100 Posts Later: The Journey of Joe the Human

Reflections on Two Years of Writing a Substack

Welcome to the 100th edition of Joe the Human! A significant milestone!

Caricature of Joe Armstrong by Rebecca Holdak (Please note: that is not a halo!)

From Memoir to Musings: How It All Began

This journey began two years ago, on 3 February 2023, while writing Saved by a Woman, the second memoir in my Losing Religion, Finding Myself series, following the publication of the acclaimed first book in the series In My Gut, I Don’t Believe.

100 Posts of Exploration

Over these 100 posts, I’ve written about difficult mothers—wondering if they’re the last taboo; priests and sexuality, birth and death, the vulnerability of writing memoirs; and what it truly means to be human. I’ve reflected on loss—especially the passing of my wife’s sister, Susan, in 1994, and the profound mark she left on our lives. I’ve delved into procrastination, birdsong, shifting worldviews, belief and unbelief, and unexpected paths of self-discovery.

Music: Another Thread in the Tapestry

Music became part of the journey too, with three song releases—Every Moment, So Glad I Married You, and It’s a Wonderful Life (A Christmas Tale)—written with The Rayne, Andrea Patron, Zac Ware, Corinne Schmidiger, and Paul Statham.

Paul Hulm and I also released a guitar-accompanied version of my poem We Are Leaves.

Along the way, I introduced author-narrated audio recordings of Joe the Human, available through Substack, wherever you get your podcasts, or delivered to your inbox to all subscribers.

Stories That Resonated

One of my most-read posts explored life and legacy: What if this was our last day? I’ve shared deeply personal moments—writing about my brother David, who took his life in 2015, my long drive through Britain last August, and my heart disease diagnosis. These stories resonated widely, sparking some of the most meaningful conversations I’ve had.

Two photographs of my brother David John Armstrong, 28 January 1955 - 23 March 2015, from his funeral ceremony in England.

Quo Vadis? The Search for Meaning

My interest is humanity—what it means to be human and our search for meaning. I’m convinced that we make our own meaning. Many, perhaps most, accept a meaning imposed from without, be it religion, money, or status.

I’ve always been drawn to those who rebel against received meaning. Like Diogenes, unimpressed by power, who asked Alexander the Great, the supposedly all-powerful world leader, to move aside because he was blocking the sun’s warmth.

Perhaps that’s why the figure of Jesus attracted me in my youth. He was a rebel, unimpressed by material wealth; and he exposed the hypocrisy of religious leaders. And yet, in moments of darkness and sorrow, he wept and worried—fully human.

I find significance in the ordinary and the banal, in the small things that shape our lives. I like the Irish saying that you never see a hearse with a trailer. Death, the great leveller, renders our pursuits of power and riches meaningless in the end.

That’s why I love Shelley’s Ozymandias—a testament to the folly of power, as we see the broken statue of a once-mighty ruler, his empire reduced to dust, his arrogance eroded by time.

Beyond Religion and Humanism

Having been deceived by religion—indoctrinated into it from childhood—I grieve that whole new generations are being taught the same lies as truth. But I’ve also been disillusioned by Humanism and Humanist organisations. Perhaps that, in part, explains the title of my Substack: Joe the Human, not Joe the Humanist. (The other part is that my good friend Bob’s nickname for me, which I liked, was Joe the Human!)

A World in Turmoil

I am appalled by what is happening in Gaza and in the USA. I cannot understand how Americans can take pride in a country that permits people to be summarily sacked—and losing their health insurance hours later—after dedicating their lives to feeding the hungry, tending the sick, and sheltering the homeless poor.

Yeats wrote in The Second Coming of the best lacking all conviction while the worst were filled with passionate intensity. A powerful poem, one of my favourites.

Many times in history, things have seemed to fall apart. Perhaps never more so than during the World Wars of the 20th century. The natural drift of things is towards chaos—as evidenced by the diminishing but still formidable stacks of files and folders on my office floor. I’m working my way through them!

Thank You, Readers and Listeners!

The words, and the eyes, say it all: Thank you! Photo by Howie R on Unsplash

So here we are at 100. Thank you for being here. For engaging with my posts—whether you’ve emailed me privately, phoned, messaged, met with me, liked or shared a post, or joined the conversation on Substack, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, BlueSky, Threads, or Twitter/X.

Thanks to each of you—whether you read, listen, follow, or subscribe as a free or paid supporter. And a special thank you to those who contribute financially, not least because your only extra benefit is knowing you encourage me to keep writing!

Here’s to the next 100.

Happy days,

Joe

Joe’s acclaimed first memoir In My Gut, I Don’t Believe is available on Amazon in Kindle, Paperback, Hardback and Audible editions. His second memoir Saved by a Woman is available on Amazon in Kindle, Paperback, and Hardback editions.