Welcome back, camerados. What follows is a volume that was built in garages and in hospital rooms. It was planned and executed in a fragmented time, yet with the hope and the vision that on the other side may be something beautiful. In those still moments where we dreamed of getting away to the mountains, or of being celebrated, or of seeing change come to ourselves and to our community, we consented to wrestling with the pain—not fleeing from it—while simultaneously pursuing kindness and Jesus and restoration. I’ll warn you here: This is a heartfelt volume. As more of the world and more of ourselves get stripped away, I’ve found it’s impossible to not get to the core of something quickly. It’s what we’re after, but having my core so easily accessible has come with its portion of vulnerability that I’m not always comfortable with. It’s also a beautifully hopeful volume. And playful, too. Because we need that, and we were made for it. I hope you enjoy what follows, but more than that I hope it resonates with you because this is your story, too.

— Sam Eldredge