Where is the switch? Why can’t I just turn on happiness. Why is finding joy sometimes endangered, fleeting, and mysteriously hard to call up? Other times, I just wake up so dang happy. I don’t have to find joy, it envelopes me. I absolutely love, love that ebullient feeling.

Finding Joy in Prayer

Psalm 30:5b (KJV) - "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning."

Anxiety through the night is for real. So are days, that are quiet and a bit off. I guess we need those level days, to balance the bursts of mania, lol. Nightime ruminations personally bring me to The Lord’s Prayer, everytime. I fall right back to peaceful sleep with prayer. As I write this I suddenly feel thankful for the inner turmoil because it prompts me to pray.

Finding Joy in Work then the Garden

James 1:2-3 (KJV) - "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience."

How long have I stayed too busy to reflect, write, and post to akTRIM.com? Every Monday my work plan is to write; memoirs for my kids, poetry, and posts here. It is important to build a skill, share inspiration, and connect. I will reward myself. When I finish this post, I can go play in the garden.

Finding joy in the garden, for me, is guaranteed. Oh my goodness the beauty and creativity of reorganizing it all! Sticks sorted by size and use, weeds go to the compost pile, gather this, that, and everything else. It’s time to cut down those shoots that are …. shooting up, and either propagate or process them.

Alas, Monday is “compose” not “compost” day. As soon as I finish my work plan, writing this 🙁 I get to go garden 🙂 I’m already dressed in my “chigger can’t get me” outfit. Gorgeous!!

I will propagate some Barberry shoots. The bushes are so ornamental and mine are not invasive at all. I must have a different variety than the invasive ones that Picture This said I had. One is lime greens and yellows and the other is deep purples and fuscia. Cut and shove is my method. I have great shady areas with composted loose material that makes the shove something to love. Shove love. I will also prune and process Bay shoots. If I strategically remove outliers, it will be easier to cover and protect my Bay this winter. To process I simply remove leaves and them dry completely for days, on a paper plate, before storing. I might try some shove love with my bay as well. Oh that sounds HOT!

Finding Joy in Taking Good Care

Yesterday it gave me great joy to process a coconut that I have had for several weeks. I struggled with several tools to make holes to extract the coconut water. Bae had to help. ZZZZ ZZZZZ and done! I really need to get my own drill so I can easily find it and use it independently. Then I had to have help to crack it open. I have a hammer, which definitely was not working. He brought out the sledge hammer. BAM! I was glad that he could feel needed and I was so happy to finally get at it.

I added a bit of the coconut water to my beverage for my tennis match today . So delicious and crazy high in all the right minerals/electrolytes that we need. The pulp slid right out with a blunt offset butter knife. I grated it in my bullet and made coconut cubes in the freezer to add to smoothies. Joy Joy Joy!

Plan for Joy

Psalm 118:24 (NKJV) - "This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."

Maybe the switch for Joy is in planning. Plan to pray and create. Stick to the plan. When a bit off, go back to the plan. I realized this morning that I have completely gotten off track.

First of all identify your values, what is important to you, then make a plan. I have a different focus for each day. As I said, Monday is Compose day. Small steps, on the right path, in the right direction, are all that is needed to hop into finding joy.