Call me an idealist, but at the end of the day, what is it that everyone wants but not all of us manage to get?
It all narrows down back to the basics. We want comfort, to be loved. Happiness. Really simple things, even children would know. In fact, with the way things are going, it's usually the children who are true to themselves and living their best lives. So why does that part of us get lost somewhere on the way to adulthood? Is there something wrong with ourselves, or is society programmed to beat the carefree spirit out of us?
I'll tell you my viewpoint. I know that there's a lot of flaws in the way our society is set up at the moment, and that it desperately needs changing. Even as a young teen, I always knew that there was something seriously wrong with the schooling system, mental health crisis, corruption and so forth. I just couldn't put my finger on what it was exactly, only that the adults we're mostly seeing today were not the kind of people I wanted to become or see the next generation grow into. It's ok. I was still learning back then, the secrets of the world and what kind of things go on behind closed doors - so today I'm in a much better position to talk about it and work on the problems - should you want to hear. Some of my opinions can be considered 'fringe,' so I would never force them on anyone unless they were genuinely curious or up for a discussion. In April 2020, however, this was just the start.
As someone who wanted to make a difference, I began turning to protests. It was the lockdowns that really did it for me. Once upon a time, I was close to attending an Extinction Rebellion march, but in the end this never happened and things veered off in a different direction entirely. It was when our whole lives were shut down and turned on their heads, that pushed me over the edge. It was about losing jobs, passions, hobbies, bonding with people, the suicide rates were diabolical. Never before had I felt so passionately about a cause, because this one needed immediate attention. I started going to protests, spreading the word, leafletting, posting, getting to know my tribe and actively opposing the system.
Once, I would keep my activist life separate from anything else. There was good reason to. I was pretty much going against the government narrative at the time and didn't want my identity to be known. However, things have calmed down now; I couldn't care less if my face is recognized as playing a role in the movement. In fact, a little recognition would be nice! Perhaps you could take a look at my alternative insta, @madnessended, if you want to see what sort of antics we got up to.
Above all, activism gave me a purpose - a foundation to work towards. It's here that I learnt to stand up for myself, see the political agendas for what they really are, found my wonderful crazy partner and made countless of amazing connections on the way. People of all different ages and backgrounds, each with their own wisdom and skills to share with each other.
The epidemic threat might be over and I won't be parading on the streets of London for much longer, but that's not to say my quest for making the world a happier place is over. Far from it. The wisdom and character that these experiences have helped me to build have put me in the lucky position of not just wanting to make a change, but actually knowing how to do it. I am now an admin for both Open1uk and Students Against Tyranny, who have their own missions which include sharing unbiased news, improving health and wellbeing, combatting the rising living costs, cashless society and water fluoridation. I also have my own ideas on what I can do to help people find their inner motivation and happiness - back to the basics, mentioned at the start of this post!
If activism was the start, then for me, the future will involve building a presence online as well as at fun events and gatherings. We need to lead by example if we want to stop calling the unhealthy, dull, routine life 'normal,'
making it into a life where every day you wake up to is a gift. Not to give away too much now, but I have a few project ideas formulating right now in order to reach as many as possible and achieve just that!
In other words, this party is just getting started. And you're invited.
August 2020 - today