My days start in devotion to life. I get up and feed my cats, I read, they interrupt and we play. I usually cry here about something, then put on music and lose myself in it.
I dance, in bed, in the kitchen, in the living room, because my first commitment is to joy. My second is to myself and my ease, so I often put dishes away while dancing, making my breakfast and tea as I go and some days this one slips a bit.
There are days I am unwell and the dance party stays in bed, because the energy required to move my body in bigger, more expressive ways makes me sick. Somehow this doesn’t feel like less of an expression. I close my eyes and imagine my movement fuller, freer, feeling the music fully and allowing it to move me more internally than externally. It connects me to art, to rhythm, to the beauty that humanity holds under all this capitalist shit that has us gleefully killing each other, neglecting truth, and opting out of our own protection willfully by disregarding the protection of all.
It is a time I juice as much joy as possible out of the moment. Doing that early in my day often makes the day much easier to get through, no matter what comes next.
Sometimes, what comes next is me realizing I need to prioritize laying down, because I am one of those people who never got better the one time I have had covid. I caught it while in excellent shape, when I was super active. I cannot do half of what I did on a regular basis then, and if I do too much it wipes me out for an undetermined amount of time. (Please protect yourself and the people around you.)
When I can, 3-4 days a week, I get out of town to spend time in the desert beauty and wide open space that fuels me, keeps me centered, grounded, and connected to myself. I walk as much as I am able, or sit in a lounge chair and look out at the desert, at the sunset, at the life that teems in this intense landscape that always reminds me when I am with it that in this moment, I am ok. It helps me immensely. I moved here just for that, and it’s working on me in ways I have yet to wrap my mind around. It helps me remember all the ways I am grateful for how I am getting through this, for what I am committed to.
I am in daily practice of loving and caring for myself in ways that are hard, inconvenient, and deeply rewarding. I am so grateful to myself for that.
Are you getting enough joy in your life?
If not, here are some reflection questions & action items for you. You may want to write out your answers, make yourself a voice note, or talk to a friend about this topic to help you get clear.
If not, what are some things you used to love, but maybe haven’t done in awhile?
Could you find a way to make a specific plan for when you are going to do that thing again? Do you need someone to do it with you to make sure it happens?
If that activity is not accessible to you currently, is there a way you could tweak it so you are able to do it now? Could you set time aside to fully imagine yourself the last time you did it and let yourself feel how good it felt, really exploring all the senses and details from that experience in your mind?
Is there something you do every day that you could take a little more time for, to savor in the pleasure of that experience?
Who in your life makes you laugh the most?
If you'd like, write them a note and tell them how much you appreciate them and all the joy they bring into your life.