Have you ever questioned the definition of joy? The word is used as a synonym for happiness and contentment, but are these ideas interchangeable? And what about other nouns that are stirred in–hope, grace, mercy, and gratitude? Are they just words?
All month, I pondered the meanings. I thought while I baked pies, sauteed mushrooms, and made ice cream. Leave it to a food-obsessed person to have her own world view.
Happiness can be a fleeting as the buzz from a spoonful of manuka honey. It can be anything from a new dress to a new kitchen, causing an eruption of warm, fizzy euphoria, but these moments always fade, prompting us to reach for another shot of happiness.
Hope reminds me of stout beer, an acquired taste. Just when it starts to go down easy, the foam flattens and sours. You can lose hope as easily as beer can lose its head.
Mercy functions in a life the way butter functions in cooking, adding tenderness, working in tandem with other ingredients to add flavor and texture. In a recipe, the exact amount of butter must be used or failure will result; but in our daily lives, any amount of mercy brings compassion and forgiveness.
Contentment is a kind of yeast, allowing our souls to rise.
Joy is the stabilizer that holds whipped cream together, maintaining shape and preventing weeping.
Grace is like salt, a quiet powerhouse that acts as a preservative. Just like in cooking, it’s the boss, and it just calms everything down. It also strengthens dough, keeps yeast under control, all the while encouraging and brightening flavors.
But gratitude is the whole meal.
Our gratitude is noticed. If we’re paying attention, we notice little (and big) holy moments coming our way.
The wise woman is always alert to the minutia–the itty bitty-ness of things. A gift may be so simple, we may overlook it. You see, the divine speaks in a soft voice, and it’s up to us to listen.
When we grow a foundation of grace and joy, we begin to notice ordinary miracles: The spicy aroma of a freshly baked apple pie. Pink crepe myrtle blossoms carried by the wind. Arranging wildflowers and vines in an old vase. Watching cardinals perch on a sunflower feeder. Scratching a puppy’s belly. A sudden rain after 100-degree days. If we pay attention, we see the precise moment when summer turns into autumn–a certain shift of light, a crispness in the early morning air, yellow leaves spinning to the ground.
These simple moments add up to the sum of a lifetime.
Little bitty moments deserve our gratitude.
When a day goes wrong, take a moment. Draw in a breath. Reboot your thoughts. Look around. Find at least one blessing, however small, and offer gratitude. Choose to believe that a miracle is on the way.
Thank you for reading, for leaving thought provoking comments on Instagram, and for just being here.
You lift my heart.
May your days be filled with grace, joy, and miracles.
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