the ripples make circle we travel from life to life. Circle of light the candle casts that is not itself the candle.

[A]

Pulitzer Prize winner and former US Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith. She's published a new book called Fearless Poetry in Perilous Times. Thank you for making the time to be with us today.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

You are listening to a special edition of ALL of it, live from the WNYC studios in soho on this bright and shiny day, this brisk day as well, the first day of 2026. I'm Alison Stewart. This is special coverage leading up to WNYC's coverage of the inauguration of New York's new mayor, Zoran Mamdani. Stay with NWNYC for special coverage happening this hour. But until then, for the next 30 minutes, we are opening the phone lines to you, our listeners. We want to know what are your hopes for 2026 personally? What do you want to see? What do you hope to accomplish this year culturally? What do you want to have happen? Our phone lines are wide open and they are open to you for the next 30 minutes. Our number is 212-433-921-2433. WNYC. You can call in and you can join us on air. The Phone number is 2124-3396-9221-2433. WNYC. Joining me in studio is WNYC senior producer and fill in host Kate Hines. Hi, Kate.

[C]

Hey, Alison.

[A]

So can you tell people why we decided it was important to do a live show on New Year's Day, why we think it was important to open the phone lines?

[C]

Well, we open the phone lines not infrequently on the show. The listeners are a big part of our daily churn. You know, we are we like to be in conversation with you. It's really critical to the show, but especially today on a day when we are inaugurating a new mayor. And as you will hear next hour, Brian Lehrer will be opening the phones for listeners to share their feedback and their emotions and their hopes and dreams for the mayoral administration. It seemed like a moment in which a lot of people are thinking and taking stock of things, and we want to hear what's on your mind.

[A]

2025. Remember her? She was a challenging year for public media. You've worked here for a very long time. What's your hope for public media as we go into 2026?

[C]

You know, I hope that we are able to turn what is a crisis into a moment of opportunity. And that public, both WNYC and, you know, and then the rest of the system writ large, really double down on local coverage. You know, local coverage is the lifeblood of public media. So many people live in media deserts where there is no local newspaper. I want to see local public radio stations being the thing that connects people to their communities and tells them what's going on and also connects people to each other. At our best, we are a town hall of the airwaves, and I want to continue to be that sort of. Personally, my hope for public media is and the podcasting landscape. I love podcasts. I love hearing people in conversation with each other. I want to hear less conversation between two people and more produced radio pieces. I want to hear audio pieces where I hear a range of voices and also something that is like an audio delight. I want to hear audio production. I want to hear engineering.

[A]

And I'm gonna ask you personally. Cause we're gonna call us next. Personally, what do you have on your plate for 2027?

[C]

Well, like producer Jordan Lof, I've gone heavily down the knitting rabbit hole. I went from, like, you know, I took a class in January and it didn't really click. And then I got back. Jordan sort of inspired me to get back into it. And now I speak to you as someone who has, like, sore fingers because calluses. I didn't leave my apartment from Friday until Sunday last weekend. And I churned out two hats and a scarf. Like, I'm a knitting man. Just want to get better and better and improve my skills.

[A]

I spot a knitting club. All of it. Knitting club, happening.

[C]

Well, we have a craft, a crafty slack channel. And I'm trying to start, like, a monthly get together where we all just, like, craft in each other's, you know, personal spaces.

[A]

All right, listeners, what are your hopes for 2026? Personally, what do you want to see? What do you want to accomplish this year, culturally? What do you want to have happen? Our phone lines, they are open. 2124-3396-9221-2433. WNYC. Let's go to the phones. Peter is calling us from Tampa. Hi, Peter.

[D]

Hi. I'm a native of Glenridge, by the way. Listen, here is what I thought when I was listening to your guest who was a poet, that I was listening so intently. And that's what I thought I said. What I'd like to see for the future among for myself is that when I'm in conversation, when I'm listening to people listen as intently as I was listening, as if they're telling me a poem. Because I listen very intently when someone's reciting a poem. Why don't I do that? As if that person talking to me in regular conversation has that much intent. And I could speak that way, too. Like here I'm giving more attention to my speech because I know there's a lot of people listening. I think, you know, I think it would be a good. I think it would be a good habit that we don't be sloppy with our speech, but think of it all as poetic. What do you think?

[A]

I think that is an excellent thing to think about for 2026. Peter, thank you so much for calling and for listening. Let's talk to Claire from Brooklyn. Hi, Claire. Thanks for calling, all of it.

