An Invitation to Joy

by Anjana Deshpande

Joy likes to nestle between contentment and acceptance. It waits in the corner of our mundane, everyday life, waiting to be invited. Unlike happiness, which demands pursuit, joy simply is. Why then, do we complain about a “lack” of joy in our lives? Why do we go in search of it, or say that “joy has left” our life? Chances are, joy hasn’t left us; we just forgot it was there.

This month, let us try some ways to consciously invite joy into our lives. Here are some steps to do that: 

1.     Create a Joy Map.

A joy map is fun to do! There are no rules, just some suggestions to make it satisfying and meaningful. Take a sheet of paper and draw a circle in the center of the sheet. Put the word “joy” in the circle and draw lines radiating from this circle. Each line will connect to another circle which contains the word, activity, person, event that brings you joy. Think about times when you were content, relaxed and really “in the moment”. Perhaps you were taking a walk, reading a book, or maybe even doing laundry! It does not matter. If it brought you joy and contentment, it goes on the map.

Next, think of things that you would like to do. Even if they don’t exist in your life right now. Just putting them on paper opens the door to the possibility of making them happen.You may choose to use different markers for different groups of activities. For example, if traveling brings you joy, use different colors for places that are nearby, and easily accessible and places that are far away and might need some planning to get to. 

You can even tear up pictures that ‘speak’ to you and place them on this map. This is actually a great “detective” exercise to get to know yourself better.  When you ponder over why you picked a particular picture, you are really investigating the deeper recesses of your mind that you normally don’t have time to go into.

So go ahead, create a “joy map”! This is different from a vision board which is more about goals and dreams. A joy map is about the things that are within your reach right now, and perhaps some which you may have to stretch a little to reach.

Learn more about mind mapping at http://www.studygs.net/mapping/buzanmap.htm

2.     A No Pressure Date: In her book “The Artist’s Way” Julia Cameron talks about taking yourself out on a date. The budget is about $5 (yes, you are a really cheap date). Where would you go? A dollar store? The mall? A museum? The park? Coffee?  I invite you to take joy out on a “no pressure, let’s just get to know each other date” and see what happens! This “date” can also be used as a reward for yourself. A way to acknowledge what you have done during the day or week or even month. So go ahead, celebrate yourself, and take yourself some place nice!

And Finally:

3.     Bring joy to someone else: If you have ever smiled back at someone enjoying themselves, if their joy was contagious and you shared in it, then this one is for you. How about sharing something you do well or enjoy doing with someone else?

On that note, wishing you a Joyful June from all of us at the Resiliency Center!

Anjana Deshpande, LCSW is a certified Journal and Poetry Therapist. She works with both clients and clinicians who wish to get acquainted with the transformative power of writing. She can be reached at anjanawrite@gmail.com

Fill Up this Winter with Positive Change: Lessons from the Practice of QiGong

by Karen Steinbrecher

As the ground hardens and the air chills, we are drawn to go ‘inside.’  In Taoist traditions, winter is the season when you are called to explore what lives below the surface, to pay attention to the internal workings of your intuition.  In Traditional Chinese Medicine, winter is the time to focus upon the Kidneys, Yin, and the Bladder, Yang, as well as the adrenals.  This is a crucial time to nourish, warm and fuel your physical, mental and spiritual energy.  These winter practices have a cumulative effect upon your physical health, mental clarity, and innovative spirit. 

Infuse yourself with positive change by practicing and dancing Qigong!  Qigong is an invaluable tool to unite and align your thoughts, heart and physical body.  One of the best ways to infuse your being is with your intention, to bring in and initiate positive change.  May this Winter Solstice and all holy days that celebrate the light in one way or another feed your soul, your heart, your being.  May our Qigong practice help us call this light, this Qi into a joyful dance arounds us, our world, your world.  May we see the light in one another and joyfully acknowledge it with a smile or a hug.  

Winter in TCM celebrates the Water Element.  The waters of the earth and the waters of your body are one. As we dance and practice Qigong together, we are one in dynamic flow and movement.  Let us fuse with the Universe this New Year with Peace and Love and Light, bringing in positive change.  Feel yourself as you dance Qigong, grounded and home in flowing change.  Abundant Blessings to all of you with Gratitude and Peace and Love.  

Join Karen Steinbrecher at the Resiliency Center each Thursday at 2 P.M. or at 6:15 P.M. in the open workspace.  Learn more at http://www.meetup.com/Resiliency-Gatherings-for-Movement-Inner-Strength-Joy/ 

Sleepwalking, Sleepwaking by Dean Solon

lou reed:  "i could sleep for a thousand years.""

in the late afternoon, shortly before sunset, i fall asleep on the sitting room sofa, about as deeply asleep as i can be.  perhaps a near-death experience, a deep and utter silence of something resembling nothing.
i may have slept for a thousand years.
who am i, now?

sitting...am i a sleepwalker?
                 yes, sometimes i am a sleepwalker.
asleep, how lightly we sleep.
awake, how deeply we sleep.

sitting...with foresight
                AND memory
                (with premonition and remembrance).
you recognized me,
and now you have forgotten who i am.
asleep, how lightly you sleep.
awake, how deeply you sleep.

of course, each of us a master
as much as a student.
sleepwalking, sleepwaking.
it is time to be here, now.

sitting...
am resting on the shoreline,
feet curling on the sand,
a space between thoughts deconstructing,
the stories i have wrestled with decomposing,
inclinations to drama dissipating
under the big sky,
the rarified air i am breathing
the air always i am breathing.
all the commotion and all the confusion
a divine comedy
tearing our hearts out...
this life
one ceaseless wake up call,
an air raid siren shattering the ears,
a breath and a breath
and another breath
shattering the heart.
you are the ten thousand shattered fragments,
you are the prophet walking in this world.

the world does not conform to our wishes.
we are the clay.

matt haig:  "if you came to earth looking for logical sense, you were missing the point."

What We Sat With Yesterday Morning At The Resiliency Center, Before The Bombing by Dean Solon

sitting comfortably and with ease.
closing your eyes, gently and lightly, allowing the body to be at rest and the breathing to be natural.
your body at rest and your breathing natural.
so we are here, now.  so you are here, now.

awaking to a day, to another day, to this day, on planet earth.
to another day, on planet earth, with an experiencing of familiarity, with an experiencing of mystery.
with an experiencing of not-knowing what is coming, next;
of not-knowing what is about to be.

a sitting, this morning, this moment, of openness.
of opening.  pure and easy.

sitting...
residing in the center of the mayhem of this world---residing in the center of you---
is peace.
residing in the center of the madness---residing in the center of you---
is sanity.
residing in the heart of darkness---residing in the heart of you---
is light.
residing in the center of the commotion and the roar of the crowd---residing in the center of you---
is silence.
residing in the heart of the disconnecting from all that is---residing in the heart of you---
is connection, is compassion, with all that is.

a light in the chest.
a light in the heart.
a light in the head,
your mind, your third eye.

in any moment...light
in this moment...light
in this moment...light