About Joy series part 4: Quiet joy

For this final post about joy, I’d like to keep things simple. I hope these posts about joy - Joy Defined, Joy on a Leash, and Unselfish Joy - have been as helpful to you as they have been to me. The act of writing is itself instructive, so I encourage you to take a shot at writing your own thoughts about how to encompass joy as we set sail into the new year.  In doing so, you will make the world a better place not only for yourself but for those around you. Joy makes things better.
 
What I have learned, and have begun to work on over the last few weeks, is the imperative of intentional joy. When we actively turn from fear towards gratitude, when we make joy and gratitude a daily practice, it begins to become a habit. We need to pay joy attention.
 
The internet spouts a lot of joyful messaging. I am often warmed and heartened by social media posts, but much of it is hollow, aggressive, loud, frantic, too much. It can elicit the opposite of sympathetic joy - envy, resentment, despair. Break free. Leave your phone, your tablet, your smart watch, your laptop – behind, and go into the world, your world, the one right there. Find joy at your fingertips, at your feet, all around you. The smell of coffee brewing, the soft breathing of a sleeping dog, cozy socks, a warm bath.
 
The best kind of joy arrives quietly, during unsuspecting moments of peaceful contemplation, silent moments. Step away from the internet, from the chaos of your kitchen, your job, your household, the world…and find quiet joy in your mind.
 
The world is riven with heartbreak, cruelty, violence, fear. We are inundated with reports of all the ways in which joy is smothered by despair. I ask myself, “Am I irresponsible? Am I selfish, to be joyful at all in such a world?” I don’t think so.
 
When I feel hopeless, love and gratitude can work as an antidote. Guilt and shame won’t make the world better, but maybe love and joy and gratitude, practiced every day, can help at least a little bit. I don’t know, but it’s worth a try.
 
Wishing you all a 2026 filled with quiet joy. Look for it. It’s there. Spread it around. 
​**Peace