Every Thursday, we hope that you enjoy “The Joy Factory: Insights on Joyful Parenting (Among Other Things)” by Ruthie Yarme. More about Ruthie below.
I have the sniffles. Not too sniffly, but just enough to get me to stop and listen. I know my body pretty well (and have wonderful friends who remind me that it is “my most trusted advisor”…shout out to Stacey). Intuition (and a quick read of Louise Hay) tells me that it is time to slow down, curl up and drink some yummy tea.
It is also time for me to fill my head with healthful, joyful, vibrant thoughts. I know this because my inner-kvetch wants to get started focusing on how lousy it is to feel sniffly and sneezy and how it really just makes the day hard and…..
Seems like a perfect time to bring out my feel-good secret weapon! A few years ago, I ran across a Christine Kane blog post suggesting that we all write a list of 100 things that delight us. I had such fun reading hers, that I immediately started a list of my own which I tucked away in my wallet. I reach for it often and in a variety of circumstances. Each and every time, it delights!
So here, in no particular order, are my little joys!
1. Sunny, powder days
2. Laughing so hard that my body shakes and I can’t stop…the kind of laugh that almost feels like crying, but is filled with joy.
3. Isabella’s eyelashes
4. My kids blowing on my belly
5. Blowing on my kids’ bellies
6. Song lyrics that move me
7. Andre’s eyelashes
8. A whole body smile
9. Strong, full, present hugs
10. Sunset on Smuggler Mountain in Aspen, CO after a bike ride up
11. Colorado wildflowers
12. Beach bonfires
13. Seeing dolphins in the ocean
14. Seeing otters in the ocean
15. Phosphorescence off the oars of a kayak under a clear night sky
16. A perfect snowflake
17. Alpenglow
18. Hiking in a grove of Aspen trees in fall on a crisp, blue-sky day
19. Watching Adam play “Monster” with the kids at Lighthouse Point
20. The memory of my dad’s smile
21. …and my dad’s laugh
22. …and my dad’s hugs (strong, full and present)
