Joyful Resistance

"It was a dreary, raw Saturday.  What action should I take this morning? Monument Square rally? Steady, tried and true, does my heart good when I show up. Canal Street by Senator Collins’ office for the pop up anti-Iranian war protest? DSA always puts on a powerful protest.  It’s foggy. I’m tired, I’m worn out. I just don’t have it in me today. Yet if I’m not actively resisting, I’m complicit, right?  Letting people down. Abandoning my values. I was consumed by resisters' guilt. 

On Saturday, I pushed back against that.

At noon the Women’s Wave cold water dip was happening at Willard Beach.  1500+ women had pre-registered to honor International Women’s Day by showing up with courage, rallying their supporters to buoy their confidence and ensure their safety, and to celebrate doing hard things, TOGETHER.  At noon, over one thousand women would immerse themselves into the frigid Atlantic Ocean!   I pivoted. I needed something different today. For me. 

On Saturday, I pivoted towards joy. 

At the water’s edge I was quickly swept up in an exuberant, and ecstatic community! 

All ages, sizes, shapes. Glittered up, smiling, laughing, dancing, singing, and sharing their vulnerability by taking on this physical challenge. The energy and camaraderie were contagious, the shared smiles among “strangers” signaled “we’re in this together.” 

This event happened because two local women, then strangers, six years ago, had a simple thought: maybe others would want to join in ocean dipping. Clearly, they did! These two women, now aided by a veritable army of helpers, activated scores of people to show up for THEMSELVES and for each other! 

On the beach I found joy - contagious, all-encompassing joy. Joy on the faces of thousands. Joy in the determination and strength of women, in the power and resilience of the human body, in the beauty of the ocean, and in our beloved growing community. We need to seek out and soak in joy and community wherever we find it. It is invaluable. It refuels us, gives us the energy to work towards a more just, and habitable world. 

When we gather, however we gather, we are building the connections and creating the pathways for a more just society. Potlucks. Neighborhood swaps. Whistle brigades. Knitting circles. Community sings. Pods. Affinity Groups (groups formed around a common interest). Mutual aid groups. Bridge Groups. Swimming buddies. 

I will admit, I didn’t go in the water on Saturday. It didn’t matter. As with all the challenges we face with our country, the success of Saturday’s event depended on folks participating in a variety of different roles. We can’t all be ocean dippers in March!  There are so many ways we can each show up right now! Sometimes it’s with angry chanting, soulful singing, whistle blowing, hotline calling, food delivering, check writing, news ranting, submitting events to Activate Maine's calendar :-), accompanying our immigrant friends, making posters, knitting hats knitting, packing food……the ways we participate are endless, AND wherever true connections are made, and wherever community is built and strengthened, there is value. Where we pair our work with joy, we’re more likely to do more of it.

I encourage you to listen to your heart. Listen to what you need. Today, maybe you need to be LOUD, PUSH HARD and ACT with FURY!  Tomorrow you may need to be reflective, mournful, soft-hearted, or simply refuel.  Some days you won’t know what you need but thankfully most events can fuel us on different levels, e.g., I vent my anger through protesting while soaking in the camaraderie of the group and reminding myself I am not alone.   And recognize, as I did, that sometimes we need to find our joy in activities that seemingly have no relationship to fighting for justice!  Like attending a communal swim or sitting quietly by the ocean afterwards.

Saturday was a beautiful reminder that showing up for ourselves, and each other is ultimately also an act of strengthening Democracy. Resistance comes in many guises. We need them all. And we need each other fueled and connected. See you out there!

-Jamien