Embracing Joy

Life has taught me that joy is not something that simply happens to us. We must cultivate joy each day, through intention, mind set, observance, gratitude, and action. Seems like a big project? Well, let’s be honest, with our busy lives, cultivating joy can be a difficult habit to create. But while the habit of embracing joy might be a journey, the people, things, and circumstances that cause true joy are all around us. Marcel Proust captured it perfectly in one of my favorite quotes.

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

Several years ago, I realized I was rarely able to connect with joy. In January 2018, I began a journey to “embrace joy” on a daily basis. I had been living my life seeking and expecting joy in monumental moments. Today, my highest goal is to feel joy in the absence of monumental moments…to look for and recognize joy in both the ordinary and extraordinary moments I experience each day.

While I’m a Joy Advocate, I certainly don’t claim to be a Joy Expert. I hope each of you use any posts for food for thought on your personal joy journey and share your insights on what brings you joy, because joy, like a smile, is contagious!

So the other day I was thrilled, really THRILLED, to pull a sweater out of my closet and find my You Are Beautiful pin that I feared was lost forever. It’s only a $10 pin, but I was a happy as if I discovered a piece of jewelry worth 100 times the value. My joy stemmed not only from finding something I was disappointed in losing, but also in re-claiming the message that I so value. I LOVE that when someone reads this little pin they are reminded of their beauty…just for being. Think about it. How often are we told we are beautiful? If you’re not familiar with the You Are Beautiful art installations by artist Matthew Hoffman, I hope you check it out at www.you-are-beautiful.com.

Have you recently found something you lost that sparked JOY in an unexpected way?

CINDY SPECHT

CINDY SPECHT

Embrace Joy Blog

CINDY SPECHT

Embracing Joy

The Joy of Found