Is It Possible to Live Joyfully in a World full of Suffering?
People always bemoan how bad things are. How bad times are
getting and how the end of days is very near. But I think people also tend to
forget just how far we have come as a human race. We have survived two World
Wars, we have cured countless diseases and we have delved deeper into the human
psyche than human population has done before. Yet still people are unhappy, people are
suffering and there is plenty of pain to go around.
So how do we live joyfully in a world filled with poverty,
depression, sadness and evil. I have no easy answers to these questions, but I would
like to offer some strategies on how to live joyfully in a world filled with
pain.
Gratitude. It is the one value that I prize above all simply
because many other values stem from a source of gratitude. From the love we
have for our parents, to the love we have for friends, gratitude is the one
value that I believe can offer solace, hope, consolation and healing in many of
our lives. Being grateful for the food that we eat, the bed that we sleep in,
the job that we have, the car that we drive and the people who love us is
extremely important because it offers us perspective on our lives and enables
us to deal with obstacles in our lives that otherwise may destroy us. Gratitude
reminds us that there is joy to found in the simplest of actions, the simplest
of experiences and the most mundane of human actions From drinking a cup
of green tea to being able to exercise at the gym, there are countless ways to
remind ourselves about just how lucky we are to be alive.
Service. The values of gratitude cannot stop with ourselves.
It is only through being grateful for what we have that we are compelled to
serve those less fortunate than ourselves. Sometimes I feel the word “Service”
can overwhelm us and make it seem that we each have to be Mother Theresa but
this is not the case. Service comes from giving a piece of fruit to a beggar
standing on the corner. It comes from being polite to those people who are on
the fringes of society. We serve others when we give tutoring lessons for free
to a girl that lives up the road, or when we lend a hand to a soup kitchen
without offering anything in return. Humans are social animals and as social animals
we thrive on developing and evolving our culture and the way we relate to one
another. With the recent student protests across South African universities I believe
that a deeper culture is developing. One that places the African agenda at the
forefront and one that re-imagines what it means to be African. These type of
discussions are important especially for a country still feeling the aftermath
of years of colonialism and white patriarchy. Yet, we must also remember that as
citizens of a culture we are also called to serve and protest responsibly, and
in a way that respects the dignity and rights of all people. Drawing from the protest politics of Ghandi
and Martin Luther King, citizens of country have the power to serve and change
a society through words of change and actions
that send a message of non-violence, tolerance, intelligence and a deep commitment
to changing society peacefully.
Connections. We must seek meaningful connections with
people. What does that mean? I am talking about the type of connections where
two individuals bear their souls to one another. This can be hard in a world optimized
for social gratification through social media platforms. These platforms offer
facades, and unrealistic standards to which we unconsciously compare ourselves
to. But these platforms are (to quote Lady Gaga) perfect illusions. No one’s
life is perfect and everyone harbors their own share of guilt, shame,
unhappiness and pain. But this is part of the human experience. It is only
through sharing our pain with honestly with our closest friends that we can
ever hope to truly enjoy happiness authentically. Social Media turns us all into
marketable brands and some people are better at marketing themselves than
others. These people should not be envied nor should they be hated or put down
for being shallow. Rather, what I am advocating for is a move beyond social media
as a measuring stick but rather a tool
for connection, a tool for meaningful communication, a way to mobilize people
around a common cause and an element of humanity that does not detract from
being human, but enlivens it. This means not posting to Facebook to show off
but to celebrate oneself and others genuinely. Sure, some people may see these
thoughts as too idealistic and maybe they are. But if we could gather a sliver
of idealism and live by it day by day, we would be all the best for it.
