Joyism:
the theory that YOU can be joy. By allowing in experiences and contributing to others’ joy without an expected result or outcome.
of course we have to plan for the future. but plan with a sense of wonder and curiosity and openness…vs with grasping fear (save money, be married – as if all those things can allow you to relax. like the song goes – the trust fund or wealthy spouse may run out.) we can never truly know. we can only be true to our core sense of self and realize that’s our homing device as we continue on this journey. A journey that will have obstacles and helpers. like when you are hiking. the path up the mountain feels almost too hard and you can’t see an end in sight, much less a pretty view. and you feel alone, and anxious about the outcome. Will it start raining? am i still on the trail? will it get dark? do i have enough food? You can prepare for all contingencies. and a mountain lion may still show up to eat you. but if you pulled the camera way back you’d realize you are surrounded by sheer natural beauty – trees, bodies of water, birds, bugs, mountains, valleys of wild flowers, then if you pull back farther, there are misty clouds that you can float through. and then pinprick stars lighting up a seemingly never ending black sky, then planets & other celestial bodies. How can we possibly think we are alone? Or worse…that we’re doing this on our own? controlling much of anything? So it gets dark? You curl up in a ball and cry until you fall asleep. And like everything else in life – the sunrise comes. And you can see it isn’t much further to the top. And at the top, you watch a bald eagle land near by and watch you curiously. From here you can see many houses, several with smoke coming from their chimneys, conjuring up scenes of dinner in front of a fire. You can see the parking lot where your car is parked.
But last night it had all been so unfamiliar, so scary. There was no visibility and no certainty.
Joyism involves all of the things listed below. Either knowing them in oneself, or consciously doing the work to develop them in oneself. But the most critical requirement is having an open heart (which is scary but where the real magic happens).
—consciousness
—meditating to begin living in awareness
—being true to oneself
—connected to others
—the feeling of contributing to greater cause
—continuously on edge of comfort zone
—accomplishment
—new experiences
—learning
—art, science, music
—taking chances
—presence, energy (allow it in all instances)
—holding space for others when they need it
lastly, and maybe the most difficult:
—meet the fear / welcome it in