[D]

Hi. Thank you. I want to say second to the listening, I want to be doing a lot more waiting and listening. And also I want to be doing a lot more sharing and like, if that's the single word, I both want to be sharing more from myself, more of the things that I'm making and resonating with. But I also want to see all of the beautiful, incredible projects that everybody is working on because it feels like the more I get to know people and all of my friends are making and dreaming up such incredible projects. And I really want to just, like from a very selfish standpoint, I want them all to share that with me because I want to see everybody shine. And I want to shine, too. So sharing.

[C]

Can I ask you a question, Claire? What are you making and where are you sharing it?

[D]

That's a great question. I am trying to make an email newsletter, which already sounds very silly, but, like, not at all. Just sending it out to my friends and things like that. But I would love to be figuring out more ways to disseminate things and spread them among people.

[C]

So yeah, it's all about connection.

[A]

Thanks for calling. Let's go to another Claire, this one is from Hartsdale. Hi, Claire from Hartsdale. How are you?

[D]

Hi, I'm good. I'm just excited because a book that I wrote in 2004 that I had the dream that it would spread as a play or a film. It's now going to be made into a film in Costa Rica with friends that live there. And it's called the Call of Mother Earth. How a being of light draws forth humanity's response. And I've been just so into the climate issue that is, you know, the environmentally challenged Mother Earth. And it's all in kind of poetic prose, it's all in dialogue already. And so there's a lot of people apparently in Costa Rica that want to be in the cast. And I am excited because I also have a global healing foundation, which is nonprofit people can donate to, including environmentally conscious organizations that could have their names up and sponsors. So I'm looking into that, into the future this year because Mother Earth is calling out for help and I have a trailer. I would love to send it to you. If you have an email address, I could send you the trailer.

[A]

You know what, send it to our Instagram. That's a good place where you can take a look for it. Congratulations on your film as well. Let's talk to George on line one. Hi George, thanks for calling all of it in 2026.

[D]

Happy New Year, Allison. Happy New Year, Kate. In 2026 I plan to continue and hopefully accelerate my various campaigns with great organization to preserve New York's incomparable built heritage. I think it's going to be especially important in 2026 because with the incessant focus on quote unquote affordability, preservation has been left out. And specifically the tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of affordable units that are preserved in historic districts from the Upper west side to Brooklyn. You know, think of all of the walk ups on the Upper west side in Yorkville, the Upper east side. And I have not heard the Mamdani administration talk at all about preservation. I hope that his deputy Mayor Borsag will take this up. And I plan to work with groups, my groups, including the Historic District Council and Friends of the Upper east side in advocating for this. And also with this there was the onslaught of Rebny real Estate board driven legislation that passed in 2025, including City of yes, including significantly the three ballot resolution.

[A]

You know what, I'm going to stop you right there because Brian wants to hear the Rest of this in his next hour.

[C]

Exactly.

[A]

They're talking politics in his next hour. I understand this is politics in the city, but we really appreciate you calling. We're doing a special call out about what you want to see for 2026. What do you hope to accomplish culturally? What do you want to have happen? Our Phone lines are 2124-3396-9221-2433 W NYC. In studio with me now is all of it. Senior producer and fill in. Fill in guest host Kate Hines. We had our team fill this out. Do you want to read Simon's or should I read Simon's?

[C]

You can read.

[A]

I'll read Simon. Simon does a lot of our live events. He does our Broadway on the radio series, and he said personally he's into playing more piano, maybe picking up the clarinet again. Okay, Simon's neighbors, watch out. And it says, using my sewing machine, making at least one clothing gift for a friend or a family member. Make a perfect English muffin. Which is unusual because his father is British.

[C]

I wonder if his idea of an English muffin is what we think of as an English muffin.

[A]

Maybe we need to talk to him about that. Travel somewhere new. When you think about that list, what stands out to you?

[C]

I think the sewing machine really jumps out to me because I feel like I've seen among a bunch of people the idea to create something, this need to get your hands on something and make something. And I know that you feel the sewing machine allure deeply. And for the listeners who don't know, Alison is something of a sewing whiz. Like, Allison is crafting her own clothes. And if you don't get to. If you should be checking out her Instagram, first of all, because she will sometimes post her outfits. But it, I think, like, we just want to make stuff like those. Those of us who are so conscious of, like, living in our phones and, like, being online all the time. It's a nice antidote to that.

[A]

A lot of people on our team put down travel, and we're gonna discuss travel next week on the show. Who are we gonna have on? Is it travel and leisure?

