I have had a difficult time over the last week or so - difficult enough that I simply could not sit here at my computer and write. Worry took a toll on me. Until the day my granddaughter Maddy came to spend the day. She wanted to create something special to set her room apart. She wanted to make the space she had her own.
We talked about what her vision was. She knows me well enough to know that I will honor her ideas and not impose my own. Our agreement is that when she makes art, it is hers alone. I tell her my thought only if there is something she wants to do that I know will not work. For instance, if she wants to paint watercolor on top of glossy acrylics, I will let her try but also tell her why it might not work. I want her to feel confident and to know that she is learning as we all must do when we try new things.
We managed to get one of her projects done and another is in the works. I found a moment of great joy when I quietly watched her working. She was taking such care as she decorated some words to hang on her wall. She was quiet, as was I. And I saw a small smile play on her lips as she worked. My cares slipped away for that moment and I felt the joy.
Often in our culture we work very hard at manufacturing happiness. We are told that things will make us happy. Sometimes when we seek happiness, we seek the big thrill, the excitement of possession or striving. Happiness is a good thing but it can be shallow and fleeting.
Joy I have found tends to sneak up on me. It tip toes into my heart and often no one else knows. It stirs my heart and puts a smile on my face. And more often than not, it sneaks up when I give to others in a quiet way.
Seek joy, give it permission to enter your heart. We will always have cares. Life is often not exactly as we wish it to be. But when your heart and mind are open to joy, God surely will send it your way.
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