Listener Lynne wrote in and asked “how to find happiness—or at least comfort—in a world that is fundamentally broken in so many ways.” She writes, “I cannot help but be sad to think about things like plastics in the ocean, wildfires in the west, caravans of refugees about to be met with military force, and the extermination of the Rohinga. I have frequent reminders to be thankful for all I have... Nonetheless, I am often unhappy because of the many ways that humans are unkind to each other and to our planet.”
Lynne’s problem isn’t unique. When the headlines start to blend suspiciously with The Handmaid’s Tale or bring to mind visions of Wall-E sorting through post-apocalyptic garbage, it’s easy to feel sad and hopeless.
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Now, much like the climate change episode from a few weeks ago, I can’t promise to fix the world in 15 minutes or less. But before you move off-grid and start brewing your own zombie repellent, let’s cover four ways to be happy when the world makes you depressed.
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