Things That Give Me Joy

What brings me joy? Where do I start? I was lying in bed last night thinking up more and more things, so perhaps I'll do this again soon.

1) Grace - the profound fact of Grace, from my God, from my husband, from my kids and my friends. Living free of the fear of being condemned. Acceptance based on who I am, rather than what I do is exhilarating!

2) Families - my family, even more so now that I am a grandma. Seeing little Liam with his parents makes me almost burst with joy! But it's not just my family...I am a streetside voyeur. I love to observe families interacting; children with parents; parents with babies; toddlers with everyone. I love listening in on families when I cannot understand their language. The words they say are not important. The unspoken, the tone, the glance, the love; it's universal. So please don't tell me it's not polite to stare.

3) The tree behind the house across the street. Oh-my-gosh! Have you seen this tree??! It is magnificent! I believe God had that family bring that tree from their farm in Manitoba and plant it there as a tiny sapling, way back in the '70's when they built their house (yes, it's the original owners) because He knew I would move into this house in 2002 and look out at it everyday and thank Him for it.

4) Blocks. The ones that have constantly cluttered the floors of the houses (2) that I've lived in for the last 12 years. The ones we paid an-arm-and-a-leg for from that specialty toy catalogue, as well as the wonderful IKEA offcuts, and the ones my older brother did for my youngest brother when he was a toddler. They are all hand painted and sanded and have stood the test of time. (Chris-the-toddler is now 35 years old).
They have all been used in thousands of construction projects, and have taken the place of our non-existent TV and video games with every child who has crossed our threshold, be they toddler (Brandon is the latest) or architect tech (Mark). And soon, very soon, they will be stacked and knocked down by a new generation, passed down in living colour with no downtime. They represent the best entertainment dollars we ever spent. And they make such a satisfying sound crashing down!

5) My "studio" room. What a capital J- joy to have a room to create in! I don't have to dig supplies out of closets, they're all right here. I don't have to clean up when I'm done or before I can cook supper. It screams "freedom" to me. Am I blessed or what?

6) Clean hot and cold running water. Believe it or not, I think about this often. It's not something I take for granted.

7) The colour on my walls in the kitchen, living room, hall and dining room. It's the first time I've been brave enough to use colour, and I love it!

8) Volunteering at the Friends of the Library book shop. I get to sort and shelve used books, and I find such treasures. Every week. And I feel morally compelled to give them a good home. Which explains a lot.

9) The fact that although my husband was raised by The Worlds Cleanest Woman, he is just near-sighted enough to be totally blind to the excess of books that threaten to overtake our home. Oh sorry, did I say " threaten"? He also accepts my reasonable explanation of the usefulness of books as R-value. And did I mention how keen his eyesight is when we are driving? He can spot a used book store blocks away, and find the nearest FREE parking spot. My hero!

10) My treasures - marbles, those glorious, brilliant little orbs; stones and shells collected over the years...they are more precious to me than diamonds. Especially the ones that were offered to me in the palm of a little boy's hand.