Make A Joy List
If level one is the gratitude practice, level two is the joy list. I was reading a book once and the author made a sort of passing remark about something, saying, “It feeds my soul..do you know what feeds yours?” And while she was focused on big picture kinds of things, such as her family or summer vacations, I immediately started to wonder about the little things that “fed me.” You might have noticed that I teach a lot on finding joy and gratitude in the “little things” and not the big stuff. That’s because the big stuff, like marriage, kids, your home, is hard to come by but incredibly easy to take for granted. If you think or write down “I’m grateful for my home. ” it’s easy to dismiss because you don’t feel that, really. You live in your house every day without giving it much thought. But if you write down “I’m grateful for my bathtub and taking long bubble baths while listening to Fleetwood Mac, ” that evokes a feeling. Both descriptions are talking about the same place, home. But by focusing on specifics you can create a more intense sense of gratitude in re-creating that moment in your mind. When I read that book, I grabbed by notebook and started making a list. I challenged myself to come up with at least twenty things that fed my soul, that made me feel utterly, ridiculously happy and joyful. I refused to censor myself at all. SO, when the idea of a heating pad and really soft sweatpants popped into my head, I added both items to my joy list because, you guys, both of those things DO bring me joy. My list includes harder to achieve items like “international travel, ” but almost everything else are things that can easily be incorporated into a regular week. Some items on my list are:
A slow cup of coffee while looking at a view
Laughing with my family
Talking to people about how to grow their business
Long walks while listening to the surrounding sounds.
I know creating a joy list in the midst of your hardest seasons can seem inconsequential, but the truth is, it’s a powerful bastion against the toughest things. Human beings have an incredible ability to hold both joy and pain simultaneously; don’t dismiss one simply because you feel the other.