Tidings of Comfort and Joy
Peaceful stillness of a winter walk
Hello all and welcome to December. Before I get started, I want to say thank you most humbly and sincerely for being here to read my ramblings. I truly appreciate your presence.
Autumn Fades Into winter
Autumn is slowly giving way to the icy clutches of winter. For me, the beauty, peace and stillness of a winter day is incomparable. Most do not like cold and shudder at the thought of having to endure the days that rarely get above freezing. That said, each year seems to be warmer and drier. At least here in Colorado anyway.
As I was saying, I love the peace and solitude the winter days bring. When it is snowing and I step outside, the stillness that envelopes me is a most welcome respite. I may write more on that later.
Comfort and Joy
Last week while taking my usual long journey to nowhere on the treadmill, I started thinking of what I could write about this December. I then decided maybe it could be fun to take lyrics to some Christmas songs and turn them into posts.
I have been thinking a lot about joy lately and the comfort simple joys can bring. It has often been said that unless we can find a way to enjoy our journeys on earth, there really isn’t much point. I tend to agree with this. At this moment in time, joys can be hard to come by. Loss of life, jobs, faith, love, hope and optimism lead to some very dark places. It is easy for me to speak of joy when I am employed, have moderately good health, a warm home, warm water, food and surrounded by love.
A Life With and a Life Without
As I continue my life’s journey I try to be as empathetic as I possibly can. With that in mind, I tend to imagine myself without. For example, no home, no family, no food, no warmth, no comfort and no hope. Would I be bereft of joy? I don’t know. Maybe. Then again, I don’t have to really imagine going without.
I will share something with you. When I was much younger, I knew what it meant to have barely enough money to survive. I won’t go into specific details, but I struggled to find my footing in the world in my late teens and early twenties. Some of the choices I made were not the best. As a result, I found myself blessed that one of my friends converted his kitchen into a makeshift bedroom so I could have a place to stay.
I rarely had any extra money and (most days) to eat something beyond microwaved tortillas (or generic bread) with generic butter was a luxury. Despite this, I was still able to relish the very simple pleasures in life. I found joy in music, nature, walking for miles and miles and reading books from the library. Simple joys.
Final Thoughts
Navigating this world, I often find myself ill at ease with the dichotomy between those who have and those that have not. How can anyone find joy when they must sleep on the streets or rummage through trash cans for food? I speak of joy as if it is attainable by all but there are large parts of me that questions this. So, what do I do? What can I do? These are questions I ask myself several times a day, every day.
The “what can I do” question is not insurmountable. I can do things and not just at this time of year. I do in fact do things and not just at this time of year. I seek out opportunities that may hopefully provide moments of comfort and joy to those that need it. Let me share this final thought with you. Often all that is needed to provide a little comfort or joy for another is to simply acknowledge another of your fellow human’s existence. “Hello, how are you?” And then listen to the words of your fellow man/woman.
Just say hello. 🙂
As you read this, I pray you can find joy of some description this day and all days. Even if it is something fleeting like enjoying every bite of a chocolate chip cookie. Or, perhaps, you saw a beautiful bird when taking a walk, had a sweet little puppy or kitten look at you with loving eyes or even better had someone tell you they love you.
I once again thank you so kindly from my heart for being here. Until next time I wish you all great tidings of comfort and joy.