Capturing Joy

I have a… not so great habit.

In my mind I am not always in the moment.  I live in the past wondering what life would have been like if my family looked different.  I miss my brother who passed away over a decade ago.  I wish we had another baby in our family while rocking the toddler in my arms.  I go over all the ways that I perceive life could be better.  I have a constant drive to make things just a little better and to know that I’m doing a good job.

But this past week I was given a gift.

Get Around Your Cheerleaders

Matching Red Shirts was the Best Idea

I spent a week with my dad and son on vacation.

My dad has always been my biggest cheerleader.  My son radiates cheery. I spent the week with my biggest cheerleaders. My dad, my son and I flew to California and took a trip to Disneyland.  We rented a car and stayed at a hotel.  I booked the flights and bought the tickets.  They were just along for the ride and cheering me on.

Along the way everything didn’t go perfect.  There were hiccups with the rental car, but my dad kept reminding me it wasn’t a problem.  When we were at Disney I kept wondering if we should have done the rides in a different order to fit more rides in and have more fun.  But my dad kept smiling. He kept telling me I had done a great job.  It was a great trip and we were having a great time.  My son yelled, “This is awesome!” on Star Tours and danced his way through the park when he was not holding our hands.  We all kept reminding each other how awesome Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge was and how much fun we were having. 

It was a positive cycle which kept us only having that much more fun together.

But I kept second guessing myself.  My dad told me to stop it.  It was a great trip and we were having a great time.  Just forget about the things that didn’t go well and have a good time.  After that  I didn’t think about the mistakes as much a focused on my sons smile and the adventure before us.

I was given the gift of being in the moment.  I didn’t think about work I left at home.  I didn’t dwell on the places where my mind usually gets stuck.

I held my boys’ hands and screamed on the rides.

I ran to get in line to have pictures with Mickey.

I drove the Millennium Falcon

and talked to Storm Troopers.

I took so many pictures even when my boys weren’t excited about it, because

it was magical.

And I needed my dad with me to remind me of that. I needed my biggest cheerleader in my life to smile at me having fun with my son.  He delighted in me and his grandson. He reminded me to forget about what has gone wrong and focus on all that is going right.

My dad has been through trauma, through several health issues, and we didn’t think he would even be with us now after several health scares. That made the trip with him all the more special.  We could have been sad together about the past, or choose to live in the present and seek after joy.  Even though I know he was in pain from all the walking he kept smiling and choosing joy with us.

Everyone is going through some form of hard time.  I’m convinced of it. 

Who can you spend time with that is cheering you on?

There is a Time For Everything

There is a time and place to deal with past trauma.  Counseling has been wonderful in my life.  I’ve put in the hard work and continue to keep working. 

But there is a gift of being in the moment.  There is a gift of taking the scripts you play over and over in your mind a putting them away for a time.

What could being in the moment and capturing joy look like for you?

Is it having a date night that is purely fun and doesn’t bring up stressors in your relationship?

Is it getting a massage and leaving all your problems at the door for 60 minutes?

Is it going to a yoga class and working through what is bothering you until the final resting pose and letting it all go for a moment?

Is it willing yourself to go to church on Sunday and actively opening your heart to the Lord to hear what He is whispering to your heart?

Is it having a dance party in the kitchen after dinner?

Everyday Life

Giving yourself a break from the news cycle, social media, and problems of the world doesn’t mean a trip to Disney for everyone.  I still could have carried all of my problems around with me.  But I decided to be in the moment and capture the joy around me.

I’m back from vacation and back home to a kid who threw up on the couch as my morning wake up call.  Life isn’t Disneyland.  But I can choose to capture moments of joy and rest in them.  I can also stay on the positive cycle with those around me.  Before our trip my son would say through out the day, “Mom, we are going to have a great time at Disney.  I’m so excited.”  Tonight before bed, my son came up to me and with same excitement as the weeks before Disney and said, “Mom, we are going to have a great year.”  I want to keep feeding the positive and looking to find joy in each day.

How can you be in the moment and capture joy today too?