What are we supposed to do with all this bad energy?
On the state of things and trying to make things better. Or, at least, not make them worse.
Hi,
I've taken a little break from writing here but I wanted to come back and write something honest. I tried that, and I really didn't like what came out. It was angry and mean. It wasn't very helpful. I'm not thrilled about it, but what else are we supposed to do with all this bad energy?
Venting can be helpful. It's useful to get your thoughts down on paper (or screens) so they aren't swirling around in your head and infecting everything you do. If you don't have an outlet, it can start to colour everything and, personally, it makes me a less pleasant person to be around.
But there's a reason you aren't actually supposed to send the letters your therapist tells you to write to your family or friends or past versions of yourself. That kind of venting is just therapeutic. It's personal. It's just for you. If you vent that way publicly, it goes from you working a thing out for yourself and becomes you foisting your problems onto others. It perpetuates the negativity. It lets it spread.
Maybe I'm nuts, but I feel like the world doesn't need one more dude writing about how awful things are. It's coming at us from every angle - bad energy is flowing in like a shit dam gave way and we're all suddenly buried in it. It stinks. It's not pleasant. Why add to the shit? Who does that help?
But I don't feel like pretending things are great, either. I just got back from voting in my province's election, called early by an opportunistic goon who wants to manipulate our democracy to gain as much power and wealth as he can at the expense of everyone else - and he stands a good chance of winning again, despite demonstrating how corrupt he is. Down south, our biggest global ally, our closest geographic neighbour and our largest economic partner is threatening to take over our country in a way that feels less and less impossible every day. Globally, things don't seem much better. While I don't want to add to the shit, I also don't want to pretend it smells like roses.
So what are we supposed to do with all this bad energy?
That's not a rhetorical question. I'm actually asking it. It feels like we have a surplus of bad energy and nothing to do with it. We can't burn it without spreading it around and poisoning the environment, and it doesn't feel like it can be used for anything productive. You can't ignore it, but you can't engage with it too deeply or it will take root in your mind and it won’t let you go.
I don't want to say we should "focus on the positives" because that feels irresponsible.
I don't want to say we should just give up, because that feels defeatist and lazy.
I don't want to say things will get better, because I honestly don't know if that's true.
I don't want to say things will only get worse, because that scares me.
All I can think to do is to keep creating things. Creating things that are meaningful and that connect with other people. I can't change the course of humanity but I can write something or draw something or sing something or just do something. If enough of us do that then I believe things will change. We can't all do something without it having an impact of some kind. It's doing nothing that's the problem.
There's so much bad news, and not enough denial to cover it up. Instead I think making things, using the negative energy to motivate ourselves into motion, at the very least, can prove that there's still a reason to care. The negativity overwhelms you when you stop imagining. Making something - anything - shows you how you can influence a small part of the world. That helps. It's small, but it's not nothing.
I wrote about 2,000 words about how frustrated I was and I'm not going to share any of it because it wouldn’t do good. I created something that wouldn't help you or anyone else. All it would do is just spread my frustration around. That's a bad use of the bad energy. So now I'm trying to use it for something else.
Creativity is powerful, but it isn't inherently good. We need to remember that the things we create can move people but that they don't always move us in the right direction. Your ideas have impact and you should try to do good with them. Whatever you believe, when you make things you should try to make things better. I think a lot of people have forgotten that, if they knew it at all. I almost did.
If I can answer my own question at all then I think that's my answer.
What do we do with all this bad energy?
I'm not sure, but just make sure you don't do harm.
We're all getting a lot of negative energy thrust upon us. If we don't have any say in that - if we can't refuse it or ignore it, let's at least try not to amplify it or spread it around. Write out your frustrations and them throw them away. Take that momentum and create something else. Something good. Something that you can share. Something that builds connections, inspires people or at least gives them a break. Something that helps, even in a small way.
Take care. I'm going to go draw something, I think. What are you going to do?
Lots of love,
Simon 🐒
🔗 Links & Thinks 🧠
If you're based in Ontario, like me, you should make time to go vote. Election day is on Thursday, February 27th and you can figure out everything you need to vote here. Just like being creative, try to vote in a way that won't cause harm. That basically means not voting conservative.
I don't think we should ignore the shit, but that doesn't mean we can't also enjoy nice things. I've been enjoying lots of little games recently that I'd like to recommend.
I was recently reminded of the joys of SPL-T, an old iPhone game that is amazingly simple and deviously addictive.
If you like the New York Times games, I'd highly recommend checking out Puzzmo - they're similar but more inventive and interesting.
I've spent an absurd amount of time with Balatro and that isn't changing any time soon. If you haven't, be warned, it may consume your life (in a nice way).
Lastly, just want to call out Sokoban games in general. Specifically, I've been playing a ton of Soko on my Playdate (another thing that brings me a lot of simple joy), but I've just been enjoying the simplicity of these block-pushing puzzles in general.