The worst kind of traffic isn’t Stop and Go. It’s stop!…go, go, go… stop!…go, go, go… stop!
It’s like playing Red Light, Green Light on the freeway. Not nearly as much fun as it was in my backyard as a kid.
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What if true joy is only born in experiencing new things? What if our sense of wonder and our ability to feel true happiness are tied inexonerably together?
It would do a lot to explain why the older we are, the more experienced we become, the more difficult it is to hold onto those moments of joy. Those who manage to maintain their connection to their sense of innocence and wonder are the happiest amongst us.
The rest of us must work harder to find those moments. Or perhaps that is the wrong approach; it isn’t that we need to work harder in general – that might actually have the opposite affect, pushing happiness away rather than bringing it closer. We just have to be more vigilant. We have to be aware.
Life is in the experiencing.
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Off to the lake house, will be gone until next Sunday.
Behave yourselves while I’m gone; don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.
Joy does seem to fade or we become inured to it as we age It’s still there, still present in the simplest moments; in part it’s our awareness that gets more crowded and clouded every day.
A sense of awe, of wonder, is something to cultivate. You can see it in the eyes of a child. I wish it was in my eyes more often.
Enjoy the lake.
As you rightly surmise, joy is effortless and only accessible to the inquisitive and aware. Thank you for the link, and I hope you enjoy your lake as much as I enjoy mine.