[C]

Give me two minutes and I'll tell you. I need to get into our all of it board. But, yes, we are gonna be talking about that.

[A]

All right, let's take another call. Bob from Brooklyn. Hi, Bob. Thank you so much for calling all of it, Bo.

[D]

And thank you for being on. And Happy New Year to everyone. I am just about to have our yearly brunch with the kids and my wife. So what I want to say is I hope we will find many, many ways to be in solidarity with the poor and downtrodden, underfed, under housed, unhoused of New York City and the rest of the world. We have to explore ways, develop agencies, give our kind and further that some of the people in leadership become better and better role models since there's a poverty of good role models in government right now in many other areas. So that's my hope for the year.

[A]

Love that. I hope you have an excellent time with your family. Let's talk to Joseph from Nolita Online for Joseph. Thanks for making the time to call, all of it.

[D]

Thank you. Happy New Year. Mine is a bit of a challenge, reconnecting with one of my five sisters who is a Trump supporter living in Florida. So I basically ghosted her for about four years and I just reconnected. And my hopes for this year is to just be kind and have conversations and not get upset about it all.

[C]

Joseph, this is the way. Thank you so much for sharing that.

[A]

We really appreciate it. And good luck to you and your family. Let's talk to Mary Grace from Brooklyn. Hey, Mary Grace, thanks for making the Time to call.

[B]

Hi.

[D]

Hello. Thank you so much. So something that I'm looking forward to is returning to my childlike wonder. I work with kids. I took a break from film for a moment and got back into nannying. And now I've found that I think my life's purpose is to work in children's media. And with working with these two little boys that I love so dearly, I've been able to slow down and catch my breath, to be patient and to feel so connected to myself and with the collective. So, yeah, that's where we're at.

[A]

I love that.

[D]

Thank you so much.

[A]

Thanks for calling in. You are listening.

[D]

Thank you so much.

[A]

Special edition OF ALL OF it as we await the inauguration of Mayor Mamdani. Brian Lehrer is going to take over in about 15 minutes. But until then, we are keeping our phone lines wide open. We want to hear from you. What do you hope to accomplish this year culturally? What do you hope to have happen personally? What's something that you want to see? Our number is 2124-3396-9221-2433. WNYC. Joining me in studio is all of it, senior producer and fill in host Kate Hines. Should we go back to our list of the people on team ALL of it?

[C]

Let's go back to our list. But I just want to say two Things. We're going to be talking travel next Wednesday at noon. So, people, if you are interested in finding a new place to travel, hit us up on Wednesday. We're going to be speaking with someone from Travel and Leisure and also to Mary Grace. Like, she reminded me of one of my favorite sayings. You can't learn what you think you already know. So it's like a beautiful thing to set aside your preconceived notions about stuff and just take things in.

[A]

On the travel note, Luke said that he wants to Luke on our staff. He wants to visit one new state and one new country, California, Austria. This year. He wants to write more, including emailing his grandparents once a month. Call your grandparents. He would like to read the second volume of Robert Caro's LBJ series, which.

[C]

He got Secret Sant in Our Secret Santa this year.

[A]

Go home and see his parents more often in Rhode Island. And this is so funny because he is one of the younger members of our staff. He wrote, I feel like I should be doing weight exercises more, including for my back. Tall people problems.

[C]

Yeah, Luke is tall. And you're very smart, Luke, to want to take care of your back right now.

[A]

Get on it. It's also interesting culturally. He said, I hope the New York mayor inspires this current generation of young people to get more interested in running for local office or at least more engaged in local polit. He's manifesting. I love this. I'm manifesting a long promised new album from the Roots. I'm with him on that one. And I hope there's a lot of interesting and accurate commemorations and programming related to America's 250th. We're gonna be concentrating on that a lot.

[C]

Yeah, we're kicking it off on Monday.

[A]

Yes. And also I'm reading the Schuyler Sisters for Schuyler Sisters. It's fascinating. Let's take a few more calls. Let's talk to Linda from Brooklyn. Hi, Linda. Thanks for calling, all of it.

[D]

Thank you so much. Thank you for your poet and fearless. And that's what prompted me to call in as an educator. My hope for the New York City with the new mayor being sworn in, is that we'll have a shift in focus in our education system to awareness, self awareness, belonging, care, compassion, generosity, forgiveness and gratitude. These are the new. The new ideas that we can infuse in our education system so we can build the moral character of our people. So I appreciate so much for taking the call. I really would like to see that shift as we face the Poly crisis that I really see as a poly opportunity. And AI will do a lot for us, but I think that we need to do a lot more for ourselves. And your speaker with her poetry really invokes so much of that language that we all need to speak and listen and hear each other with deep respect and gratitude for the planet. So thank you, Linda.

