1342: And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So by Wendy Xu

Summary

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The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

Episode 1342: And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So by Wendy Xu
Host: Maggie Smith
Date: September 1, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, host Maggie Smith explores the powerful notion that joy itself is a form of resistance—especially in difficult times. She reflects on finding moments of joy and gratitude in a turbulent world, inviting listeners to consider how cultivating joy can be a vital, transformative force. Smith introduces and reads Wendy Xu’s poem "And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So," which offers a playful, poignant meditation on togetherness, hope, and the ordinary magic found in daily life.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Banner: "Joy is an act of resistance"

(01:08 – 03:00)

• Maggie shares that she has a banner with this phrase, inspired by poet Toi Derricotte, hanging in her front window.
• The banner sparks questions from visitors—especially contractors—about what the phrase means.
• Maggie welcomes these conversations and explains the importance of clinging to joy amidst adversity.

“We stood in my front yard and talked about the importance of holding tightly to joy even in difficult times. Maybe especially in difficult times, when forces are conspiring to make you feel small and helpless, to make you feel like your one life doesn’t matter.”
—Maggie Smith (01:58)

Finding Joy During Global Hardship

(03:00 – 04:10)

• Maggie acknowledges the tension between personal happiness and global suffering.
• She insists that engaging in joy is not ignorance but a deliberate act of hope and resilience.
• It is possible and necessary to advocate for change while also refusing to be consumed by cynicism or numbness.

"We can call our representatives, we can protest, we can volunteer or donate to causes we believe in. And we can enjoy our lives and refuse to become cynical or despairing or just plain numb."
—Maggie Smith (03:32)

• Joyful people are, Maggie suggests, more awake and engaged—less easy to control.

Introduction to Today’s Poem

(04:10 – 04:50)

• Maggie frames Wendy Xu’s poem as a timely meditation on holding each other and joy close when the wider world feels heavy and dismal.

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Featured Poem:

"And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So" by Wendy Xu

(04:50 – 06:10)

The poem itself is playful and enigmatic, filled with startling, lively imagery:

• References to “exploding into other things,” running outside to hug, and “romance as a grotto of eager stones.”
• Xu offers lines like “Your confetti tongue explodes into acid jazz,” and “the trees go on waving their broken little hands.”
• The poem foregrounds the ordinary—packing, farewells, cucumber noodles, dismantled furniture—in a world that feels uncertain.
• Central message: Even when things might go wrong, choosing connection and wonder can make reality “less bleak.”

Memorable lines:

"It is hard to pack for the rest of your life. Someone is always eating cold cucumber noodles. Someone will drop by later to help dismantle some furniture."
— Wendy Xu (05:55)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On joy as resistance:

  "I want to move through the world with a sense of gratitude for my life, and I want to feel as alive as possible when the world is on fire."
  — Maggie Smith (02:29)

• On collective action and personal joy:

  "Cynical, despairing, numbed out people are easier to control than people who are in love with their lives, who see possibility in the world, and who are wide awake for it all."
  — Maggie Smith (03:54)

• On transformation through attention:

  "Today’s poem so beautifully addresses the importance of holding on to joy and onto one another when the world feels dismal."
  — Maggie Smith (04:24)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• (01:08) Maggie Smith’s welcome, banner story, and Toi Derricotte quote
• (02:29) Reflection on insisting on joy even when the world is difficult
• (03:32) Balancing activism and personal joy
• (03:54) The danger of becoming numb; the importance of staying awake to possibility
• (04:24) Introduction to the featured poem
• (04:50 – 06:10) Reading of “And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So” by Wendy Xu

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Tone & Atmosphere

Warm, contemplative, and gently persuasive, Maggie Smith’s delivery invites listeners to consider both the beauty and necessity of joy—and how poetry can help us see the world with renewed hope. Wendy Xu’s poem embodies an irrepressible, slightly surreal vibrancy, encouraging a sense of playful resilience.

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Conclusion

This episode of The Slowdown is a gentle call to notice, savor, and defend moments of joy amid uncertainty and challenge. Maggie Smith’s reflection and Wendy Xu’s poem together remind the listener: life is bleak only if we accept bleakness; community, creativity, and attention are acts of hope.

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For more poems and reflections, sign up for The Slowdown’s newsletter at slowdownshow.org or find them on Instagram @slowdownshow.

Transcript

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[Maggie Smith]

I'm Maggie Smith, and this is the Slowdown. I have a banner that hangs in one of my front windows, so it's one of the first things you see when you visit my house. The banner reads, joy is an act of resistance. It's a line from a poem by Toy Derricott and a line I find myself quoting and thinking about weekly, if not daily. What I didn't expect was that this banner would become a conversation starter. I'm sure plenty of people have noticed it and wondered about it, but some have actually asked. Because my house is a hundred years old, there's a steady stream of contractors coming through, plumbers, electricians, handy men, and handy women. A few years ago, an electrician eyed the banner and said, joy is an act of resistance. What does that mean? I was thrilled that he asked. We stood in my front yard and talked about the importance of holding tightly to joy even in difficult times. Maybe especially in difficult times, when forces are conspiring to make you feel small and helpless, to make you feel like your one life doesn't matter. The thing you can control is how you move through the world. I want to move through the world with a sense of gratitude for my life, and I want to feel as alive as possible when the world is on fire. It can feel frivolous to go dancing, to go to concerts, to host parties, to take vacations. How can we be experiencing joy when so many others are suffering? How can we be spending our time and energy on pleasure when there is so much pain in the world? I don't think it's either or. We can call our representatives, we can protest, we can volunteer or donate to causes we believe in. And we can enjoy our lives and refuse to become cynical or despairing or just plain numb. Cynical, despairing, numbed out people are easier to control than people who are in love with their lives, who see possibility in the world, and who are wide awake for it all. Today's poem so beautifully addresses the importance of holding on to joy and onto one another when the world feels dismal. And then it was less bleak because we said so By Wendy Hsu Today There has been so much talk of things exploding into other things, so much that we all become curious that we all run outside into the hot streets and hug. Romance is a grotto of eager stones anticipating light, or a girl whose teeth you can always see with more sparkle and pop is the only way to live. Your confetti tongue explodes into acid jazz. Small typewriters that other people keep in their eyes click away at all our farewell parties. It is hard to pack for the rest of your life. Someone is always eating cold cucumber noodles. Someone will drop by later to help dismantle some furniture. A lot can go wrong if you sleep or think, but the trees go on waving their broken little hands. The Slowdown is a production of American Public Media in partnership with the Poetry Foundation. To get a poem delivered to you daily, go to slowdownshow.org and sign up for our newsletter. And find us on Instagram @downdownshow and [e-mail].

[Emily Hanford]

The Trump administration is making deep cuts to education research.

[Maggie Smith]

The cancellation notices started coming. When the contract is cut, the study just dies.

[Emily Hanford]

It's all happening just as schools are trying to make use of research to improve reading instruction.

[Maggie Smith]

There would not have been a Science of Reading without the federal funding. It wouldn't have happened.

[Emily Hanford]

I'm Emily Hanford. On our new episode of Sold A what the Trump Cuts Mean for the Science of Reading. Go to your podcast app and follow Sold A Story.