Continuing to create through crisis

Hello Patrons!

I just uploaded a new film on the channel, I hope you enjoy! I've been making myself laugh a lot with the last couple, sometimes you gotta just let yourself get really stupid. This leads me to something I want to talk about.

With the current situation in the world, and especially the United States, there's been a lot of opinions popping up on my social media. I see a lot of rhetoric about how people should stop posting and creators should stop sharing their creations, to give room for the protests. I don't agree with this at all.

When my dad passed away, creating and sharing what I created was the thing that kept me sane. If I wasn't creating and laughing, I was depressed and sulking. That continues to be the case. And for the last couple days I let these peoples' opinions get me down. If I stop creating, it doesn't mean I'm suddenly gonna change the world, it just means I'm gonna fall into a depressive hole, which I'm sure is the case for many people struggling with loss or mental illness who use creation to heal.

One of my least favorite things in the world is discouragement, and discouragement for a cause is still discouragement.

As it stands, I'm a small channel. I'm not making enough money to support myself, let alone to donate or support others. But, the channel is growing everyday. And if I keep pushing and keep creating, I know I can grow to a point where I can make a difference. In my eyes, it would be foolish for me to slow down, because it just delays my reaching that crucial point.

Filming this latest upload last night really helped me get out of a hole, as well as editing it today. I think levity is key to anything serious. I hope my content can provide you moments to breath and feel something different, like creating it does for me.

With all of this said, thank you so much for your continued support.

Love, Joel Haver

PS: I'm super excited to announce that my next feature, Pretend That You Love Me, is nearly complete. If all goes well, it could be up on the channel as soon as next week.