Day 770

Joy

I love what I do. Having the privilege of helping dogs understand their place in the world and, just as importantly, helping their humans be the best stewards for their dogs they can be is something so far beyond what I ever experienced in any stage of my previous life/lives.

Don’t get me wrong. Those chapters contained great blessings as well. Having a front row seat as the technology industry exploded into a consumer-facing behemoth, forever changing the nature of connection and technology; and I having the distinct pleasure and honor of getting to see and meet many of those responsible. It was a blast.

Of course, there’s a separate post on separate topic about the rending of the very core of our social fabric fostered by these same technologies, but that’s not the point for today.

Today, I’m thinking about joy. I’m thinking about it because a very dear friend mused gently that it appeared I was lacking the kind of joy that one should have when one is doing something they are intended to do.

She’s right.

Now the question is, how to find the joy? It’s a good question, and one that I’ve come to find can’t just be answered. This is not a simple black and white situation nor is it as easy as just asking a question and having the solution right there. This one takes pondering. It takes meditation. It takes, above all, trust … and faith.

What’s the difference? Consider this.

You’re at a circus and up above you, the slender tightrope strung between the massive posts of the tent. On one platform, a performer stands with a wheelbarrow. They step with assurance and calm onto the wire and begin to walk, the wheelbarrow pushed in front of them steady even as it sways on the wire bobbing in the air.

Do you trust and believe that he will get from one side to the other? Of course. You’ve just watched him do it over and over.

Faith is when you get into the wheelbarrow and let him push you along the wire.

And so it goes.

The other thing that gives me joy…is hockey. We lost. Sadly. But it was close and hey, it’s just preseason.

Losing still stinks.

We’ll get ‘em next time.

Today’s Gracious Gratitude. I am grateful for:

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