“We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy.” —Joseph Campbell
JOY.
How can three letters be so hard to find?
Most of us try hard to find joy every day.
But for many of us, our joy is hidden under layers of heartache and past hurts.
Our joy has been pushed to the back burner to make room for other’s needs.
Our joy has been cast aside to make room for the passions of others.
Our joy has been linked to some future state we are always striving for but can never fully reach.
What if we have been searching for joy in all the wrong places?
This picture hangs above the desk in my office as a reminder that my journey will lead to many unexpected places.
I may experience tremendous loss, heartache, and defeat.
But JOY can always be found in the journey if I know where to look.
Take the word JOURNEY.
If you look closely you will see the word JOY is hidden among the letters, too.
JOURNEY.
Just like life, the word JOY can only be found once you complete the word JOURNEY.
This helps remind me that with perspective often comes the joy we have been longing to find.
Within the word, JOURNEY is also the word URN.
Reminding me that all our bodies are vessels and we are all on the same journey. We will all eventually return to the ashes of creation that formed us.
The string reminds me that our life is a tangled web of possibilities.
The bicycle made of silvery-blue string reminds me that our journeys are what we make them. We can let life knock us around or we can choose to grab the wheel and forge our own path or even blaze a new trail.
No matter where our journey leads, we must always try to find a thread of silver lining —for where there is hope, joy will soon follow.
Perhaps our journey isn’t so much about the destination. It’s about realizing and rediscovering the joy we have been searching for all this time was there in our hearts all along.