Summer is upon us and with it the growing season. Nature has awakened, plants, crops, and flowers are in full bloom, and we in the northern hemisphere emerge from a long pandemic winter into what we hope will be a more promising juncture of our personal and collective lives.

The June 2022 issue of JOMH also ushers in a season of growth and change. This quarterly publication features the writing of numerous scholars who are doing important work at the interface of the humanities, medicine, and health. A rich tapestry of articles examine such diverse topics as artificial intelligence, medical technologies, and health humanities; neoliberalism; community narrative; abolition theory in carceral medical education; historical analyses of pregnancy and mental health practices in the US; the political and cultural valence of Black hair; and the health of indigenous laborers. Arthur Frank and Ericka Johnson share thoughtful book reviews on recent works about the history of blood transfusions and the narratives of dementia, and Hannah Kay contributes a moving poem.

Also in the spirit of growth, we are excited to be working on new features for the journal that will enhance publishing opportunities and help us pursue field-defining questions in health humanities. We will continue to publish the rigorous scholarly articles, reviews, and poems that have long defined the journal, but plan to invite critical short essays, descriptions of innovations in health humanities education and practice, and other forms of creative scholarship. We hope to announce these changes on the website soon.