As I continue to read the book ‘Choose Joy’, I have read upon an excerpt that I wish to share:
“Like a carefully tended crop, joy grows when we take time to plant, water, weed, and wait for the harvest….But make no mistake: Joy can grow within you! Do you want it? What are you willing to do to help it take root in your soul? Remember, we have an enemy who loves nothing more than to see us in a sobbing heap on the floor-shattered, discouraged, and hopeless. If you want it, you’re going to have to fight for it. If you think that experiencing joy comes naturally, you haven’t been listening. Happiness comes unbidden and unexpectedly and can leave just as abruptly; joy can be available anytime, anywhere, anyplace-but it is a result of our decision to choose it.”
I don’t know if I can identify with joy just yet. Maybe this is my new found spiritual journey. As much as I have lamented over the loss of my job with the National Park Service and my identity as an architect and landscape architect, I find myself no longer interested, at least for the moment, in practicing those fields. I have found my strength and fortitude in overcoming my lack of self confidence through my pastel drawing. Maybe what I have been doing all along before I was taking for granted and I needed a wake up call to appreciate my true talent in pastels. This is ground breaking territory for me, discovering joy and pastels.
