Isn’t it Ironic? Don’t you think?
One of the most photographed places in the beautiful paradise of Coron is the Kayangan Lake. If you’ve ever been to that gorgeous island of Palawan, a photograph with this enchanting lake as your backdrop seems to be a mandatory turista shot.
But to me, what makes this body of water extra special is the fact that it is brackish –70 % fresh water and 30 % salt water. A lot of people including myself who’ve been to Coron would always say that God resides in that paradise. And if He really is there, He might be telling us a great deal when He mixed those two bodies of water into one. Maybe, He is showing us that two seemingly contrasting elements can co-exist as one and that paradise isn’t just a world where every thing is neatly placed in their own respective tribes but is also a magnificent realm of paradox just like this photogenic lake. It’s as if it’s corroborating my lifelong recurring take on life with all of its complexities — that it is indeed ironic.
With every joy comes a dimension of sadness. Goodness is evil choosing an otherwise path. You learn to be just by not depending on ordinary justice. There’s so much to hear in our silence than when the world says things out loud. Seeking security makes us even more insecure. You become more by becoming less.
It’s the polarities that make up our lives. The yin and the yang. The two ends of the spectrum are actually twins separated by birth conditioned to believe that they are up against each other. But in every classic tale of good versus evil, the hero and the villain are ultimately one.
Does this not ring a bell, fellow Potterheads?
Harry in all of his Gryffindor-ness is more Slytherin than how much Slytherin, Malfoy could get. Plot wise, yes, it is because Harry is Voldemort’s hocrux. But in a dramaturgical and poetic sense, Harry — just like all of us — has a shadow self.
We all have our Voldemorts. And had Rowling opted for an edgier and non-restorative path putting “anti” into her own “hero”, her best-seller could’ve ended up like most legislators in the current Filipino Senate. It could’ve been an ugly finale with a bald Harry left with nothing but nostrils and a powerful elder wand.
Irony is an apparent truth. I couldn’t think of anything truer than life’s paradox. You know when you have one of those moments when you wish to have learned something earlier in your life? This is one of them to me. I wish I was oriented about this when I was younger. I wish I have accepted this norm way way back. Because it is a complete life-saver to know that nothing is absolute or one dimensional. That two opposing creatures could actually be alone together and peacefully respect the room they’re both in.
If I were to debrief myself now at 27, I would tell myself that life isn’t a journey of cause and effect. I would even go as bold as demystifying the law of attraction because I am pretty certain like doesn’t necessarily attract like. I can go as far as questioning Newton’s Law of Motion — that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Or simply forget that one plus one always results to two.
This is not much of a new insight. We’ve probably heard it all. To expect the worst or to expect nothing at all. Pretty depressing thoughts that take away our awe and zest for life and which conditions us to think that being jaded is a sign of coolness or maturity.
But so much of these aren’t about skepticism or pragmatism or feeling betrayed by the very laws that operate the Universe. Life as a crazy web of unpredictability rather than an anal, singular path is probably the most comforting truth you could tell your anxious self. It isn’t as limiting as expecting the worst but rather an expansion of our little minds towards realizing that “worst”, “worse”, “best” and “better” could actually mix in a field of unlimited possibilities as how Deepak Chopra always puts it.
When we start looking at our misfortunes as life’s paradox in action, then we could free ourselves from the shackles of victim mentality and simply take charge of our own lives. Irony disciplines us to stop the blame game and surprisingly find ourselves much more in alignment when we accept that we live in a world of organized chaos. It relieves us from the burden of control and makes our hearts more open to whatever it is thrown our way. The fact is that there is no absolute fact. That we don’t know anything for sure. Because irony would find a way to jolt us from our routines and comfort zones and push us to veer away from the elementary and uptight mindset of cause and effect, root to fruit, and the absolutely good hero versus the unreasonably bad villain. Hey, by now we know that Maleficent is more than just a witch with horns but a fearful fairy whose wings was taken away by a harsh world (or more of a dick, paasang, wannabe King, for that matter. nagmahal lang naman si Maleficent grabe kayo sa kanya!) .
But does this mean we feign that something isn’t so bad when it actually is? To never combat an unfair and illogical fucked up blow of life because life is ironic and we can’t do anything about it? To just let life make fools out of us? Or to let apparent villains in the government easily off the hook and try to find the retelling of their own Maleficent stories? For instance, if we discover the contrasting layers of a corrupt dictator’s story before the story, does that mean we can already accept his burial to a soil intended for heroes and let our forgiveness bail him and his family out of their accountabilities?
Should irony become an excuse to turn a blind eye?
There is a difference between letting things be for clarity and being plain apathetic. There is a difference between an active and versatile “It is what it is. It may not make sense now or may never make sense at all but I am moving forward and inviting myself into a quest where irony shall lead me to an interesting destination my limited mind and ego would’ve never imagined possible.” than a passive and weary “That’s just the way it is.”
In every encounter we have with irony, may it help us to not demand the world to be perfect but to deal with it perfectly in all of its flaws. May all our what-the-fuck-just-happened moments simply teach us that the best way to change the world is to stop trying hard to change it and to let the acceptance of irony be our first step to truly right the wrongs.
It is working your ass off and going the extra mile yet not yield the results you have in mind, but still be able to give yourself a light pat on the back and tell you how proud you are of you rather than succumbing into the black hole of pity party while you browse your social media feeds and curse on influencers and vloggers who have it better despite their seemingly easy and nonsensical jobs that earn them millions. I will never have an explanation why they have all these fortunes, while you’re confined on that cubicle or in a job that takes away three hours from your sleep or your precious weekend while David Guison and his gang could travel across Europe and lounge in front of a breathtaking beach from Monday to Friday, and get paid for it. Maybe they are simply blest. Maybe it’s luck. Maybe they are really talented. Maybe they really do work hard. Remember that what we see is only what’s within the confines of one Instagram frame. Or maybe… God — faithful as He may be, and no matter how much He loves us — is like the matriarch of the Salazar Sisters who plays favorites. Maybe it’s easier to accept things that way, even! To not expect too much from the Big Guy up there. Maybe God Himself is ironic. He is almighty but His power has its limits. He is goodness and love but He can’t prevent evil. And all these might have a purpose our human minds could never fathom. After all, what makes God fascinating is He is both absolute and a mystery.
But regardless of where irony leads you, my hope is that may it guide you to be kinder to others and more so, kinder to ourselves. It is compassion in action — within and without. It is swimming in all these inconsistencies like you would, the Kayangan Lake, and realize that brackish as life may be, it will always be a beautifully fucked up paradise to live in.
And maybe, just maybe, you’ll realize that you are not the paradox. You are beyond it.
