As I embark on another year of joy, and of blogging, and of unknown adventures, I want to share this thought. Choosing joy can be a world changer if you embrace it. It came so suddenly today, as I was having coffee with a friend. These thoughts and encouragements swirled around my head, as she shared the many things going on in her life. And there is something amazing about experiencing the first day of a brand new year, that can make one thoughtful.
I told my friend over coffee how I felt that I wasn’t a world changer. I felt that my contribution was actually just trying to impact people’s lives with some small offering of joy moments. But then she reminded me of how joy spreads. And that’s a great and beautiful thought. Our “Joy moments” can truly multiply when we share them. Because I have found in this last year that true joy is contagious. I just never thought I could put choosing joy in the same category as being a world changer. And it made me think about the very nature of joy.
Joy never uses force. When Joy comes, she gently approaches and pulls you into her lovely embrace. She doesn’t care about how old you, or the color of your skin. It doesn’t matter to her if you are rich or poor, if you are lonely or surrounded by a crowd. She doesn’t care if you are perfect,or flawed, or awkward, or graceful. She approaches the unlovely as well as the lovely, and the introvert, along with the extravert. Yes, Joy, embraces everyone who will make room for her. She comes to that person who “has it all together” and, also, to the one who feels they have failed at everything. Joy approaches and then waits, she waits for you to choose her.
You can choose Joy over your disappointment, and failures, and even failed relationships. But the key for 2019 and the key for me in 2018 was simply in the choosing. That’s the hard part, you know, laying down the failures and choosing the joy? But it’s not impossible. And I have decided my 2019 blogging will be about helping others choose joy. I will also continue to blog about my journey. I absolutely love this quote below about joy, and I will continually model this as I embark on my journey to help others find JOY in 2019. ❤️
A woman who chose joy 