[A]

Thank you. Let's talk to Paul from Brooklyn. Hi, Paul. What's going on in Brooklyn today?

[D]

I'd like to improve my relationship with my daughter. That's what I would like always.

[A]

Did you have a big fallout or no? Or just as. Just you just want to improve your relationship?

[D]

No, it's. I'm not really sure.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

Why she doesn't want to communicate with me. We've just been communicating with very brief text messages. And there was a time when I said to her that I would like to change whatever it is that I'm doing that makes her not want to talk to me. And she just was not interested in even responding to that. So if we could get back at all to talking and having some relationship, that is all I want.

[A]

Paul, we wish you the very best with you and the rest of your family. Let's talk to Raul from East Elmhurst. Hey, Raul. Happy New Year to you.

[D]

Gracias. Gracias. Happy New Year to you. Thank you so much for being in the air and allowing all of us to communicate with each other and communicate with the city. I really appreciate that. You know, my hope is as I become more aware of Mother Earth, because all of us have families, all of us have lives, and all of us care about our families and about Mother Earth and the environment. So I'm really. I'm going to focus more on letting people know. Just stop shopping. You know, Amazon is great, yet we're producing all of this trash. All of this trash that is going to other countries, you know, or our countries, taking all these computers and all this stuff. So I want to focus this year on letting people know, hey, you don't have to buy all that. Just recycle, reuse.

[A]

Big fan of that. Big fan of that. With our sewing, I bring in stuff that I've thrifted and put together and made something new out of it. It's a wonderful feeling when you can create something new. Thank you so much, Raul, for calling as well. Let's talk to Susan from Summit, New Jersey. Hi, Susan. Thanks for calling, all of it.

[D]

Oh, you're welcome. Thanks for taking my call. I hope it's worth it.

[A]

It's worth it.

[C]

I'M sure it will be.

[A]

It's absolutely worth it.

[C]

Make it. Make it worth it. Susan.

[D]

I know I'm already doing what I trying to get better at and that is, well, I have two issues. One is my own self esteem, but the other one is always comparing myself to other people and feeling like, wow, I wish I could be like them, like somebody like you, you know, who seems so confident and wow, you're just out there and can do stuff and, you know, people admire you. I, I don't know. I'm always comparing myself and I'm never the one who comes out on top.

[A]

You are going to do great, Susan. That's my pep talk for you.

[C]

Comparison is the thief of joy.

[A]

Susan, Absolutely. We are keeping our phone lines open for eight more minutes or so. We want to hear from you. What are your hopes for 2026? Personally, what do you want to see culturally? What would you like to see happen? Our Phone lines are 212-433-969-2212, wnyc. My ride along for this segment is our senior producer and fill in host Kate Hines. I was gonna go for you, Kate, but it says kid on the line. We got a kid on the line.

[C]

You gotta take the kid on the line.

[A]

Hey, Sadie, calling in from from Queens. First of all, how old are you, Sadie?

[D]

What?

[A]

How old are you?

[D]

I'm 11 years old.

[A]

Okay, tell us what your, what's on your mind.

[D]

I love drawing and my nana's an artist and she's taught me a lot of things and she's always wanted me to go to art camps. So I want to go to an art camp. And then I want to sell things on Etsy and yeah, get money for it.

[C]

I love that.

[A]

I like a plan. The girl has a plan. Good luck, Sadie. This text says I want to establish more firm boundaries with people. Sharing is good at times, but we need to know when to pull back, create more time for ourselves and not feel guilty about it. Feel guilty about saying no. I want to share what Jordan had to say. Jordan, who many of you have heard on the air. She's our book queen. She runs Get Lit. She says she's hoping to knit my first color work sweater. More knitting. Want to finally read Ron Cherno's Hamilton biography as part of our 250th anniversary of the revolution. And she wants to attend a movie at the Metrograph. She's never been. It's great.

[C]

By the way, that surprises me because no one sees more movies than Jordan.

[A]

Let me tell you this one culturally says, I hope Broadway bounces back with some cool original shows, especially original musicals. I hope a form of body positivity returned. I'm worried about the current emphasis on weight loss and thinness.

[C]

Double yes.

[A]

And I hope we have a fun summer movie like Barbenheimer moment of last year. I'm waiting for Wuthering Heights myself.

