A little of My Joy
While it’s absolutely true that the holidays do not bring joy for everyone, and that there are many people grieving or struggling and for whom the holiday season surfaces sad or painful emotions, for many people, the Christmas season is associated with Joy. On this Christmas edition of our weekly blog, let me share a little of my joy, and perhaps somewhere in this list, you’ll find something that lifts your spirits and brings a smile to your face, which you can then share with those around you!
Mondays
It seems strange to be thinking about Monday on a holiday Friday, but there’s something about a fresh start that can bring joy. May you look ahead to Monday’s new week with joy!
The Monday after next begins a new working year. A fresh page on the calendar – and likely even a whole new calendar! I’m finding joy in this promise of a new, clean slate, a chance to start something new, build something, fix or restore something, learn something.
May next Monday, and the New Year it brings, also bring you the joy of a fresh start! Take a moment these next two Mondays to be joyful at the new beginning.
Washing Dishes
Finding joy in everyday tasks makes those same tasks even more fun. Doing dishes is a task that offers a variety of potential sources of joy. Maybe it’s the fun of playing with a stray bubble as it floats away, or the joy of knowing there was food to eat and loved ones to share it with.
Maybe you find joy as you think back on favorite meals over the years, or the joy of washing dishes in your new place for the first time, or picking out dishes for wedding gifts, for example.
And if nothing else, the dish soap Joy has been causing us to stop and think about joy, just by the power of suggestion. Here’s wishing you joy as you wash dishes!
Fuzzy Blankets
Whether it’s fuzzy blankets, fuzzy slippers, or a favorite fuzzy sweatshirt, sometimes we can find joy in the little things, especially when they wrap us in warmth!
I’ve got Christmas jammies that are soft and warm and bring me back to fond childhood memories of new jammies for Christmas.
If fuzzy blankets bring you joy, then I encourage you to find a moment to curl up and savor that enveloping warmth. If you’re able to enjoy a day off, then stop and find joy in being in slippers rather than in work shoes, and savor the joy of that.
Serving Others
Whether it’s the gift-giving often associated with the holidays, the additional charitable donations so often made this time of year, the volunteer hours in some act of community service, or even in looking out for those in your household, serving others is a great way to find joy this season.
By setting aside our own self-focus for a bit, and focusing our energies on helping others, we find joy in the pursuit of their joy as well as in the realization of it. Sometime over the next couple of days, think of something you can do for someone else, and be joyful about it.
Connecting
This year has made physical, in-person connections exceptionally difficult, and impossible for many. But there are still phones, letters, cards, and other ways to connect with those you care about and those who care about you.
We’ll be celebrating with our extended family over Zoom this year, and I’m looking forward to still being able to see faces and share greetings, even if we can’t be together in person.
Find your own joy by reaching out to someone you care about. Connect with them by text or phone or video or whatever method you can, to let them know that you care. The anticipation and the connection are both joyful, and I hope that you experience both.
Memories
Keepsake ornaments, family traditions, moments to reminisce, these can help us find joyful memories. Memories of the journey that has made us who we are today. Memories of the people we have loved and the moments we’ve experienced. Memories of the things we’ve learned and the challenges that helped us grow.
Finding joy in memories can help us look back fondly, and it can also help us move forward confidently, knowing that more great future memories are waiting to be discovered. I hope you have a chance to savor fond memories this day!
And on a very personal note, I would add just one more…
Christmas Carols
I delight in the bells and choirs and resounding melodies of Christmas. I find joy in the triumphant notes of “Joy to the World”, and in the soaring Glorias of “Angels We Have Heard on High”. I find joy in the quiet promise of “O Little Town of Bethlehem” and the joyful image of a newborn baby in “Away in a Manger”. And holding a candle singing “Silent Night” fills my heart with joyful hope.
For me, music brings joy, and perhaps that is true for you as well. But even deeper than that, these particular songs fill my heart with the joy of my salvation. The truth of a God who loves us so much that He desires a personal relationship with us, and that He sent His Son to walk this Earth that we might know him and come to seek Him as He seeks us, and that He chose to give His life that we might find eternal life in Him. That, my friends, is joy.
My friends, I wish you joy this day, and the days that follow. I hope that something in this list inspires you to find joy in the things that surround you and use that joy to brighten someone else’s day, too!
Merry Christmas from all of us at Your Clear Next Step.\
