“Joy is a marvelous increasing of what exists, a pure addition out of nothingness.”
“Right in the difficult we must have our joys, our happiness, our dreams: there against the depth of this background, they stand out, there for the first time we see how beautiful they are.”
Quotes from selected letters of Rainer Maria Rilke
Dear Reader,
What brings you joy?
Maybe it’s a simple question, but I personally wanted to challenge myself and try to think of as many things as I could, write them down and focus on seemingly normal, mundane everyday parts of life. Parts that can bring me a moment of joy if I only pay attention to them. If we are open to experiencing joy, it can happen quite easily. But as we all know, the other side of life - the worries, the burdens, the work, the anxiety, the never-ending tasks - all those can feel crushing at times and make it harder to give joy a chance to enter in.
Joy is such a pure response to, for example, good tasting food, or watching the tulips come up in everyone’s front yard in Spring. Joy can be so simple. Joy doesn’t have to come only from the extraordinary times in our lives. I think joy is meant to be experienced in the ordinary, everyday of life. I have been working on embracing it when it comes, as it often happens spontaneously. I have a long way to go and sometimes I even notice myself brushing the feeling of joy aside as not that important. Almost as if I am scared to feel joy in response to something so simple or mundane. Or maybe because sometimes I am scared to feel any joy at all in a world that often seems so bleak and dominated by stress and worry.
But what would happen if I didn’t do that? What if I gave those small moments and sudden bursts of joy the utmost importance every single day?
I love how Rilke describes it as “a marvelous increasing of what already exists”.
So, for today, I am sharing a rather stream-of-consciousness expression of everything that comes to mind, that I have noticed, that brings me joy, even if only for a few seconds on an ordinary day. Even a few seconds of joy can make a difficult day much more bearable.
I intended to go out this week and take photographs to accompany this post, but I got sick, so sick that I am still stuck in bed only able to imagine the photographs I would have taken in my mind. But at least it is warm enough to keep my bedroom window wide open and feel the Spring breeze come through - a small moment of joy while feeling rather miserable.
Sources of Joy
A quiet moment in the morning doing nothing. And I mean nothing. The smell of Palo Santo.
The fresh green of Spring leaves. The color green.
The color orange, and oranges on orange trees that turn into freshly squeezed juice.
My bare feet on grass. Green grass. I am noticing the colorful tulips. Their stems and leaves are green, too.
Birds singing at dawn. Birds sitting on bird feeders.
Looking up, I see the eagles. They are soaring in the wind with quiet confidence and strength.
I love being in the woods with all the trees, leaves and roots. The roots seen and unseen. A pine tree forest, the best kind of cathedral and the most sacred place of all. The pine cones on the ground and the brown needles all over forming interesting patterns and a surprisingly comfortable blanket to sit on. A windy day, preferably warm and mixed with sun rays, so I can feel the gentle breeze on my skin.
A beautiful handmade mug that I can fill daily with good coffee or golden milk. The yellow of turmeric and the taste of cinnamon. The feeling of comfort when the warm liquid touches my throat.
Window light at golden hour. Windows with pretty views. A view of a wide open field. Trees near and far, no signs of civilizations except some fences to keep the animals close by.
Every time I see an empty field, I want to run. It gives me such a sense of freedom … and joy. Watching my dog run through an empty field is almost the same. Also, her head tilt when I talk to her gets me every time.
Rain patters on the roof at night, like music to my ears, gently calming my nervous system.
In the winter, white and fluffy snowflakes fall in silence, almost cautiously touching the earth. It’s a different, but equally calming experience.
Rain drops slowly running down the window. The swishing of wipers during a rainstorm. The swishing of wipers during a car wash. It’s true, watching car windows during a car wash brings me joy. You should try it next time.
The five senses are such a wonder. And if one gives out, we still have others to feel or see or smell or hear or taste. Herein lie such beautiful gifts often taken for granted.
Clean sheets. The smell and the feel of it. Clean sheets are definitely one of my favorite things in life, even better if dried outside during spring or summer. It’s a joy getting into bed at night.
Clothes lines with colorful cloth pins and sheets drying in the wind, shirts, pants, and dresses, too. The vintage polka dot dress. Polka dots stir up joy immediately.
At the end of the day, the light of a candle. Summer nights, bright and warm, filled with the singing of crickets. Winter nights, too, under a wool blanket with wine or a cup with hot tea and honey.
Hummingbirds. Bumblebees. Wildflowers.
The robin in spring with his orange belly surrounded by green leaves. Green and orange once more. Such bright and happy colors.
Have I mentioned the smell of clean sheets?
Joy is not made to be a crumb
I feel like I am doing a small series on Mary Oliver as this is the third week in a row that I am quoting her, but I can’t quite help it. It’s just too fitting:
“If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happened better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.”
Thank you so much for reading and your ongoing support! This post is public so feel free to share it.
Items of Note:
Workshops:
I am currently planning late summer and fall workshops with the SE Center For Photography, the Los Angeles Center of Photography and Santa Fe Workshops.
I have received some inquiries and dates will hopefully be announced soon. Stay tuned!
Mentoring:
I am still available for mentoring sessions for the month of May and June. For more information on that, you can click here.