Ep. 5: When the World Seems Upside Down

In this episode Rania isn't joined by a guest, instead she takes a moment to reflect on the current state of the world, our role within it and how our individual happiness can lead to our humanity's collective liberation.

Head over to my website to learn more about my book Why Can't We All Be Happy?: 5 Practical Steps to Unlock Your Inner Happiness and Help Change The World 

Transcript

How can we contribute to the world? How can we add value to the world, to ourselves, to our own lives, to our smaller circles, and then if we're able to, to larger circles, to all of humanity? How can we use our voices and our platforms to stand up for the things that are important to us? How can we make sure that our actions serve our collective humanity and not only serve ourselves?

 [Music] Welcome to Happiness for Humanity. I'm Rania Badreldin, the happiness consultant from Egypt. Join me and my guests for an hour of meaningful conversations for a happier world. [Music]

Hello everybody I hope you've been enjoying the podcast so far. I've had wonderful guests on the show, an episode about Bringing Humanity Together Through Connection with Ali El Alfy, Ihsan: a Humanitarian Value with Amira Abou-Taleb, and Healing Through Trauma with Dr. Edith Shiro.

I've enjoyed recording those episodes uh and I look forward to having more guests on the show. For today's episode, I don't have a guest. Instead, I want to reflect on the current state of the world, how I feel, how some of you may be feeling, and what we can do about it.

Many of us have been feeling like the world is upside down. Countries participating in or supporting acts of genocide claim to be defending themselves from acts of genocide, lies continue to be presented as facts with no proof whatsoever, while well-documented facts continue to be questioned as lies. Those who speak up against gross injustice are accused of supporting terrorism while those performing actual acts of terrorism continue to play the victim card.

So indeed it feels, sometimes it feels, like the world is upside down. It's really just the world in extreme turmoil and crisis. Now it's hard to feel hope in times like this because we feel that we have lost control. We feel helpless and frustrated, in addition to feeling heartbroken and perhaps disillusioned. The truth is though that we have as much control as we've always had. No matter what has been going on around us, we've only been able to fully control two things: our thoughts and our actions. And that hasn't changed. We're still in control of those two things, our thoughts and our actions. So when things around us seem out of control, our focus should not be on how to control those things but rather on how to use our thoughts and our actions to influence those things positively.

So it all comes back to how can we contribute to the world? How can we add value to the world, to ourselves, to our own lives, to our smaller circles, and then if we're able to, to larger circles, to all of humanity. How can we use our voices and our platforms to stand up for the things that are important to us? How can we make sure that our actions serve our collective humanity and not only serve ourselves?

So I want to talk a little bit about individual happiness which has been the focus of my work for the past eight years and it's really important to focus on our individual happiness and well-being. In fact that's the the key, it's the starting point and the key to us being able to thrive in life. And we'll be talking more about that in future episodes.

At the same time, we must be mindful that our thriving is aligned with our humanity and that as we thrive we are contributing to the thriving of others or at the very least not undermining that. So happiness must not disregard Humanity. As we seek to achieve our goals, we must ensure that those goals are not destructive to others. I believe that there is room for all of us to live in freedom, dignity and justice. We're all born deserving of those things but then other human beings come along and take those away from some people. This must stop. And no matter what some will have you believe, there is no justification for us to continue to kill one another in the thousands and hundreds of thousands, at least not in my opinion.

Now I have come to realize that for years we have been talking about the wrong things and it's time to start talking about what is truly important, and for our voices to drown out the voices that are intent on keeping us in a cycle of violence; a cycle that serves their political agendas, that advances weapon sales at the expense of innocent civilians.

At a time of turmoil and crisis and we certainly are in a time of turmoil and crisis, there is an opportunity for change. There's an opportunity to change for the better. So let's work towards that. If we work towards that, maybe terms like collateral damage will become obsolete. If the International Court of Justice determines that what Israel is doing in Gaza is not genocide, then we need to revisit the Genocide Convention. We need to revisit International laws and the institutions that are supposed to uphold them because these systems are failing.

We hear the western world incessantly speak about democracy, but what is democracy without Humanity? The global community advocates for peace. What is peace without Humanity? We have seen countries that claim to be democratic and civilized support the most horrific atrocities, manipulate the truth, and use their power and money for personal gain instead of the common good. So what do we need now? We need for every person to stand up and to speak up. One person speaking up, one person refusing to abuse their power, one person refusing to participate in an acts of genocide, makes a difference. One person makes a difference. And we are all that one person.

So let's focus on what we can control and let's represent ourselves and let's help represent those who are under-represented or whose voices are not heard. And when we represent a cause whatever that cause is we have an obligation to represent it effectively which means doing our background homework, seeking to understand, choosing our sources, varying those sources, so that we are not simply parroting someone else's version of the truth. And that may not be easy but if we're going to speak up then we must speak up with a voice that's as close as possible to understanding what the truth is. So truth is, it's not easy to say this is the truth. I cannot even say 100% what the truth is, but I can listen and learn and investigate and research and um find out from different sources and start to get an inkling of the truth, and then decide "where do I stand as a human being?"

