Finding the Joy
Finding the Joy
We used to have a graphic that read ‘good vibes only!’. We no longer use it, because on reflection it felt a bit like toxic positivity. We believe you should honour your feelings, and we will tell you it’s OK not to be OK. We also believe that choosing the way you respond to circumstances beyond your control can change your life for the better. It takes conscious effort, but like many worthwhile things, it gets easier with practice.
We live on a steep and narrow road, unlit, lacking pavements or pedestrian refuge of any kind. We share it with dog walkers, horse riders, and drivers who seem fiercely inconvenienced about having a road full of dog walkers, horse riders and middle aged women trying to get their kids to school.
Today, this hill is a sheet of ice.
Carrying a toddler and gripping a six-year-old hand, I slip and slither and swear my way down it.
“This is fun!” says my son, as he falls again and the cortisol reaches my eyebrows.
He is not anticipating smashed elbows and broken necks. He is not the wrong side of 40.
“This is the best walk to school ever!” He enthuses.
I take the gift he’s giving me and it regulates my nervous system, just a little bit. I remember that phrase
“if you choose not to find joy in the snow, you will still have the same amount of snow, but less fun.”
On the way back, his brother and I catch snowflakes on our tongue.
Amy X
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