All the Joy You Need
by Steve Goodier
Thomas Aquinas once said, "No one can live without
joy." But many people try. And the reason is often
simply because they don't know how to be happy! They
are so intent on the three Ps -- power, prosperity
and prestige -- that they miss out on joy.
Try to imagine this picture. It is a photograph
taken by Henri Cartier-Bresson, who pioneered modern
photography as an art form during the early decades
of the 20th Century. He became known for his
photographs of apparent contradictions: pictures
that left mysteries unexplained.
One of his famous photographs was shot in a poor
section of Spain in the 1930s. The picture depicts a
run-down alley surrounded by decaying walls, strewn
with rubble randomly stacked in thick piles lying on
the street, and riddled with bullet holes dotting
gray walls. The setting alone evokes feelings of
sadness and despair.
http://www.peterfetterman.com/artists/cb/pic27.html
But then...the contradiction. Within the grim alley
children are playing. They wear dirty and tattered
clothes, as one might expect in such a setting, but
like playing children everywhere, they laugh with
carefree joy. In the foreground, a tiny boy on
crutches hobbles away from two other boys, his face
lit up with a broad grin. One boy is laughing so hard
he has to hold his side. Others lean on the cracked
walls, beaming with delight.
It is easy to spot the contrast -- and the point.
Joy amidst the rubble of life. Laughter amongst its
ruins.
We cannot avoid pain, however hard we try. But we can
avoid joy. We cannot escape hardship and trouble, but
we can miss out on much of life's peace and laughter.
If you feel as if you could use more joy, try this:
- Spend time daily doing something you enjoy.
- Do those things that bring inner peace.
- Learn to laugh heartily and frequently.
- Cultivate within yourself an attitude of hope.
- Fill each day with as much love as it can possibly hold.
You'll still have plenty of problems, but through it
all, you'll find all you joy you will ever need.
