Joy and Delight
Let the universe delight you
When did being alive become such serious work?
You have worked incredibly hard. You have carried responsibilities, solved problems, kept things moving and shown up when things needed to be done. You know how to take life seriously when it matters.
The Energy
There are times for effort, courage, discernment, tending and change.
And then there are times to take a breath, soften the body, and let yourself play in a different register of being alive.
Joy & Delight invites us to meet the world expecting that it might be pleasurable. Beautiful. Funny. Delicious. Absurd. Fascinating. Unexpectedly wonderful.
Not because we need to learn something from the experience.
Not because joy will make us healthier, wiser or more productive.
Simply because the universe is capable of delighting us, and we are capable of being delighted.
The Invitation
Sometimes we become so accustomed to effort that we carry it everywhere. Even into the places where nothing is asking us to strive.
Joy & Delight invites us to release that effort for a while.
Take a breath. Let your shoulders drop. Soften your belly. Unclench whatever you didn't realise you were holding.
And then go out into the world with a different invitation:
Delight me.
Let yourself be seduced by colour, laughter, deliciousness, silliness, beauty, affection, music, sunlight, strangeness, pleasure, play.
You don't have to make anything happen.
You are simply making room for the universe to surprise you with something wonderful.
A Way Through
For a little while, put down whatever you are trying to solve.
Choose somewhere you can wander without needing to accomplish anything. A garden. A bookshop. A kitchen. A street you've never explored. Music turned up too loudly. A conversation with someone who makes you laugh.
Take a breath.
Soften.
And offer the world one delicious little invitation:
Show me something delightful.
Then let yourself play with whatever answers.
No lesson required.