Levels of Joy

The crazier this year gets, the more you may ask the question: how can I experience joy in the midst of this? And honestly, when there is a constant stream of bad news and anxiety-inducing announcements, it really feels like joy is not possible and perhaps not even something we should want to experience. 

But I would argue the opposite. I think that finding joy in the midst of chaos is an act of resistance. I believe that when there is so much sadness and loss and uncertainty, then we must continue to fight for joy. And I would also say that there are levels of joy. Depending on what you are experiencing in life, you can have a "higher" level of joy or a "lower" level. It really will vary depending on what is happening with you, the world, and other factors. 

In this time of struggle, in this time of anger, I do understand and agree that we need to be aware of what's happening in the world. As we stay aware, we will experience the natural corresponding emotions. So once again, it may seem like there is no room for joy within that existence.

But that's the thing! I think we have to make some room for joy to still exist because if we do not, the anger and the sadness and the chaos will entirely consume us. And that is how we let the other side win. Continuing to fight to have any level of joy is resistance. And it is necessary for each of us to carve out our own levels of joy so that we can survive all of the insanity that we are experiencing.