[D]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Oh, yeah. Jacob Lorby. Lordy, he makes me sound good. It makes it sound good. Did you want to add something?

[C]

No. I endorse all of Jordan's hopes and dreams, especially the idea that Broadway should be doing more original content and less with intellectual property.

[A]

Yeah, I understand, though. There's some really good things coming to Broadway. Titanique.

[C]

Titanique. Titanique will be coming to Broadway, as.

[A]

Will the Rocky Horror Picture show, directed by Sam Pinkleton, who did O Mary. And the Jellicle Ball will be coming to Broadway as well.

[C]

Lovely.

[A]

Let's talk to Susan from Manhattan. Hey, Susan, thanks for calling all of it.

[D]

Hi. I'm excited and happy New Year and my hope is to give out yellow roses everywhere in Manhattan to cause smiles. And I want to connect the generations, especially the children who have grandparents at a distance. And I'm excited that I am launching my first children's book on January 22 called Flowers for Nana.

[A]

Aw, that is so sweet. Good luck with the book. We really appreciate it it. I want to make sure we get to everybody on our list as well. Zach, who is the person manning the phones, they are doing their very, very best with all your calling in. By the way, you'd still call 2124-3396-9221-2433 wnyc. He says, I want to spend more time up at the Cloisters. I want to take more photographs in general. I want to make a better use of nonsense NYC newsletter. And then he says, and then they said 2026 will be quote the year of the beard, which scares me a little bit.

[C]

I can't wait to see what that means. Thank you. Zach.

[D]

I'm curious.

[C]

I'm on the edge of my seat.

[A]

Are you excited about any good books coming out this year?

[C]

Ann Patchett has a new one, which is going to be amazing.

[A]

Ann Patchett has a new one. George Saunders has a new one, Vigil. It's a really interesting book. It's about a terminally ill oil CEO who's got to go into his afterlife and he's got a guide to go with him. We'll leave it there. Lauren Groff is back a series of, I think it's nine short stories. It's called Brawler. And then a woman who had a really big book years ago, the American Marriage, Tyree Jones. It took her a long time, but she has a new book called Kin, which is coming out, which is about platonic love. And then Aunt Patchett.

[C]

And then Aunt patchett. Also, Emily St. John Mandel, who wrote Station 11, has a new book coming out, I think, in the spring. And that's going to be a must read for me.

[A]

By the way, do you want to give people a shout out to our get lit with all of it January selection? It's a big book.

[C]

It is a big book. I assume we talked about it a.

[A]

Little bit already, but it's January.

[C]

It is Ocean Vuong, the Emperor of Gladness.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

I actually haven't read this, so I'm excited to read it. I read his first novel, but this is I've heard him speak about it on our show, and it's so moving and it's I'm really excited for that conversation.

[A]

And, you know, we're having our big event on January 20th. We'll give you more details next week. And I know you're a big supporter of third space. This is very important for people. Can you tell us why book clubs are important things? Why you think people need to have third spaces?

[C]

I think people need to be the very short version is we need to be in community with each other. We are getting more and more isolated. You see things like restaurants doing most of their money in takeout. Like, we are living in isolation. We are streaming things on Netflix alone. And we're social animals. And we need to be with people. We need to be in community together. And experiencing things together in so many ways is more powerful than experiencing them alone. It builds community. It stops us from being isolated. And it reminds us that, like, we're all in it together.

[A]

Let's talk to Joe from North Plainfield. Hi, Joe. Thank you so much for calling all of it.

[D]

Thank you for taking my call. I was making the base of a wonderful meal this morning while I was listening to Brian Lehrer. And all of a sudden I loved.

[B]

The way it looked.

[D]

And I said, I love you. And Allison, I was like, I've never said that to myself before in my life. So I'm hoping that I can find some more things about Joe that I love and continue to say that. Happy New Year.

[A]

Happy New Year to you as well. This text says, personally, I want to listen to people I disagree with and not to convince them that they are wrong, but so I can forgive myself for feeling that I need to correct them.

[C]

Right? Love that.

[A]

Everybody. Thank you so much for calling in. We really loved hearing about your hopes for 2026. Kate, thank you so much for coming into work today. We really appreciate it.

[C]

My honor, Juliana, thanks for being with us.

[A]

Thanks for not getting sick. I'm Alison Stewart. That's it for all of it. Stay tuned for WNYC's coverage of the inauguration of new Mayor Zoran Mamdani.

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