Joy as Resistance

Karen Jurick

We live in a sad world. A world in which elderly people cannot retire, children are orphaned, cancer steals lives, and countries wage war. To this sad world, there is a panoply of options. We can ignore it all and become self-centered in hopes of feeling some kind of stability. We can bully others to feel some control over the world and the lives around us. We can melt into a pit of learned helplessness and assume we are powerless. We can medicate until we are numb to our surroundings. We can buy Labubus and NeeDohs and every other trendy hot commodity in an attempt at creating tangible substance in our lives. Each of these is a miserable pursuit. 

Alternatively, we can take drastic action. We can become starkly religious, either for better or for worse. We can sell our homes to do van life, for better or for worse. We can quit our jobs and instead become starving artists critiquing the social landscape. These are less miserable pursuits, but they are typically not sustainable, nor completely fulfilling. And they certainly do not repair the broken world we live in. 

In fact, I do not think there is any way for human hands to fix what we have broken, because the world is strained not by a social issue, but by a spiritual one. If we cannot fix the world, or even our own lives, what are we to do? Is there a better path, or any path at all? 

I think so. 

You see, sadness is expensive, in more ways than one. When we frown, we use more energy and muscles than when we smile. When depression skyrockets, so do sales for anti-depressants. (I am not alleging that depression is fake, nor that anti-depressants are a scam.) When our FYPs become alarming or inciting, we are tempted to spend more time scrolling, watching ads, and buying the products advertised. When we believe the world is bleak and has no potential for change, we have no motivation to protest or inspire, and we are willing to roll over and silence ourselves.

When the majority of the population is sad, those who manufactured or incited that sadness gain control. Our constant doomscrolling, poor fueling of our bodies, and generational loneliness crisis are trapping us. At this point in human civilization, the hottest currency is not the dollar, nor is it words. It is emotion. If a person can capture your emotion, can make you cry, can make you angry, can create a sentimental attachment in you, they can persuade you to do or support just about anything. 

Clearly, we have let our emotions be bought and sold for far too long. We have allowed ourselves, especially online, to be pushed and pulled with both global politics and microscopic non-issues. It has created both angry comment sections and broken relationships. And I'm tired of it. I'm tired of being angry about things that don't matter, and of wasting my life on my phone. I'm tired of seeing nothing but doom and gloom, and of feeling like the ideas floating around in my brain are not my own, but things I saw online. 

But if other people can utilize and weaponize emotions, what stops us from doing the same? They are, after all, our minds, our hearts, and our feelings, no matter how manipulated they may have become. We as human beings have the opportunity to make everyday choices about mindset and reactions. In every split-second decision and interaction, we have the chance to choose not irritation or hopelessness, but joy and forgiveness. 

We have the opportunity to respect our political opposites. We have the opportunity to donate money to strangers in need. We have the opportunity to turn off our phones, delete social media, and touch grass. We have the opportunity to look at the real physical world around us and recognize that it is not as dreary as social media would paint it to be. We have the opportunity to use joy as resistance. 

Do hardship and heartbreak exist? Absolutely. Is it important to be realistic and informed? Yes. But there is a difference between realism and pessimism, and I think it's time we step away from the latter. Let us embrace joy as resistance. Let us take a breath before responding. Let us start the day with gratitude. Let us recognize the beauty and wonder of the real world in front of us, rather than being caught up in the grim illusion online. And maybe, when our outrage is no longer a good for sale, rational realism will allow us to resolve issues and solve problems with grace and respect.