🪷 Let's Go Down Fighting

a poem for times of Weltschmerz

Yes, the world’s a mess,
and hopeless it seems—
but let’s go down fighting
for the world of our dreams.

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Some quotes

This poem comes out of the general strain of my thoughts lately, in response to various things going on in the world and in our country this year, and also with mental input from people I follow online, such as in the following quotes:

“I don’t see a way collectively where we could overcome...but I can still help individuals who want to live with more honesty in their life.”

— Brittney Hartley, atheist spiritual coach working in nihilism recovery, and author of No Nonsense Spirituality, in this video

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“The numbers are ‘mournful’, because the world is awful. ‘Things are not what they seem’, because people tend to only pay attention to the ways the world is awful, and forget how much progress we’ve made. And life is not ‘but an empty dream’, because there’s still so much room for improvement that anyone who has the time and resources can make a meaningful difference.

— Mark McDonald, blogger, in this Substack post discussing the awesome classic poem “A Psalm of Life” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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And then a good friend of mine recently posted this excellent Tolkein quote:

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

— J.R.R. Tolkein, The Fellowship of the Ring

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another stunning sunrise recently

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In the notebook

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May we keep fighting for our values, however we can, as long as we can.

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