The state of the world. The reports about climate change. Inflation that continues to slam our most vulnerable. And, of course, in DC, we’ve gone from being one man’s vote away from a greater social safety net — finally — to five people’s votes away from striking down Roe v. Wade.

To say nothing of the markets. Tech stocks are way down; the Nasdaq had its worst April since 2008. And the bond market? I just read that that old stalwart is having its worst performance since 1842. (Not a typo.)

Remember how fun we thought everything would be “post-pandemic”? Hot girl summer. (Canceled.) Traveling again. (Expensive.) Now even the Great Resignation — in Silicon Valley, at least — is giving way to layoffs and hiring freezes. (And by the way, the pandemic? Nowhere near “post.”)

It’s just … really heavy.

In light of all this, I’ve been thinking a lot about missed opportunities — where we might have done better, and where we might still.