I've been thinking about the word "joy" lately. I've always been one to seek happiness, going so far as to put on bucket lists throughout my childhood and early adulthood some version of "to be truly happy" or "to live a happy life"-- but what does that even mean? Periodically, I'd ask myself, is this happiness? Am I in it and living it right now? If so, why don't I feel... better than before? I'm still not sure I know the answers to those questions, but I do think that happiness isn't something to just attain one day, but that it's a culmination of years of moments of appreciation, and slowing down, and being vulnerable. And this brings me to joy.
As I said, I was thinking about what joy is and what it means to me specifically when I stumbled upon this TED talk on a friend's Facebook page. Ingrid puts into words (with lovely photos to back her up) what I've been noticing in my daily life. Basically, that joy is constantly there for you, and I believe that taking the time to notice the joyful things that present themselves to you will over time contribute positively to your overall happiness. It makes me think of a quote by Henri Matisse that I've carried with me for a few years now: "There are always flowers for those who want to see them." Being that he was a Fauvist painter and worked with a lot of color (sorry, I'm an art history major, let me live), it makes sense that he seems to have believed that joy (the flowers) is always there for you, as long as you're open to noticing it.
I posted on my personal Instagram a few days ago about joy with reference to stumbling upon a huge display of bubbles floating through the air at Terrazza del Pincio. In the TED Talk linked above, Ingrid mentions bubbles as a tangible thing in life that brings us all joy, no matter your age, race, etc. I don't remember the last time I saw this many bubbles and I can honestly say that the moment I saw these, I immediately got a huge smile on my face and was right beside 6 year olds with my hands in the air as the wind carried the bubbles just out of grasp. It was a welcome, joyful surprise in an otherwise hot, fast-paced day.
There is so much joy to be found everywhere. I feel like I'm noticing it so much more here in Italy than I did in Philadelphia, but that's not to say joyful, colorful things don't exist in Philly! Honestly, I think the big contributor to my finding more joy here is that I'm more available to see it now. I'm in a situation here where I have to be open to people, experiences, and my eyes are more open so-to-speak because I have to look at street signs and take notice of things that I didn't have to at home. In Philly, I could walk to my job from wherever I parked my car without ever looking up. I could drive or ride my bike to work or a friends' house without seeing roadside flowers or someone with a colorful coat crossing the street-- everything was so familiar to me that I didn't take notice of those little things sprinkled throughout the day that are there to spark joy and cause a smile to wash over your face.
I know that Italy will, at some point, become familiar to me (sad face). However, I now know to make a conscious effort not to lose this sense of wonder and willingness to go to more places, try new things, and smile at all the little joys that present themselves to me each day. Here's to joy!
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