Grief and Joy
A reflection from Journey to Joy on how grief and joy are not opposites but interconnected—showing how joy can coexist with loss, not to erase pain but to help sustain us through it.
Grief and joy are often seen as opposites, two emotions that exist on separate planes. But after reading Ross Gay’s Incite Joy with my Journey to Joy class at Penn, I no longer believe that’s true.
What I’ve come to understand is that joy can emerge from grief—born out of deep pain, emotional chaos, or the moments when everything feels lost. Joy doesn’t erase grief or rush it along; instead, it can be a tool, something to hold onto as we navigate the heaviness of loss.
This is the complexity of being human: the capacity to carry both grief and joy, sometimes at the same time. In our class discussions, we reflected on how these emotions are intertwined, shaping and reshaping one another. It’s a reminder that even in our darkest moments, joy can exist—not as a denial of pain but as a way to sustain us through it.
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