23. Isabella’s sparkly eyes when she is filled with glee
24. Fireflies on a warm June night in Asheville
25. Adam playing “The River is Wide” on guitar or any Seamus Eagan
26. Andre and his friends running in circles, squealing with joy
27. The memory of Adam dancing in the zocalo in Oaxaca with baby Isabella on his shoulders
28. Gelato in Florence
29. Watching bees
30. Any sighting of hummingbirds
31. Being outside in a thunderstorm
32. Hiking in the snow
33. Entering a cozy, warm house after a wintery, outdoor adventure
34. A great bottle of wine shared with friends
35. A not-so-great bottle of wine shared with friends
36. A conversation with a soul-nurturing friend (with or without wine!)
37. The magical sight of newly unfurled leaves against a brilliant blue sky
38. A breath-taking book along the lines of “The Book Thief”
39. The memory of my dog, Skyler, frolicking in the snow
40. The power of a fast-moving rain storm
41. Watching my husband make my mom laugh
42. My grandma’s Italian cream puffs
43. The way Isabella and Andre curl their bodies over me at night
44. Reading with my kids
45. A great Bikram yoga class, hot and sweaty!
46. Freshly picked blackberries in July
47. A perfectly ripe tomato
48. When someone says exactly what I was thinking
49. The blue-green eyes of my husband
50. The blue-green eyes of my son
51. The hazel eyes of my daughter
52. The sound of kids’ laughter
53. The Well Being Center, an amazing place of healing and joy right here in Santa Cruz
54. The color and movement of the fire in our wood stove
55. Icicles
56. Following my kids down a ski mountain, through trees, over bumps and hearing their hoots of joy!
57. Quiet cuddle time with my family
58. The full moon when she peers at me from behind the clouds and then shows herself in all of her glory
59. My children’s firm and unwavering knowledge that the world is magical
60. Sleeping under the stars
61. Walking on the beach at sunrise, writing haiku poems with my friends
62. Having my daughter share her gratitude journal
63. Sharing my gratitude journal with my daughter
64. Pandora Radio (love, love, love it)
65. Dancing, dancing, dancing (often to Pandora Radio)
66. Watching my kids sleep
67. Spending time with my hilarious nieces and nephews
68. The powerful energy that gets moving whenever my writers’ group gathers…love the Magic Mamas!
69. James Taylor
70. Traveling
71. Musee d’Orsey
72. OK, pretty much anything in Paris delights!
73. While I’m on the subject, pain au chocolat
74. Finding the perfect fabric for my next project
75. Watching my kids’ creative process
76. Young Frankenstein
77. Mariachi bands in the Guanajuato zocalo
78. Fresh flowers and chocolate from Adam when I return from being away
79. My love’s love
80. “Moony-Moon Walks”
81. Tide pools
82. Camping in Utah (Moab, Zion, Bryce…anywhere under that big sky)
83. My kids’ faces on Christmas morning
84. Sleeping in late
85. soulemama.com
86. Sewing stuffed animals with my kids
87. Turning an old dress into a purse
88. Warm tea with honey next to me as I am immersed in a fictional world of beauty
89. Sense and Sensibility (both the book and the Emma Thompson movie)
90. Any movie with Emma Thompson
91. Walking a labyrinth under a full moon
92. My mom’s love for me and my family
93. Star-gazing
94. A craggy, old oak tree
95. Home-made chai
96. The feeling I have after a great work-out/yoga class
97. Community
98. A perfectly delivered joke
99. A perfectly delivered kiss
100. Present, connected moments
I swear, I am feeling less sniffly already!!
Ruthie Yarme is a homeschooling mom, living in Santa Cruz, CA. She delights in walking among the towering Redwoods; watching her dog, Ginger, romp along the Pacific; listening to her husband play music of all styles; and pretty much doing anything with her two amazing gurus, Isabella and Andre.
You can find Ruthie’s essays here every Thursday. She would love to hear your thoughts on parenting, partnering and joyful living. Feel free to contact her at yarme@mac.com
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
SO many delights! SO delightful! But oh! #80 – I am so glad it is represented: I love that we got to share “moony-moon” walks with you and your family and that I have the sweetest picture of Finn and Isabella asleep in a tandem stroller after one of them. Pure delight.
Oh, and dear readers! If you comment here about some of the things that delight YOU we will include them in tomorrow’s WAYA post!
OMG. I did this too! Only mine were 1000 Things that make Troidles Smile. I wrote them at a time when we needed something, anything to be positive about as my mom was dying of Chronic Lymphocitic Leukemia. Christine hadn’t even created her program yet or even her blog back then but I believed so much in laughter as the best medicine that I felt it my duty to write it and share it. I haven’t thought about this list in a long long time. Thank you for inspiring me to dig it out. I am going to do more than that … I am going to print it out, put it on my blog, maybe self-publish it, and give it to each of my sisters. There’s some hard stuff going on again and I think this list will remind us all of the amazing blessings we’ve had and are still having all along the way. There’s lots of mom quotes and funny things she did in my list that are making me miss her terribly right now but they are really tears of joy as I am so grateful for the time we did have with her. Here are a few of my 1000……
Pudgy hands
Home movies
Old photographs
Family portraits
Job boards
Telephone restriction system
Wearing new clothes
Shopping
Making up nicknames for Debby
License plates
Sunny days
Foxes in the back yard
Slugs
Lightly toasted bagels with fresh cream cheese
Dr. Dalberth
“Amovas”
Fitting into old clothes
“Only my family!”
Singing “Aquarius”
Personal shoppers
Getting suits sent to you in shoeboxes
“Dammit in the bathroom, yucky in the kitchen!”
“God loves me just the way I am, the way I am”
“We’re sorry you’re sick” sung by kindergartners
Packages from mom
Fr. Newcomb’s dog names Dammit
Dumbolas
“Little Bunny Fu Fu” play, with Debby as the field mouse
Bunny costumes
Lizard man
Dumb bunny
“Some bunny loves you”
Karen’s baby chick project
Cheesecake with strawberries
Fruit flies
Plant puppets for Debby’s “Botany’s Best” project
Partridge Family Dog’s birthday
Debby’s bangs
“Fix your hair, Debby”
Fantastic List of delights Ruthie. I especially love the #68. I think I will go off and write a similar list of things that delight me. Thank you.
Stacey-
I am looking forward to more Moony Moon walks in the not-too-distant future (and great bottles of wine shared by friends, conversations with a soul-nurturing friend, sunrise beach walks writing haiku, dancing, etc., etc.!!)
Oooh, Coco. Please share some of your delights!! I’d love to see them!
Oh yes, Ruthie! It will be wonderful to see how many delights we can squeeze into one week!
Just saw on a friend’s facebook page that he is watching Young Frankenstein with his family. Love your list, Ruthie!!
Oops! We initially missed Kathy’s fantastic post because it got relegated to the spam file for some reason! Luckily I was able to enjoy the list she posted to her blog, but now I’m very happy that it has been reclaimed here so that all the MfYL readers can enjoy it!
Thanks SO much, Kathy, for sharing your list of delights! I’d love for others to chime in with theirs too!
Kathy! So glad that your wonderful entry made it out of the spam folder and out here in the sunlight where it belongs!!! Kudos to Stacey for catching it!! 1000! Now I have to set my sights even higher. Thanks for the nudge to expand my list even more!