Tag: #joy

More Joy…

On By journeyofenoughLeave a comment

We recently spent 3 days at Disneyland. We went mainly to see my niece perform with her high school choir. It was also a great reason to see my sister & both nieces and a nice escape from a chilly MN winter. On February 2nd, our Disneyland plans were in question. Would we still go, even with Myles’ broken leg? Would the 3 of us go and leave him at home? We decided to go, and with some modifications, we were determined to make it work. You can board the plane first, but storing crutches is a challenge. You can rent a wheelchair at Disneyland, but getting up to the gate takes a while. You can get in a separate line at most rides, but if you have a full leg cast, you’ll need someone to help you in. It’s not an ideal situation but you can do it. Which part of the sentence do you focus on?

There is a Disney movie, Inside out, from 2015. The main character is a little girl from MN who has to move with her family to a new city. The emotions are like characters in her head: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust. Joy is the one pictured above. She is the leader of the rest, but depending on the situation, any of them can take over. Joy has a spunky, upbeat attitude. I purchased 3 different Joys at Disneyland. One pin came with the Sadness character- we traded that for a different pin and traded another one for the Joy head on the left. I also got a pressed penny with Joy on it. (I currently cannot find that Joy) I wore one of the pins on the left side of my shirt – I wore my “Joy.” I wanted to get a stuffed Joy, but I wasn’t sure I could fit the Joy in my bags.

  • It rained off and on and was chilly for part of the time, but still 30-60 degrees warmer than back home. If you listened to other people in line or walking around, you could often hear who was steering their ship at the time.
      • Someone with a bag in the “no bag line”
      Kid running away from parents
      People with umbrellas or ponchos
      People without umbrellas getting wet
      Someone at the end of a 200 minute ride wait
      The girl in the Ariel outfit in line for the Little Mermaid ride
      The little boy in the Storm trooper outfit by the Star Wars ride
      Kids eating ice cream, even though it was raining

    Who is steering your ship? Does Joy drive or does Disgust take over? Is Joy hidden when Anger takes over? Does Fear lead the show? Sometimes we need someone to help us get back on track. My husband tried to bring more Joy by pushing Myles in a wheelchair and doing wheelies. He also made noises and had him take a picture by the “Cast members only” sign – get it? Cast? Ha ha.

    Joy drives his ship most of the time. Sometimes it annoys me, but mostly I’m thankful. On your Journey of Enough, I hope you have a variety of emotions. There is a time for each of them, but hopefully Joy can take the lead. Peace be with you on your journey of enough… may you find more Joy.

    He found the joy, did you?

    On By journeyofenoughLeave a comment

    While shopping at Target last weekend, our youngest son saw this Christmas suit. He is not a typical 12 year old – he loves to wear suits. It’s either suits or sweats. He’s not a fan of jeans for some reason. I think it’s a “tween” thing. Normally, I would refuse such a purchase because who would wear this thing? Him. He would wear it, along with red shoes and the largest grin possible. If he wasn’t required to wear black for his band concert next week, he’d be wearing this suit.

    How often in life do we wear our joy? He is wearing it in the form of an obnoxious Christmas suit. What does yours look like? Are we too afraid of what other people will think? I remember when I was young, my mom wouldn’t go to the local grocery store (in our town of 500) unless she at least had lipstick on. I haven’t worn lipstick since my wedding. Everyone has their own idea of acceptable. Our outward appearance doesn’t always match our joy but sometimes it does. Sometimes it’s the opposite – fake joy may equal hidden sadness.

    4 years ago, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Stage 1 invasive ductal carcinoma. Some days I felt actually brave, ready to conquer cancer. Other days, I felt like staying in bed and giving up. 4 years ago at Christmas was difficult for me because it made me think of all the what if’s. Lots of scenarios ran through my head while I tried to fake the holiday cheer. I still didn’t know my course of treatment and yet I had to reassure everyone I’d be fine.

    Unfortunately, the holidays aren’t filled with joy for everyone. I encourage you to reach out to someone who may be struggling- emotionally or financially, if possible. Just letting people know you care is a huge thing. If you are struggling, I encourage you to seek help. There are better days ahead. If you are filled with joy this holiday season, wear it like this Christmas suit. Spread it around like sunshine and glitter. Our journey of enough isn’t meant to be walked alone. May you find joy this holiday season…whatever form it may be in. Peace be with you on your journey of enough.

    Where is your JOY hiding?

    On By journeyofenoughLeave a comment

    I found this “Joy” at Target, which seems appropriate, since the store tends to bring me joy. Hang with me for a minute while I give you the background on Joy…

    At the retreat I attended in Duluth, we played hide & seek. This seemed silly at the time, but we paired up (just like when you were a kid)… one person hid while the other was the seeker. Jodie Harvala, our retreat leader said, “If you feel like you are supposed to hide in the middle of the room, that’s ok.” And that’s what one person did – stood in the room with her arms wide open. (I think she was the first one found.) I recall mumbling to myself, “why couldn’t mine have been that easy!” I looked around the big meeting room but didn’t see my partner. I checked the bathroom and sauna but she wasn’t there. I went down to the bunk bed area where we were camping out, but she wasn’t there either. Back upstairs I went, feeling like a failure. “I stink at this, I must have no intuition….” This time I said it out loud. Jodie heard me and said, “Did you try asking where she is? Is she sending you signs?” I walked directly back downstairs and found her right away! She was hiding behind the coats, in the small/kids section. (She’s probably 6-8″ taller than me). When it was my turn to hide, I hid in the hall closet with the vacuum in the dark. Even though she was pretty sure I was in there, she still jumped when she found me.

    We all laughed and got back together as a group. Then Jodie said something that was amazing to me. “The person hiding represents your JOY. What was your reaction? Where did you find it?” Wow. While I was looking for my joy, I found someone else’s joy and it scared me. I didn’t trust my intuition and doubted I’d find it. There it was, with the kids coats. Hearing that made my eyes a little misty… my kids are my joy. One person’s joy was right in front of her, waiting to be found. What started out as an intuition exercise turned into so much more and yet none of us had the same experience.

    I purchased this joy as a reminder to me of that weekend and the experience. This time of year, we see lots of JOY signs – the kind in the picture and the other signs of joy that aren’t physical, but felt. I hope you will be on the lookout for joy. It might be in the cupcakes you deliver to your neighbor, the stranger’s coffee you purchase, the friendly cashier or server, the songs of children or the purr of a cat. If we slow down & really listen, maybe we can find it more easily. Or maybe it wasn’t hiding at all – it was standing in the room, arms wide open, just waiting for you to open your eyes.

    Peace be with you on your journey of enough this holiday season. I truly hope you find your Joy!