This photo (found online, no credits available) made me think of joy. How many consider the caption I chose for this photo appropriate? Do you see joy in this photo?
I do...moss growing on a statue is joyful! to be honest I try to see joy in everything. In my heritage, however, anti-joy is prevalent. Victimization and martyrdom are considered healthy behaviors and even expected in some families.
Most of this unusual trait stems from the bloody history of being invaded over and over again by different races and countries after the fall of the Achaemenids، who ruled a large portion of the world about 2600 years ago.
Sadly, one can hear anti-joy in some of the traditional and contemporary music too. The nostalgia these anti-joy songs create, give the listener a sense of longing for a time or space that is unreachable. Even if one steps into that time and space, the longing starts for another time and space. Like a vicious cycle...I sometimes wonder if the longing IS for longing itself.
I have experienced these feelings during my pre-India world. A sense of Immobility, hopelessness, and helplessness accompanies listening to some of these songs and even reading some poems. No doubt, this is a rich culture, and quite romantic, but I am wondering ; if joy had replaced anti-joy, where would Iran be right now?
I have an option to help myself see things differently. I can see things in a way, where it motivates me, gives me hope and helps me achieve my dreams.
If only everyone remembered that they have a choice on how to see things, life may have been different. Just like how I can name this photo as JOY!
AMBKJ