Daily Joy ~ by Kristine Raymond

That's a difficult concept for me sometimes.  Daily Joy.  When things in my life aren't going well, finding anything to be joyful about on any given day is often a challenging prospect.  Oh, I have a lot to be thankful for - my husband, my fur babies, my family and friends, the roof over my head and food to eat, decent health.  Not a day goes by that I don't count my blessings for what I have, but appreciation is not the same as joy.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, the definition of joy (noun) is "A feeling of great pleasure and happiness."  Sounds simple enough, but I've had days where that feeling's been as elusive as a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.  On those days, a bit of effort is required on my part but when I slow down, take a breath, and become cognizant of the world around me, I never fail to find what I'm searching for.
 
As I'm typing this, a white-throated sparrow is singing outside of my window, it's call clear and pure, the sound filling me with happiness.  Ahhh...that elusive joy. 

For those times when nature fails to uplift my spirits, I turn to one of my cherished books, Daily Joy - 365 Days of Inspiration.
  

This volume sits on my desk, my favorite pages marked.  Like this one - "Let the beauty of what you love be what you do." ~ Rumi.  How could those words not fill one's soul with pleasure?

It doesn't take money to be joyful or require a huge investment of time.  Joy is all around us if we just take a moment to recognize it.  A baby's gurgling laugh.  The soft rumbling of a cat's purr.  Our dog's wagging tail telling us he's delighted we're home.  That first sip of tea (or coffee).  A bird's song.  A fragrant bloom.  Spring leaves rustling in the wind.  The opening notes of our favorite song.

The list could go on forever, and mine would be different than yours because we all find joy - that feeling of great pleasure and happiness - in different ways.  The important thing is to take a moment - each day - to discover yours.

  
If you'd like to pick up your own copy of Daily Joy - 365 Days of Inspiration, you can get it here.

It’s the little things ~ by Joanne Jaytanie

This past February my husband Ralph took me on a trip to Hawaii to celebrate my birthday. It was the first time I’ve visited the islands. I’ve already written about some of the amazing sights I saw in a past post, The fantastic sights of Hawaii. And some would say, I’m writing about them once again, except these sights are wonderous from a different point of view. The everyday things I was privileged to witness while visiting the farm of my friend, Jackie. These are the types of things which I suppose some would call—ordinary. I prefer to call them extraordinary…

I don’t have chickens, but I found them fascinating because I had the opportunity to watch them interact for days. There is a backyard flock and a front yard flock. When the backyard chickens were fed, the front yard flock was interested in what was happening, but they wouldn’t approach the backyard while the backyard flock was eating.

Notice the cat in the bottom picture? The cats and chickens coexisted peacefully.


Have you ever seen chickens in a tree? I did. Even with all the coops to choose from, the front yard chickens chose to sleep in a tree.

During our walks in the Macadamia Nut orchard, Jackie introduced me to Mr. Fancy Pants. He was a new tenant and only had eyes for her. Mr. Fancy Pants was nowhere to be seen, but as soon as Jackie called him, he’d instantly appear and talk to her.

The chickens weren't the only fowl on the farm. A wild turkey or three often wandered through the yard. 

The oversized foliage was impressive. It reminded me of the movie, "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids." 

 



Look at the size of this Elephant Leaf! This leaf isn't even the largest one on this plant.

Bananas grow from the purple flowers on the plant. As the petals curl back, a “hand” or bunch of bananas is under each petal. Each hand consists of “fingers,” and each finger is otherwise known as a banana.

You can see the stages in this picture. Once the petals all fall off, the fruit turns upwards towards the sun.

There was no better way to end a day on the farm than enjoying dinner and drinks on the lanai and great conversation with dear friends.

Until next time...

Joanne