 Now some of you might also have been feeling that as uh as all of these horrific atrocities are happening across the globe, that you're struggling to go on with your daily life. If you are, I can relate to that. What I want to say though is that just as we do not want to support collective guilt or collective punishment, then the same applies to us. It's easy to sometimes feel guilty about finding peace or joy in our day because we know that others may not be able to find that. I understand. However, it serves no one if we neglect our well-being. It serves us all for all of us to take care of our well-being, for all of us to be able to stay strong, to use our voices to uplift ourselves and one another, especially when there are others who are not able to do that. They need us to be there for them.

So if you're feeling heartbroken, frustrated, if you're feeling your hands are tied, please take care of yourselves. Um please find joy. Please find fulfillment in your day as you continue to stand up and to speak up for what you believe is right.

And I want to talk a little bit about the systems that govern us all that I believe are failing and are proving to be ineffective. Now whether we're talking about um the United Nations resolutions, you know sort of nobody's uh able to follow through on them, whether we're talking about democracies, the reality seems to be that the power is in the hands of only a few and that those few are letting Humanity down. They're thriving on manipulating minds, they're creating divisions between people and they're spreading propaganda to spread further hate in the form of unjust and gross generalizations.

So then you have someone like Sam Harris in his podcast Making Sense in an episode entitled The Sin of Moral Equivalence make the statement that (quote) Israel remains a lonely outpost of civilized ethics in the absolute moral wasteland that is the Middle East (unquote) and he tells us that (quote) we have to recognize that there is no moral equivalence now between Israel and her enemies (unquote). How somebody can dare to call an entire region a moral wasteland is completely mind-boggling to me and unacceptable. And that is the reality we live in. Enough is enough.

Why do we even have to have enemies? Why do we have to live in a world, about you know, that's all about war and enemies and "it's your word against mine" or "it's either my way or the highway" and all of those things that we've gotten so accustomed to hearing?

Let's undo the wiring that led us to where we are today. Let's not allow others to divide us. Let's notice the language that is used to describe some groups of people and let's question that and criticize it when it is unjust or wrong.

Why are some people civilized and others barbaric? Who says so and where is the proof? Why are some leaders in governments to be believed without the need for proof and others to be questions questioned and gaslighted even when they provide daily proof? Who decides whether a group of people are terrorists or freedom fighters? Or will they continue to be called terrorists until they win back their freedom and only then be recognized as having been freedom fighters? I've come to the conclusion that we have been naive. We have been expecting countries that have been occupiers and transgressors themselves to uphold international law, including International humanitarian law. We've been expecting them to you know to uphold those laws when they're okay with breaking them themselves.

The reality today seems ridiculous and unimaginable and certainly unacceptable. So what are we going to do about it? Are we going to drown in our sorrow? Are we going to give into our helplessness? Or are we going to have faith in our Humanity, individually and collectively. even if not everybody is on board right now?

So that's where I think the answer is. And I'm especially excited about the younger generation that seem less easily manipulated more self-aware and will be hopefully, you know, will be around longer uh to hopefully reap the benefits of a more peaceful and loving world. A world where there is room for all of us to thrive. A world where our differences are celebrated not punished. A world where each individual recognizes and applies their inner strength and beauty and recognizes the same in their fellow human beings.

Change starts with us and from there it spreads. The world can be a better place and that's up to us. So please remember that each individual counts and that our collective actions do add up. Our words matter.

So when the world seems upside down, please stand right side up and stay standing. And if some days are harder than others that's okay. Do what you need to do, take a break, spend time with your family, with your friends, in nature, focus on work, do whatever you need to do, and then please stand again. Stand for what's right. Stand for yourself. Let all your actions, even f you're not involved in the larger global scale of things, but let your actions be kind, let them be compassionate, let them be peaceful, and loving to other human beings. And widen your circle of humanity to encompass all of your fellow human beings. Recognize the goodness inside each one of us. To me that's the solution, that's the answer to living in a happier, more compassionate, more just world, where freedom and dignity are available for all of us.

It's not a world, I know, I'm not sure if I will see it in my lifetime and that's okay. I've learned that attachment to the outcomes is the most depressing thing to do, so one must do, you know, do what one does, stand for what they believe without attachment to the outcomes. That's what I'm working on. Some days are easier said than done, but let's keep doing that. Let's keep coming together for what's good. Let's keep coming together as one.

This is the shortest episode I'll probably record uh, I'll see you guys in a couple of weeks with a new guest, and please please please give me feedback on the previous episodes. Give me feedback on this podcast. Let me know, are you watching on YouTube or are you listening on one of the podcast platforms? Which one? What's your favorite? What do you think of the episodes so far? What would you like to see in the future? What do you want to hear more of? What do you want to hear less of? And if the platform has an opportunity for you to rate or review the podcast please do. I'd love to hear from you. I look forward to recording more episodes. See you, see you soon. Bye.

[Music] Thank you for tuning in to today's episode. Join me every other Thursday for a new one. Happiness for Humanity is available on YouTube and your favorite podcast platforms. If you've found this episode valuable, please share it. Let's come together for a happier world.  [Music]