-An enjoyment of life in a hearty, carefree way; a delight
in being alive-
Sometime in the last year (years?), my joie de vivre gently faded.
The days began ticking by in a generic way. I’m sure you can relate; we all
feel like that sometimes. Slogging through days that are neither good nor bad
nor notable is not the happiest way to live. Apathy creeps in at some point and
it’s hard to kick it back out. I wouldn’t say those days were bad or miserable,
but they were incomplete.
A couple major life changes in the last few months gave me
the opportunity to re-evaluate my values, my big and small goals, and how I use
my time. I thought about what activities have brought me inherent pleasure
throughout my life. What times have I felt so caught up in the moment that time
becomes irrelevant? When do I get that feeling that All is well in the world and I
am so happy to be a part of it right now.
I compared my list of joy-bringing activities to what I was
actually doing. Quickly found a major time drain: too much mindless computer/phone
time (although I love my social media time, it can *easily* get out of hand,
not to mention movies and TV, which I also watch on my computer).
My ‘loves’ list was simple: I love nature, I love being physically
active in nature, I love creating art and enjoying art by others, and of course
I love sharing all of these things with other people I care about. There are a multitude of details within each of my joys that shape my personal intricacies, and they are allowed to fluctuate and morph. But we all know running is my favorite outdoor exercise!
Getting back in touch with my joy-bringers brought me back
to a joie de vivre, and with it comes with a luscious sense of
wholeness, at least in some moments.
And let me tell you, that feeling? It’s the bee's knees.
What brings you joie de vivre?
