I want to identify joyful things in my life because joy keeps me sane. For me, joy includes things that make me smile or laugh, as well as things that make me feel seen, appreciated, accomplished, present, and connected. I easily forget about and gloss over things that bring me joy, and I don’t want to take those things for granted anymore. Hence, this feature.
This has been a difficult yearlong month-week. While it’s important to find joy in tough times, it’s also much harder to find it. So, I’ll name one thing: Blankets.
Monday, I took the day off. I hadn’t planned on it. I’d slept like shit, and my body decided it was best for us to doze on the couch all day. I went from laying in bed to laying on the couch to laying in bed. That was my entire day.
For a few moments, it made me incredibly happy. Like saying it out loud to myself and smiling happy.
What made me happiest was getting up to pee, then coming back to my electric blanket. Feeling my chilly feet slip under that artificial warmth was the winter version of wading into a swimming pool on a hot day. It’s the same feeling I get when I go to workout in the heated pool at my gym. It’s so relaxing. If my tactile sense could speak, it would say it’s delicious.
When I tell you warmth, comfort, and rest are some of my ultimate joys, I’m not lying. It might be boring, but when you’re always in pain, almost nothing competes with becoming a toasty human burrito.
