Where Are You Finding Joy?
Things seem to be extra hard right now. We can all do with some joy!
Hello Dear Beyonders!
It seems like many/most/all of us are struggling at the moment. So I thought it might be helpful to gather a few of the responses to the final question I always ask interviewees: So much is hard right now. Where are you finding joy?
Reading these altogether made my heart feel brighter. I hope you enjoy them, too!
xJane
P.S. I just discovered this marks Beyond’s 300th newsletter!! Wow! Thank you for being with me on this beautiful journey!
Always Something Beautiful
Getting outside. Today is beautiful. I had the door open and the air off, and let some sunshine and fresh air come in. And remembering that even when things are hard, there is always something beautiful out there that you could be focusing on. And it's okay to enjoy that, too.
— Karie Fugett [read Karie’s full interview]
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Wow Shit
I'm finding joy in swimming. This whole last month, I been swimming. I don't really know how to swim good. And that makes it fun. Every day I get in that pool for an hour, and just do wow shit. And that makes me very happy.
— Kiese Laymon [read Kiese’s full interview]
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Self With A Capital S
Goodness, I find it the moment I get up in the morning. I say, “Oh, it's cold this morning. Look, honey, remember this fleecy blanket?” And I pull the fleecy blanket up around me. And I say to myself, “Doesn't that feel good?” And myself says, “Yes, that feels really good.” And I say, “Okay, let's just be here for a few minutes in the warm.”
In Internal Family Systems therapy, they call it Self with a capital S: the kind, compassionate person running the show inside your brain. Every moment that that Self is taking care of the other selves, I feel safe. I just know everything's going to be okay.
— Martha Beck [read Martha’s full interview]
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Joy Can Come From Anywhere
Well, someone named Joy just sent me something beautiful over email that I wasn’t expecting. I surprised myself by smiling as big as I smiled when I opened the image. That makes me remember to say out loud that joy can come from anywhere, and it doesn’t matter what else you’re feeling. You should watch for it even in the tiniest moments, maybe always in the tiniest moments.
— Lidia Yuknavitch [read Lidia’s full interview]
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Mallomars!
I’ve been reading so many good books recently, and I have to say it's really been joyful. I didn't read for a while while I was writing. I don't know if you're like that, but I just couldn't read fiction in the same way, and so, as soon as I was done with the book, I started reading again.
Talking to my nieces always brings me so much joy. I'm so crazy about them. And Mallomars.
What are Mallomars?
They're cookies. Chocolate and marshmallow. I eat a lot of them, and that does bring me great pleasure.
How perfect!
— Cynthia Weiner [read Cynthia’s full interview]
I was bowled over by the outpouring of love in response to last week’s essay both in the comments and emails. Thank you, friends! It seems so many of us are on a similar journey to forge deeper relationships with our intuition — which is as natural as breathing or thinking, though we have often been raised to believe otherwise.
A few months ago, I listened to The Telepathy Tapes. My heart and my mind were blown open. I told every single person I encountered about the podcast and was surprised by how many people hadn’t heard of it. So, in case you haven’t heard of it either, I’m sharing about it here. There are now ongoing bimonthly episodes called Talk Tracks which are also wonderful and continue the conversation.
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Also: my pal
encouraged me to read ’s book The Body Is A Doorway and, wow, my body and the world are not the same places they were before I read it. I actually listened to it: Sophie narrates, and it’s an extraordinary book. A thoughtful, wise, tender, playful, sometimes scary, vibrant tapestry of chronic illness, the natural world, climate change, love, abuse, hope, animals, and a wide-eyed and open-hearted exploration of the truth of our collective reality. There are parts I felt I could have written myself and parts that whilst I had never considered, rang deeply true.***
A recent comment that went straight to my heart: “Your writing feels like an extension of home for me.”
May we all be this for one another in these difficult times.
We had a new addition to the family. Our granddaughter was born on Tuesday. That has dominated the "headlines" for us.
A baby deer born in our front yard right up near our house gives me such joy. Finding glimmers of light in the natural world with its reassuring rhythms of gain and loss is a steadying metric and a delight.