On hot summer nights in the summer, as a child, I would love to hear the sound of a hot air balloon landing. You see, where I grew up it was common for hot air balloons to float through the sky on peaceful summer evenings. When we heard the noise my brothers and I would run outside to see if it was landing close to us and then we would beg our parents to take us to watch it land.
I grew up on a farm and there were large fields that were often used for landing hot air balloons. My parents often got roped into bringing us to watch them land. We would chase them down the fields as they looked for the safest spot to land. The excitement was unreal. I adored it. It was pure joy. We literally were chasing joy.
What makes you happy? What brings you joy?
I am amazed at how often I ask this question during spiritual coaching sessions only to find the person who I am working with completely unable to respond. It is an interesting thing. How do we get to a place in life where we don’t know what brings us joy and happiness? How does that really happen?
Can you think back to a time when you knew what brought you joy and happiness? What changed between then and now? Did you let societal norms get in your way? Did you follow the masses and build a life that you never even wanted? Do you have unhealed wounds and you keep yourself so busy that you can’t possibly be alone with your thoughts and emotions? Are you moving through life in a non-purposeful way, just letting life happen to you? When did you stop seeking joy and happiness?
Can you take out a paper or type onto your phone a list of the things that bring you happiness and joy? Can you name them? Can you put words to them? Do you have them built into your life and experience them regularly?
What if you chased joy and happiness the way I used to chase a hot air balloon landing?
