Spark Some Joy

Can joy be a protest?

It’s hard to know what to say these days. Listening, deep listening, feels like one of the most important and healing acts we can be doing. Plus it’s free.

While also…

Silence is compliance.

I sometimes think about that NYC subway phrase that was made common after 9/11:

If you see something, say something.

There is so much pain and suffering in the world right now. Much of it senseless and unnecessary. I think about Gaza. My heart aches for Palestine. For Sudan. There is no shortage of events and people to have a broken heart for right now. We are all holding so much grief.

I struggle to relate to people who’d rather tear others down and take rights away, rather than work towards enriching each other and humanity as a whole. I liken it to a game of emotional hot potato, the potato being unprocessed pain that continues to get passed around.

The consistent calling for much of my life has been tending to the task of what can be described as emotional alchemy. Transmuting pain. “You take the good, you leave the bad”, the facts of life.

The work that can be play

For a couple years now, a post-it note hangs from my second monitor…

This is a literal “note to self” for what I feel I’m here to do— help us rehumanize each other, and help us reharmonize with the web of life. How have we grown so disconnected from each other that we’re able to treat our fellow humans in such inhumane ways? How did we get so severed from the natural world, that we somehow think we can live without the clean air, water, and soil that makes life possible?

“Queer Joy”

Over these last few months the cultivation of hope and joy have steadily climbed my priority list. It’s almost like my subconscious knows that I must stay vigilant about my mental health. I no longer wait for them to come to me, I actively create and seek both joy and hope out. The gift of music has been the most consistent source of joy throughout my life. I think we all have different medicines that heal us better than others, and for me music has been it.

In July of 2023 two of my close friends, Kassie and Anna got married. Their wedding was an extraordinary event that was quite impressionable for me. I had never been to a gay wedding where there were almost as many queers as straight people. How refreshing! It made me realize that being a part of the dominant culture is affirming and empowering, and the many ripple effects that can have on individuals and society.

Inspired by Kassie & Anna’s love and also by the growing celebration of queer culture, I wrote a song called “Queer Joy”. It’s one of the jazzier sounding songs that I play, and there’s a video recording of it linked here in case you’d like to hear it. A tiny source of pride is that I was able to incorporate the word “compost” into a love song.

“Queer Joy”

You don’t need to know

All the scars on my heart

I just want to make you glow

And compost all those hard parts

So I can show up better than before

Cause when we’re together, I need nothing more

Oh my darlin, it’s you I adore

The way you love me feels like flying, and crying

Happy tears heal like only queer joy can

So won’t you take my hand, to la la land

So I can show up better than before

Cause when we’re together, I need nothing more

Oh my darlin, it’s you I adore

Patterns in repeat

In the face of despair at the state of our country and the state of the world, many of us recognize that we need joy and hope to persevere through this challenging time. I’ve recently stumbled upon a gentleman by the name of Robert Arnold. He’s a historian, storyteller, and poet laureate. Robert is from Arkansas; he speaks with a thick southern accent, and has over 28,000 subscribers on his youtube channel. Robert is an excellent reminder to never judge a book by its cover, or a person by their looks or how they talk. His poem below, “Joy as defiance” is a timely ode to the notion of ‘joy as resistance’. Should you feel moved to, I hope you give this 3 minute poem a listen.

“…Freedom is not won through fear, but the refusal to be afraid.” - Robert Arnold

I’ve also been pumping myself up with a song that was recorded in 2019 by the Newburgh Peoples Chorus called “This Joy” (The Resistance Revival Chorus also has a lovely version). The song "This Joy" has roots in the Black church and the Civil Rights Movement. It's a gospel song that speaks about the joy that comes from faith and resilience, particularly in the face of adversity.

This joy that I have
The world didn't give it to me (oh, oh, oh)
This joy that I have
The world didn't give it to me (don't you know that)

This joy that I have
The world didn't give it to me
Ooh I said, the world didn't give it
The world can't take it away

I’d love to hear from you in the comments section:

• In what corners of the world are you finding hope or joy these days?

• What does defiant joy look like in your life?

• What’s the most rebellious joyful thing you’ve done lately?

With Love, Joy, & Gratitude,

Lisa Pellegrino