When times are hard, joy is essential. Being in a constant state of anxiety or conflict will wear you down – it isn’t sustainable.

Things that seem frivolous can be the difference between keeping going and giving up. The comfort and hope we find in the things that bring us joy are vitally important for our wellbeing, and especially so when the going gets tough.

It is so very important to take care of your soul. Nourish your heart with whatever sustains you. I was recently at a poetry and while some of it had an overt political dimension, a lot of it was just about people coming together in a room and sharing, and laughing together and feeling better as a consequence. We all need these kinds of spaces.

If you are going to be revolutionary, don’t demand that the revolution be miserable and austere and that we can only focus on serious and important things. Many very important things are not serious. Don’t let activism steal your joy or make you feel obliged to be weirdly puritanical.

In many ways, joy is what this is all about. The right to happily get on with your own life, free from oppression and not crushed by the wanton destruction of the planet. Joy is the goal, and we are more likely to get there if we don’t focus all of our energy on ‘fighting’. We need to build communities, practice cooperation, take care of each other, and create joy wherever we can.

It’s easier to be joyful when people set out to deliberately co-create it. It’s no good waiting for love, community and a better future to just magically happen. We have to build those things, day by day, welcoming and encouraging each other as we go. That means being able to laugh together, and sharing poetry and dancing and all of those other life enriching things.

Don’t be defined by the things you struggle against. Hold on to what gives you joy.

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