I finally watched “Inside Out 2” this week now that it dropped on Disney+ and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. I’m a huge fan of the first movie so I went in with high expectations and unlike most sequels, it delivered.
If you watch these movies when you’re in the midst of any healing journey, there will be that one resounding message that’ll stand out to you. I know because I watched both movies with people whose takeaway differed from my own. That’s the beautiful thing about art, it speaks to each of us differently.
Over the last few years I’ve been on a healing journey that took me beyond mending from heartbreak. My 30s have been an era of finding joy again, in career, love, and hobbies. A lot of that work has focused on undoing messages I’d collected from society since childhood.
As I watched the emotions in “Inside Out 2” process some pivotal moments of adolescence, I thought back to the messages I internalized during my own teenage years. If only I knew then what I know now.
But what felt like a punch to the gut was when Joy told some of the other emotions, “Maybe this is what happens when you grow up, you feel less joy.” As someone who’s been reconnecting with joy over the last few years, that one sentence really got me. Life has a way of hardening us. We go through disappointments, stress, overwhelm, grief, and heartbreaks. Those experiences can sometimes make joy feel out of reach. But it’s not. Joy is always there, just waiting to be called upon.
This was a much needed reminder to keep joy at the forefront. Joy isn’t exclusively available when everything is good. It’s there for us through all of life’s ups and downs. Joy is a healing balm, all we have to do is make space for it.
With love,
Kat