In a time when fear and depression seem to be in a more plentiful supply than they have in years, a survey of visitors to ISpyJoy.com reveals the recession-proof sources of joy. Topping the list for what brings people joy are family, friends and pets. The best ways to spread joy to others? Offering a smile, being kind and listening.

These results remind us—and now is a good time to be reminded—that the greatest sources of joy come from being in the moment with our loved ones. And it’s also timely to note that, while ideally we should enjoy what we do for a living, our core happiness is much less dependant on our jobs than it is on things like being in nature, a walk through your city or reading a good book.

See the complete results of the survey here.

I don’t know a single child that hasn’t heard of Green Eggs and Ham or sock-wearing foxes. Dr. Seuss, whose birthday was March 2nd, has touched the lives of hundreds of millions of children and adults alike.

As we gathered at Hough Elementary for Read Across America to celebrate what very well may be the best-read children’s author of all time, the joy of words (non-sensical or not) was evident. Families came together to create books and share time and space and laughter. Those of us with a leaning toward whimsy and magic could just almost swear that wildly imaginative spirit popped up here and there among paper and crayons.

Happy birthday, Theodor Seuss Geisel. We sure are glad you came.

The benefits of music are many. Music can elevate your mood, enhance your immune system, stimulate your brain and even change the beating of your heart in proportion to the tempo. And that’s just listening to it. Making music, being the vessel it flows through, is nothing short of rapturous.
This is my seven-year-old son on music.

Joy lives!

Macaroni and cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, warm chocolate chip cookies with a tall glass of milk, chicken noodle soup and teddy bears — these are some of the great comforters of our young lives. Many of which endure well into adulthood. (I’m 40 and most of these bring me that wrapped-in-a-blanket feeling to this day.)

This may be why Hough Elementary, where both my kids attend school, hosts a Teddy Bear Picnic once a year। Children are able to bring their bears (or any other stuffed animal, for that matter) to school, sit the cuddly critters next to them during class and bring them to the cafeteria for a lunch of deli sandwiches and teddy bear graham crackers. The kids love it. “It’s one of their favorite days of the year,” attests Candy Wallis, Hough Para-Professional, cross-walk attendant and joy-spreader extraordinaire.

Standing in the classrooms and seeing so many children proudly introducing their little bundles of comfort to their classmates brings a smile to even the most weary of parents, hustling through the morning hoping to get to work on time; not to mention what it does for the children.

But Hough is a school where 62% of the children are eligible for free or reduced lunches, and there are plenty of bearless arms. Enter Dave Lafayette (pictured here); parent, school volunteer and Senior VP of Language Fusion. Just after the tardy bell rings and children are settling into their seats, Dave is delivering a bag full of bears for those children who have come to school empty handed.

On the surface, having a teddy bear next to you during class and at lunch may not seem all that important. And certainly, there are kids who choose not to bring a furry friend to school even though they have many sitting on their beds and shelves at home. To some kids, however, this extra bit of comfort and cuddling goes a long, long way. The bears that are handed out to children without get to go home with them. Who knows how many hours and days and nights of comfort and joy they will provide? Even if it were only one, it would be enough.

Driving to KATU Tuesday to pick up the March for Babies DVD they so wonderfully produced (KATU is the TV sponsor for March for Babies – the main fundraiser for March of Dimes), I saw a mass of pink off to the left. The entirely pink building drew my attention away from oncoming traffic, as I believe it would most people, and I saw a funky little sign that said Voodoo Doughnuts.I’ve seen them on the news and came away with the impression that Voodoo Doughnuts is somewhat of a famous (or is it infamous?) place. So, on the way back to March of Dimes I stopped in to see for myself. There were maple bars with bacon on top, chocolate cake doughnuts with cocoa puffs imbedded in fudge frosting — all kinds of wonders that Dunkin never dreamed of.

Then I saw it. On top of the counter was this 3-gallon bucket of day-old doughnuts. For $5. Now, I ask you, how can you possibly pass that up? Huh? All the way back to the office the sweet smell of doughnuts filled my mommy-van. I could barely contain myself and immediately as I entered the office door the bucket was spotted. Shrieks of delight (many of them coming from me) were heard by (probably) the whole floor. It was a bucket-o-doughnuts joy fest. We spread out our booty on the conference room table and oohed and ahhed our way through taste after taste.

Last night a group of friends took a cooking class together. This was no ordinary cooking class. It wasn’t held in a restaurant, it was held in a lovely Victorian home. Well, it’s probably more accurate to say it was held in a stunning Victorian home. The class for six was purchased at a charity auction for the Hough Foundation, where it was donated by Greg and Betsy Hatton. Betsy herself prepared and led the class in her home.We six students sipped Greek wine and noshed on braised olives and humus while we prepared a fabulous meal of mizirthra and pine nut orzo with skewered shrimp, scallops and halibut. For dessert we had a heavenly baklava.

The cooking was fun, the conversation lively and the victuals divine.

Last week when we were swimming in snow my kids were able to make a decent snowman for the first time since I don’t know when. They had so much fun rolling and rolling a snowball until it was big enough to be considered a body part.

We were inspired by the neighbors who had not one, but two snowpeople in their yard – a snow woman and a snow David (yes, like the famous sculpture). After taking a closer look at the anatomically correct snow woman across the street my daughter insisted we add breasts to our snow(wo)man; which ended up looking a lot more like a poor imitation of a Picasso than a Michelangelo. Ah, well – a joyous time was had by all, and no one lost an ear.

Last week I had to walk out of the house and into the middle of the street to appreciate this amazing scene. And I mean I had to.  I was compelled to watch with awe the way this most unusual mix of clouds was lit up by the setting sun.  I have never seen anything like it.  Our neighbors from across the street came out to enjoy it, too. We stood together, called out by the brilliance of mother nature, watching until the colors faded to gray.

As I looked to the sky, I was reminded of how rich my life really is.  How rich we all are, to live on this earth, in this time, surrounded by beauty.  We have so much more than we know, so much more than we realize or acknowledge.  Until a night like this one, when we are so boldly reminded of the wealth and opulence that lies before us.