Joy

One morning this past week (like many mornings), I was driving my boys to school, only to quickly get to a meeting immediately after drop-off.  My reality is filled with work commitments, volunteer obligations, and family schedules and duties all swirling around in my head at once.  That was my brain heading to this meeting.

So while the endless lists were moving through my head like items on a conveyor belt, I had a moment, a glorious moment.  Moving toward me, in the opposite lane was a gentleman riding his bike.  He was of a "certain" age, close or past my own 49, his silver locks blowing in the wind, he was laden with a backpack and pushing hard with the traffic.  What stopped me to pause was his smile.  He had the biggest ear to ear grin that I have ever seen.  His commute involved only 2 wheels, not 4, he was physically challenging himself and he was in pure bliss.

I felt joy and calm and my list did a full stop.

My strong reaction to this bike riding commuter and his grin forced me to contemplate the thoughts around joy and what they mean.  If you search "joy" it is shocking how we are all searching for it, examining it and exploiting it.  It is my humble opinion that the joy we experience is not internal, (so Fuck that find 'joy in yourself' theory), it is rather a feeling caused by external forces that relate to our senses.  Sight, sound, smell, taste, touch and their finite qualities combined with an outside stimuli create that reaction of joy (pure pleasure, pure peace, pure happiness).  Perhaps if we stop for a moment, for only a few seconds as I did to appreciate that smile, we can let joy be felt.

Make your list, what makes you feel joy?  Here is mine:

Sticking my toes in the sand and feel the water lapping on my feet

The smell of a freshly bathed baby

Holding hands with my best friend

Watching my children sleep

Sitting outside and feeling the sun on my face

A sunset

Don't over analyze your joy, just let it happen.

This blog is dedicated to my friend who continuously reminds me of the little things, and time with her gives me much joy, to A.W., love vagi xo