Day #20, 21. Joy: The obvious as well as the not so obvious kind.

Obvious Joy:
-Sitting on the back porch last night, in gorgeous evening weather, in my parents' beautiful yard, with Kyle and the boys and my parents.  The boys were eating "4th of July cupcakes" and we started singing some patriotic songs in 4 part harmony.  Ethan was waving his arms around "directing the choir" while we sang God Bless America, America the Beautiful, and The Star Spangled Banner.  It really was like Christmas in July. :)

-Watching Ethan ride his bike and Jake push his stroller this morning in the parade.  They absolutely loved the pinwheels we had taped on there!

-Pondering the circle of life as I watched my niece be blessed watched her parents and grandparents love her.

And, a few moments with joy that was not quite as obvious, but there just the same:
-I walked upstairs this afternoon to find Jake sitting on the kitchen counter, pouring Orville Redenbacher's "Pop and Top" oil INTO the air pop popcorn machine.  It was also all over the counter and the floor.  Where's the joy?  Well, I was talking to a lady after the parade this morning and she was telling me how quickly life goes by and how your kids just grow up in a snap, and how you really just have to savor every stage for what it has because it will be gone so quickly.  I felt that today.  Thankfully, Jake won't always be pouring oil into the air popper, but he also won't always be snuggling on my lap after naps, running through the halls in his new tennis shoes, or asking to hear the Colorado state song as his lullaby EVERY NIGHT.  I'm savoring this whole stage, even if it means cleaning up oil sometimes.

-And speaking of oil, as I was whisking Jake away from the red crystal light he had grabbed and pulled onto the floor, I slipped on the oil and totally jammed my big toe on who knows what, but OUCH!!!  It was throbbing for about 2 hours and I'm still limping a little bit. I think I might even lose that toe nail... The joy?  Well, I am amazed at how much my body does for me.  And I'm so glad that for the most part, most of the parts work, most of the time.  And I'm glad I get to have a body and figure out how to use it and how to take care of it and, most importantly, how to feel joy in it!  Plus,  someday when my house is empty and the popcorn oil and the crystal light stay off the floor, I might be willing to trade a jammed toe nail for an adorable little mess-maker to brighten my day and come remind me what things matter the most.


So there you have it.  I am learning/realizing/remembering that finding joy has a lot to do with being spiritually minded.  If I can take a mortal frustration and apply a spiritual truth to it that gives it a higher purpose or a deeper meaning, I can find the joy.

I once heard this awesome thought, which seems pertinent today:

"We are not mortal beings having spiritual experiences.  
We are spiritual beings having mortal experiences."

Maybe I'll expound on that tomorrow. But for now, my spiritual being needs to have the mortal experience of sleep.  :)   'Night!