Joy Is an Act of Resistance (and Sometimes a GIF War)

The poet Toi Derricotte begins her poem from "The Telly Cycle" with the line: "Joy is an act of resistance."

In the poem, Derricotte writes about her fish, Telly. She places a postcard-sized painting behind his bowl, wondering whether he notices the beauty she has arranged for him. What follows is a tender meditation on wonder, connection, loss, and the tiny moments that make a life feel meaningful. (Curious? You can read the complete poem here.)

Joy is an act of resistance. I find myself thinking about that line a lot lately.

In a world overflowing with politics, productivity hacks, algorithms, breaking news, and endless notifications, I've become increasingly interested in finding small pockets of joy. Tiny acts of connection. Unexpected moments of humanity.

Which brings me to @Joseph Isosaki.

A few weeks ago, Joseph posted something on Skool that may go down as one of the most important contributions to modern civilization:

GIF WARS.

The instructions were simple: "... only GIFS ... this is the best use of your time right now! ... a loving reminder to keep Skool fun!"

Below the post was a GIF of Napoleon Dynamite getting slapped.

I immediately felt called and responded with a GIF of Bruce Lee looking impossibly cool, accompanied by a comment about "an outrageous misuse of productivity."

Unfortunately, I didn't fully understand the assignment. GIFs only. No commentary.

Joseph immediately countered with a cartoon character aggressively shushing me, which made me laugh out loud.

Unfortunately for Joseph, my partner and I had recently rewatched all three Austin Powers films, and suddenly all I could hear was Dr. Evil screaming, "Zip it!" from the depths of my delightfully distracted brain.

And so began a completely unnecessary, deeply important, and wildly entertaining GIF battle, fueled largely by Austin Powers and his wonderfully ridiculous cast of characters.

Twenty GIFs later, I found myself laughing every time I opened Skool between meetings and work tasks.

Joy really is an act of resistance.

The story only got better when Joseph recently posted about a five-day GIF staring contest with @Corinna Smith, complete with a poll asking who would emerge victorious. As far as I know, this contest may still be unfolding somewhere in the depths of Skool, continuing its slow and noble march through internet history.

Naturally, I commented on the post, amused by Joseph's dedication to chaos, mischief, and what I can only describe as world-class tomfoolery.

What happened next caught me completely by surprise. Joseph recorded a personal video message, a simple hello and a quick shout-out to my profile. It was a small gesture, but it carried something larger with it: the reminder that there is a real human being on the other side of the screen. In an online world that can sometimes feel fast, crowded, and impersonal, someone taking a moment to acknowledge another person feels surprisingly meaningful.

The message made me laugh and smile, but more importantly, it made me feel seen. It also made me wonder: does anyone else send personal video messages on Skool? This seems like a powerful, personal way to connect and build relationships.

We spend so much time thinking about growth, engagement, and content, but a simple "I see you. Keep going." can have a bigger impact than we realize. Personal messages take time, but they remind us that there is a real human being behind the profile.

In a world overflowing with content, perhaps attention is one of the greatest gifts we can give.

As I reflected on it afterwards, I found myself thinking about Telly the fish in Derricotte's poem. The placement of the painting behind the fish bowl mattered. Not because the artwork changed the fish's life in any measurable way, but because it represented attention, care, and the willingness to notice another living being. The point was never really the fish bowl. The point was the act of noticing.

Perhaps that is why the poem has stayed with me. In a culture obsessed with efficiency, optimization, productivity, and metrics, choosing joy, play, curiosity, art, kindness, silliness, and connection may be one of the most radical things we can do. These small acts do not always move the needle in obvious ways, but they remind us that we are more than tasks to complete and goals to achieve.

So thank you, Joseph, for the GIF wars, the laughter, and the reminder that communities do not thrive because of algorithms alone. They thrive because people take the time to see one another, to acknowledge one another, and occasionally to engage in completely unnecessary GIF battles that make the workday infinitely better.

In honor of Joseph and his delightful antics, please leave your favourite GIF in the comments below.

No war required. Just joy.

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Joy Is an Act of Resistance (and Sometimes a GIF War)