May you be delighted!
If you have been feeling overwhelmed (or even underwhelmed) lately, I’d like you to stop and think: When was the last time you were consciously aware of the delights that surround you? When was the last time you even thought about the things that bring you delight? Chances are you have been bustling around, marking things off your to-do list and rarely stopping to celebrate the little things in life that are DELIGHT.
Delight usually doesn’t show up like a marching band, banging cymbals to announce its arrival. Flashy delight does exist, but true delight is often so subtle that you have to be tuned in to notice it. It’s often the slight shimmer of sunshine peeking through the storm clouds that have been relentless for days. It’s the song that transports you back to middle school, hanging out with your best friend and listening to the CD on repeat. It’s the little flower that has rooted itself between the cracks in the cement.
Life is more wonderful when you stay tuned into the things that spark delight - especially when you notice delight in the middle of pain, loss, or hardship. I remember sitting outside crying over a deep loss when a butterfly landed on my knee, wings softly flapping as my tears continued to fall. It was so beautiful and special to me, but I may have overlooked its significance if I wasn’t already in the habit of looking for delight.
This week, I encourage you to notice delight. I’ve explored this topic on the blog before, it’s something I am incredibly passionate about and something I don’t think our society does often enough. Through all of the ups and downs that life serves us, there is always something delightful to notice: the soft breeze on your skin, the perfect sip of coffee rolling down your throat, a dog chasing its tail, loved ones gathering to say good-bye… Life is delightful and sad and terrifying and beautiful. As author Glennon Doyle puts it, “Life is brutal, but it’s also beautiful. Life is Brutiful.”
"Life is brutal, but it's also beautiful. Life is Brutiful."
〰️Glennon Doyle
"Life is brutal, but it's also beautiful. Life is Brutiful." 〰️Glennon Doyle
When you feel your cortisol levels on the rise, take a deep breath, look around and find something delightful. Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights is a perfect example of finding delight even in the hard times. He set out to document delight for an entire year. Imagine all the things that happen in a year of living this brutiful life! It’s an excellent reminder of how you can find delight at any moment if you are tuned to it. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook to hear him say “Delight” throughout. It’s a damn delight.
Tuning into delight is the first step. It’s the easiest because there are delights all around us. But sometimes you need to ACTIVATE delight. Sometimes delight is so hard to find that you have to be the bringer-of-delight! How do you activate delight? Here are some suggestions:
Play fun music while doing dishes. When the music moves you, dance around your kitchen, arms waving in the air, suds rolling to your elbows!
Stuck in traffic? Watch for birds flying freely, find shapes in the clouds, or pull funny faces at the toddler (or adult) in the car next to you. This is one of my favorite things to do, but adults rarely pull faces back and sometimes kids cry. Oopsie!
Turn grocery shopping into a game - set a budget and see if you can get through checkout without going over.
Stop and smell flowers on your walk. Perhaps you’ll get to see a bee getting drunk on nectar.
Choose something fun over your to-do list… those things will still be there later, but you’ve got to have some fun! You deserve fun!
The main ingredient of delight is simply slowing down. Get out of your head that’s churning through a list of obligations and feel your feet planted in this brutiful world. Delight in your sadness? Yes! If you don’t feel your sadness how can you truly feel your happiness? Delight in the pain of the world? Well… yes… we need delight even more when the world is falling apart. Delight in grief? Yes, let the wave of grief get washed out for the briefest moment by a spark of delight, a beautiful memory. Grief will wash over you again and again, and that’s ok because delight is just a moment away.
Let yourself be surprised by the things that delight and the timing of delight. This requires a bit of vulnerability and curiosity.
Delightful surprises will pop up more often when you have established a habit of recognizing delight!
Hot tip: jot down your delights in your journal or on your notes app. Take photos of delightful things and keep them in a special album on your phone for moments when you need a boost. Share your delight with a friend or the stranger passing on the street - they need delight, too! Draw or paint your delight! Give it the attention it deserves!
I’d love to hear about your latest moment of delight. Email me here.