“Will things ever get better? Is there hope?” It’s hard to feel hopeful recently. It’s hard not to have the sense that everything is just getting worse. And honestly, if you have that sense, you’ve probably just taken a look around the place.
We are in the Shit.
Things are bad. Right now. People dread what’s coming as if we won’t be able to manage it, but what we need to remember is, we are currently in the shit.
We are living during a historical outlier in terms of low quality of life – despite the fancy looks of all our technologies and so-called luxuries.
European serfs at least had housing security, shared childcare, and worked half the hours. In the West we’re exhausted, alienated from each other, and housing insecure.
Queer people, disabled people, and migrants (hi, I’m all three!) are watching the rising tides warily in Western countries.
Point is, it’s grim as hell now. We can give ourselves a bit of credit for managing to stay afloat during a dystopian period.
Feeling defeated is a feature, not a bug. But is there hope?
We’re expected to believe this is only possible societal option and everything else is a fantasy.Conveniently, the creators of this nightmare are the same crowd thatown the news and social media companies.
“Will things ever get better?” Seemingly the answer we are given is: keep binging your shows, keep doomscrolling, download the latest app subscription, and most importantly, keep going to your jobs. (Subtext: no.)
Still, I tend to think their defeatist messages are a piping hot plate of garbáge.
“The collective nature of human life is far more fluid, weird, exciting, and filled with potential than can possibly be contained by any single narrative imposed upon it. Our current moment in history, a blip in the timescale of humanity, let alone the planet, is the true anomaly. Imagine a world where all people live under powerful global systems, where the existing order of society is locked in place by ossified institutions and obdurate infrastructures, where the decisions made over the last hundred years persist forever until planetary collapse. This is the absurd premise of our reality–in which attempts to radically question this unbelievable state of affairs are rebuked by those in power as impossible.” -Jathan Sadowski
The state of things won’t last
Because one of my hobbies is sitting in a group analysing political history like a colossal nerd, I know that change is already in motion. Things are always changing. Even when it feels like we are on a slow teeth-grinding slog into oblivion, change is already on its way.
Sometimes it’s a new lover and not societal transformation, but hey. Both is good.
And you say to me, “Sure, things will change. But when? After I’m dead?” Maybe. Hope not. But when we look at history, especially during capitalism’s gloriously healthy 400+-year tenure, we see over and over again that suddenly, unexpectedly, people wake up and make changes. Flashpoints happen – Marx would call this a shift in material conditions – and all at once, quickly, almost like something’s in the water, people wise up.
People like Elon Musk fear these moments and do everything they can to prevent them, usually through union-busting and propaganda. Remember in 2021 after the Great Resignation when all the news outlets were suddenly coming out with articles about how ill-advised working from home is? Yeah, what a coincidence. But,
You can fool some people sometimes, but you can’t fool all the people all the time.” -Bob Marley
People do get a sudden, mass mood about them to make change. Just because not every swell in consciousness ended in the defeat of capitalism doesn’t mean they were worthless. The Civil Rights movement didn’t establish a socialist America like some of their activists hoped, but it defeated Jim Crow.
How to Have Hope for the Future: Lessons from the desert
I’m originally from the American South, and nearly half my home state is a desert ecosystem. Deserts are beautiful places, they’ve huge skies with incredible sunsets and highly adaptable wildlife. I want to take a lesson from the desert, because I think humans are doing a pretty good job already of being adaptive wildlife, considering our conditions. So grab a sweating 66-ounce plastic cup of ice water, I’m here to dish the natural science inspo.
Desert conditions are not unlike our own
People see the American southwest as a dry place, and parts of it are. Anyone who’s fallen asleep on a southwestern road trip and woken up with chapped lips can attest. (2025’s conditions are dry too: resources are scarce and hard to get, there’s a lot of competition for survival and the days are long and hard.)
But in many southwest desert ecosystems, the occasional storm is almost guaranteed.
And when the storm comes, it often rains Biblically.
There’s a deluge. There’s often flash flooding in areas with little plant life since dry ground sheds water. There is lightning sometimes, and even hail. We don’t get storms like this in Ireland, but in the American south it’s an event.
But here’s the rise of the underdog we’ve been waiting for:
Under the soil and sand are dormant seeds and plant structures, some of them hundreds of years old.
When the storm passes, we are often visited by another force of nature: the desert bloom.
Windfalls happen. Change is coming.
People want to know will things ever get better. Inevitably, yes. Couldn’t tell you when, but yes.
We are all of us, always waiting on the desert bloom.
As people with hearts. As members of the working class. As members of targeted groups.
And in one form or another,
It is always coming.
“But I can’t just wait around. What do I do right now?”
JOIN. 👏 A. 👏 GROUP. 👏
I’m not kidding. Find a community, however small, and show up to it regularly, be it online or in person or both. Even better if it is a group that gets together to do things, make things, or help people.
When that change hits, these are the people you will get in touch with. When that desert bloom happens, these are the people you will share and celebrate with and build something with.
If you find a group and it’s not your vibe, move on promptly and find one that is. If you can’t find one, make one! Have an activity you do regularly, advertise it, and people will show up. Spend as much time as you can building connections and building community.
Start somewhere. Start today. Stick around when the people feel right, and dedicate part of your life – however much you can spare in this busy world – to being a devoted community member.
Not only will this benefit you while we are currently in the shit, but you will have people to link in with during either harder or better times.
“But will my mental health ever get better?”
Of course, there’s more than just politics going on in each of our worlds. Maybe you’re wondering if you’ll ever stop feeling anxious, depressed, or triggered. Some folks find individual therapy helpful. I know I have.
To enquire about online therapy, drop me a line below or learn more about my like-minded colleagues at Violet Psychology. You can see what people think of me on my reviews page. And remember, don’t give up on life – it’s what the billionaires want.
Melanie Gruben, M.Ps.S.I.
Psychologist accredited with the Psychological Society of Ireland.
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garbáge
