'What Would You Do if This Waddled Up to You?': 17 Hopecore Memes to Kick Off the Workweek on a Hopeful Note

Olivia Arocena • Writer and Editor

Oct 20, 2026 9:15 AM EDT

Hopecore: combating cringe one meme at a time

Sharing a sincere motivational quote can sometimes feel cringe. We've all seen our aunts or socially inadequate friends do it; it's not cool. You're having an awful time, and it shows. I know people say it's okay not to be okay, but making it so public isn't really that necessary.

Put the same quote over an absurd image, a strange, photoshopped animal, or a deliberately low-quality edit, and everything feels different. Now it's clear that you get how cringe it is. You still want to spread the message of love, though, but in a much cooler way.

Truth is, we're all going through something, and it's nice to hear kind words that make you feel like everything is gonna be okay. Seeing this type of meme creates a weird, like, parasocial intimacy, because their words feel like they are from someone who knows you really well and knows what you're going through.

I guess that happens because we all go through pretty much the same struggles privately. Maybe, if we're not actively talking about them with a friend, we come across a hopecore meme, feel understood, and it brightens our day. That has always been my motivation for posting these lists.

My motivation for the SpongeBob weekly meme lists is the same: both hopecore memes and SpongeBob have the same vibe for me, even though SpongeBob memes are not directly motivational.

Not only are we combating cringeposting one hopecore meme at a time, but also combating optimization culture. These memes are about enjoying the little things and finding beauty in life as it is; by posting or enjoying them, we're fighting the constant posts on every social media platform about how much more we should earn, work out, or eat protein.

Every Tuesday, we can enjoy this meme list that is supposed to challenge the idea that every waking moment of our lives should be dedicated to self-optimization.

In my mind, this type of internet post is building a shared visual language for tenderness, vulnerability, and the desire to keep going. We're challenging the constant irony that's plaguing everything, and we're doing it not by promising that everything will be perfect in the future, but by teaching us to appreciate the present, with all its defects.

Not everything has to teach us a lesson or make a profit; we can choose to exist and enjoy how marvelous life is. We've been sold on this idea of success, which has been time and time again proved wrong. Nothing changes when you get the Oscar or the sports car if you didn't learn to appreciate life as it is. You'll still have to learn to do that once you get it, because you spent all your time focused on chasing it and forgot to appreciate what you had.

I hope these ridiculous weekly meme lists are your reminders to slow down and enjoy the ride! You already have many things your old self would do anything for!