The question of what constitutes a life well-lived has been Kinfolk’s fundamental inquiry for over a decade of publication. For spring, we are embracing the season of rejuvenation with a spe­cial issue dedicated to well-being.

Before we go further, allow us to clarify: Well-being is not to be confused with notions of well­ness. Whereas well-being suggests a general har­mony between body, soul and mind, the word wellness has come to encompass an industry ded­icated to the constant quest for self-optimization, often through costly interventions. As a primer on the subject, you may wish to begin with the es­say “Too Much of a Good Thing”, in which writer Annabel Bai Jackson warns of how the scales can easily tip toward obsession. “The purgative, controlling language of toxic wel...