Many of us treat joy like our mothers treat “the good silverware” — only brought out for special occasions. “The tyranny of when” – the idea that we will only be happy “when” we’ve lost weight, gone for that dream vacation, got a better job, or it’s your birthday.
We tend to wait for these Hollywood moments, thinking they will make our lives wonderful – and they do. But they’re also, by definition, extremely rare and fleeting, and sometimes never even come about.
But investing your happiness in a few key dates is like choosing to see in only black and white; it misses a whole rainbow of tiny joys buried in your daily life.
Savoring the small moments is although cliche advice. But the actual challenge is identifying what brings you joy and building the discipline to continually prioritize it. It could be savoring a cup of freshly brewed coffee without looking at your phone, cooking a good meal, spotting new flowers and birds, a leisurely walk in the park; or calling old friends and family members, etc. We simply don’t prioritize these things.
We recently moved to a new home. A few days back when we were just stepping out, a kid came running from the above floor. It seemed he was rushing out to play but he stopped in front of us and asked
Are you the new people who have moved in?
Yes, we replied, a bit perplexed.
He self-invited himself inside the house to take a peek, while we stood at the doorway.
You haven’t opened all your boxes, yet?
Ummm, no, we are still in the process of moving in.
Ok, ok. Nice house. Bye and off he went rushing towards the playground without waiting for a reply. It took us a few moments to get back to our normal selves.
Here we were dodging our neighbors every time we entered or exited from home. He definitely left us with a smile.
While I’m not inspired to do this with our neighbors. But this reminded me of all the crazy, silly, completely out-of-the-world questions and activities, I’ve seen kids do. How often do we approach life as excited, daring, spontaneous child?
Everyone, everywhere wants to know how to lead a more meaningful, joy-filled, connected, and creative life and they deserve to.
From time to time in this crazy and chaotic spin we call life, we need to pause, reflect and truly begin again. In a world where value is often given to things that generate applause, it’s tempting to seek approval from others. It is indeed chasing after the wind.
Joy lurks in every mundane thing, just waiting to be found.
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