I’m very interested in the subjects of happiness and joy, and how to get more of both in my life. As I have gotten older, the meaning of the word “happiness” has shifted, from some state of perfection (I’ll be happier when I’m thinner, have more money in the bank, a different job, etc) to a sense of contentment with what “is.” To me, happiness is completely dependent on my attitude toward whatever is going on in my life. Certainly, there are some events in people’s lives that can stretch this to the breaking point, but on average most lives are pretty even-keeled and, dare I say, mundane most of the time. It’s finding the contentment in the mundane that interests me most, and my practice of gratitude goes a long way toward helping me find that contentment.
Joy, in my experience, is something completely different than happiness, but it can contribute toward happiness.
When I think of joy, I think of being suffused by positive feelings as a response to something very particular. Joy can come on suddenly – imagine the feeling of seeing a mother deer and her fawn crossing your back lawn – but the positive vibrations of that moment can continue long beyond the moment. Watching a beautiful sunrise, for example, can create a buzz within that keeps you smiling throughout the day.
I’m really enjoying a book right now that is all about joy. It’s called, “Joy: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness” and it’s written by Ingrid Fetell Lee. The author sets out to answer the question, “How do tangible things create an intangible feeling of joy?” She combines anecdotal evidence with scientific studies to try to identify what it is about certain things that activate joy within us.
There are ten chapters in the book, each identifying a quality of objects or experiences that tend to generate the feeling of joy. I won’t list them all here. I’m only a few chapters into the book, but what Lee says resonates with me. In Chapter One she discusses the power of bright color to bring joy. Think rainbows, sunrises, sunsets, flowers, hummingbirds! I definitely have felt the power of color in my life. Recently, in an effort to make my meals more intentional (as opposed to eating lunch while working on an Excel file on my work computer), I bought a few colorful placemats and cloth napkins in the bright patterns associated with the Provence region in France. Each time I sit down for breakfast and lunch these days, the colors make me feel good. Joyful. The meal itself becomes more satisfying.
As I was thinking about color and joy this weekend, I looked around to other colorful things in my life that bring me joy:
- Potted flowering spring bulbs bought at the grocery store on Thursday.
- My collection of bright scarves, which bring a sense of joy that my neutral colored tops and trousers could never hope to generate.
- Fruit!
- My new placemats and cloth napkins
- An orange tea towel bought from the same vendor as the placemats and napkins.
- Our coffee and tea caddies, with their colorful varieties of teas and coffee pods.
- My favorite pottery pieces (which I use more often now that I’m paying more attention to the aesthetics of my meals).
What colorful things bring you joy?
Love,
Michelle xoxo
PS – This is my 100th blog post. Can you believe it?