I spy joy in swinging
It’s been over a month now that I’ve been on this quest to spy joy and I’ve noticed a few things.
1) Joy is most easily and most often found in children. Children are quick to run and laugh and play. They do not hesitate to have a good time. I used to think this was because they aren’t worn down by the pressures and stress we adults shoulder every day. That’s not fully true. Children have their own pressure and stress and although we can see missing recess for a day is a trifle, to them it’s monumental. The difference is they let it go. They sulk and pout for 20 or even 40 minutes, but then it’s gone and forgotten and they’ve found another game to play. And children are transparent: feel joy, smile and laugh; feel sad, cry and pout.
2) The visual effects of joy are fleeting. The expression of it flashes in the glint of an eye, a lift of an eyebrow, a smile that washes over a face before dispersing into a pool of time that quickly becomes the past. If camera isn’t in hand and ready, the moment disappears uncaptured.
3) Joy, while abundant as ever, goes unseen. We’re at a point in time where we seem to be looking for misery. We anticipate sorrow and pain and so we find it. It’s not that there’s any more of it then before, it’s just that we’re choosing to focus on it. Think life isn’t good? Was your coffee warm and satisfying this morning when you took that first sip? Did you enjoy a warm shower and the clean, fresh scent of soap today? Were you greeted with a smile and a hug from your child or spouse or friend or coworker? Did your electricity work this morning? Was the commute to work happily uneventful because your car is reliable? Did you have food to nourish your body and music to soothe your soul? Clothes that are comfortable and warm? We are met with joy and wonder at every turn. If we just allow ourselves to see it we will realize life is a fabulous, marvelous, delicious gift. Savor it. Breathe it into the depths of you and be thankful for every single second. Joy lives.
