On January 1, 2023 I wrote a post quoting Dostoevsky of all things. I shared 490 words about being silly and putting a premium on being myself. Goofy due to sleep deprivation? Sometimes. Goofy because it’s my natural state? Quick to laugh whenever I can – especially at myself? Definitely.
That beginning-of-the-year ramble inspired my “Crack Yourself Up” posts – a series of fifteen goofy glimpses over the year – which were always well-received because I found good company in dear readers – like you, perhaps – who like to laugh. 😉
Yep. Any opportunity to gaze upon the lighter side of life – even at our own expense – can be a welcome respite from the heaviness each day can bring. Heaviness and heartache from within or the challenging frustrations when we look at the world at large.
Whether the focus is the inhumanity and horrors toward one another around the globe or the disregard and disdain for the environment, we seem to be surrounded by looming tragedies that only increase as we turn away, rather than toward the truth. Forgiveness in advance? This is where I get a little preachy, a little ‘should-ly’. The care and keeping of one another and our delicate, Earthly homebase shouldn’t be in competition for any other priorities, and yet…
Each person must find his or her own way. I have no antidotes or wisdom other than the confession that I will continue to use humor – especially the self-deprecating sort – into 2024 to provide relief. Laughter = lightness, manifesting like a buoy to bolster my spirit.
I get it; my quirkiness might change nothing about the world or shelter people I love (and those I’ll never meet) from harm, but it reminds me to be true to my nature as I do what I can to take on challenges near and far. My micro influence joins forces with other like-minded folks. They’re out there. They’re you. Reminding me that my wantonly optimistic and rose-tinged belief in goodness and love is true.
Channeling a little Dostoevsky just as I did nearly a year ago, I say follow your heart even if you are the embodiment of nonsense to onlookers and naysayers:
“Talk nonsense, but talk your own nonsense, and I’ll kiss you for it. To go wrong in your own way is better than to go right in someone else’s.”
-F. Dostoevsky
And this! It might seem a little incongruous, but every time I reflect upon that brilliant gem from Dostoevsky, I summon a soundtrack in my head. This 70’s girl can’t help herself…. the brilliant Russian ushers in favorite Fleetwood Mac lyrics from “Dreams”. Thank you, Stevie Nicks:
Now here you go again
-Fleetwood Mac, “Dreams”, Stevie Nicks
You say you want your freedom
Well, who am I to keep you down?
It’s only right that you should
Play the way you feel it
But listen carefully to the sound
Happy New Year…with love and encouragement to be true…to you.
Vicki ❤❤❤
Victoria Ponders 
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