My life is so rich, so abundant with love, passion and joy. It has it's shadow places too, where doubt, cynicism, apathy and fear live. Yet I know the murky corners of my life do not define me, they are merely lessons to be learned and understandings to be known. The richness is balanced by the decay and I'm grateful that it is so.
Simple Joy means just that: taking joy in the simple things in life. It means that I don't choose to complicate a situation or dress it up. It means authentic joy that comes from the heart. It it experienced both actively and passively. I have a sense of joy when my kitchen is tidy and clean. Joy comes when I sit with a contented kitty on my lap. It comes when people smile after a warm cookie from the oven, a comforting cup of tea and a good conversation. It's that spark that ignites compassion within myself, towards myself and others. I am much more tender when I feel that joy.
When I'm out of balance with the world, with myself, I lose that Simple Joy. I start bitching about the little things in life that aren't going exactly as I planned. Everything takes on a shade of gray. I participate in bashing the world along with all the other unhappy people around me. And I'm so incredibly weary of my life. Simple Joy helps me face the shadow places within myself with grace and humor. It gives me a burst of energy to begin propelling myself out of that murky underground.
I gather my soul at the hearth-fires of Winter,
warmth of welcome upon my lips,
warmth of rest upon my hands,
warmth of nurture upon my being
May the souls of all beings
be wrapped in the warmth of night
till Winter's dawning.
-Caitlin Matthews, from Celtic Devotional
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