Day 7 - Finding Joy is Like a Walk in the Park.

Today is Day 7. 

And it was a walk in the park and dabbling in Photography that added nuggets of Joy to my day. 

Here in Cleveland, Ohio we covered with S.N.O.W - but it is not that pretty just fallen snow, it is the mucky, yucky brown with the occassional yellow spotted snow.  Furthermore, today was a very gray day and I am not exactly sure why I choose to take on "walk through the park" on such a gloomy day - but I am glad I did!  And, I am especially glad that at the last minute, I decided to grab my camera.

Once I got into the park, the mucky, yucky stuff that is all around town, was no where to be seen.  Instead I saw...

I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty and the color.  The orange, yellows, and browns were a vibrant contrast to the snow.  I didn't expect to get many good shots, but I end up with quite a few that I really like.  Yeah!

A simple walk in the park + my camera = JOY!

Day 3 - Searching for Joy in Dance.

Yesterday was DAY 3. 

And yesterday, a few books that I had ordered from Amazon had arrived, and I decided to start reading Life Is A Verb, by Patti Digh.  Throughout the book, Ms. Digh provides activities for the reader.  Ironically, the first activity was about exploring joy through dance.  So, I figured it was clearly a sign from the universe - Dancing would be my joy-inducing activity.

First, it is important to know that I am not a dancer.  I have never really liked going out to clubs, not even in college, when all my friends were "doing it".  Dancing has just never been my thing - in fact we didn't even have any dancing at our wedding.  So dancing definitely takes me out of my element.  With this being said, there have been times when I have turned on some tunes and be-bopped around my house and even, dare I say, "got my groove on!"  So, while dancing is not my thing, it is not a completely far-fetched activity.

So I tuned on my tunes, from my new playlist.  Grabbed my four year old son and we began to dance.  He had a blast wiggling, jumping, spinning, and shaking.  His giggles (and wiggles) should have been contagious.  But they weren't.  I was completely in my head - and was self-conscious about EVERYTHING!

     About my dancing...
     About my body...

     About my crabby mood that wasn't lifting...

     About an anticipated message I hadn't received yet...

     About the presentation I was scheduled to do that night...

     And ESPECIALLY about the Joy that was NOT happening...

And so, my joy-inducing activity ended up inducing the exact opposite.

I became melancholy and sad and began to wonder, if perhaps, I do not know how to let joy into my life.  It felt incredibly defeating. 

Fortunately, this happened in the morning, and in the afternoon I had lots of stuff to do.  So I went about my day and slowly the melancholy lifted.  Then, after successfully completing my presentation last night, I realized that I had been nervous (all day) and felt incredibly vulnerable about sharing my story.  That, compounded by my anxiousness regarding the above mentioned message, foiled my joy.  I was not open to receiving joy - other emotions were in the way.

I recognize that joy can not occur simply because I do a joy inducing activity.  And, I know that my heart has to be open to it. And, I understand that sometimes my heart is closed and, rightly, focused on other matters.

I can NOT force joy.

Which may lead someone to wonder whether or not my joy-inducing activity experiment is worth doing.  I, in fact, wondered the same thing.  But tonight, when my son unexpectedly turned on the twinkle lights while I was sitting at my desk, and I immediately felt a twinge of JOY (and saw a glimmer of happy in his eyes) I had my answer.

So, I am thinking that a Dance-Do-Over is in order!

Day 1 - Finding Joy in Twinkle Lights

Today, I added Twinkle Lights to my office,
(idea shamelessly lifted from www.ordinarycourage.com)


and you know what...

They make me smile.

Yeah! A nugget of  joy added to my world!



And a BONUS...
A snow day with my boys added even more joy...

I officially deem Day 1 a success!

28 Joy-Inducing Activities!

Tomorrow is the February 1st!  And I am ready for 28 days of Joy!  I have made my list of 28 joy-inducing activities - even a chart to keep track of my progress.  I think that this will be fun!

What would you do to add a little more joy in your life?

In Search of JOY in Ordinary Moments

I have decided that during the month of February I am going to focus on adding more joy to my life. Basically, I am going to have a list of simple things that I can do (one each day) to add nuggets of joy to my life. 

I have done some research on joy and found this quote that I love and reminded me about the ordinary moments that are filled with joy...

I think the beauty of twinkle lights is a perfect metaphor for joy.

Joy is not a constant.  It comes to us in moments – often ordinary moments.  Sometimes we miss out on the bursts of joy because we’re too busy chasing down the extraordinary moments.  Other times we’re so afraid of the dark that we don’t dare let ourselves enjoy the light.

A joyful life is not a floodlight of joy.  That would eventually become unbearable.

I believe a joyful life is made up of joyful moments gracefully strung together by trust, gratitude, and inspiration.

~ Brene Brown 

I am looking build a list of 28 things to do (one for each day) to add joy to my life.  Some that I already have on my list are:

• Hang twinkle lights
• Get fresh flowers for my kitchen table
• Get outside and walk through the park (even though February is stinking brrrr here)
• Go sledding with the kids

Also, I plan to begin a gratitude journal and write 3-5 items I am grateful for each night, and I am giving up alcohol (since it is a depressant, thus not joy-inducing) for the month.

So I am curious...

what are some ordinary moments/things that bring you joy?

Perhaps you can help me add to my list.

Thanks!