Delight
I look for the joy in my day.
DELIGHT
I look for the joy in my day.
Definition: a cause or source of great pleasure
Other: thrill, gladness, elation, happiness
Opposite: dismay, disgust, displeasure
Delight is a feeling of great happiness that just zings right into your mind and body. It’s a feeling that brings pleasure. It could be a thrilling event or an everyday happening. Sometimes delight takes your breath away by the unexpected surprise.
Delight is an intention and a practice. To be in the midst of difficulties and still be able to pay attention that all of sudden, a hummingbird lands on a flower, right in front of you. There is plenty of awful in the world, but at the same time, you can savor, using your senses to tune into the beautiful ordinary. Close your eyes and imagine you are standing in front of the oven door pulling out a loaf of bread that you made (or as I do, use frozen Bridgford ready-dough). There is heat wafting up into your face, you see the perfectly brown crust on the bread, you smell the aroma of yumminess, you hear the bread knife saw through the bread and watch as the butter melts into the nooks and crannies, and then you bite into that warm slice of deliciousness. For me this is delight.
Delight makes me want to share, not just bread, but the feeling of contentment and camaraderie.
Science shows that what elevates us in the beginning can become baseline over time. Delight can turn into expectation which can lead to habituation by absorbing the good and bad into a new equilibrium. If you give someone flowers every week it might fade from delight to whatever to a chore that has backfired from your original thoughtful reason. Keep tuning into small wonders that have been missed in the day to day humdrum of life. Random acts of delightedness, like gifts for no reason and random thank you notes that are not a regular part of interaction are a way to uplift those around you. Not expected but introducing and spreading delight.
Start a delight pact with yourself by asking these questions. Make a list and every now and then incorporate a surprise delight for yourself or another to live life better.
-What brings me joy?
-What brings me pleasure?
-When is the last time I felt delighted and what caused it?
-How can I bring delight to others?
The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things.
-Henry Ward Beecher
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Find the Good (and the delight)
Becky and Janette
Becky Wilbur - Silver Lining Specialist at Well-Being and Wonder
Silver Lining Specialist
Becky Wilbur is a woman who is wise-hearted and chooses to live with ease. Well-being is the vision which lights her way with peace and love.
As an encourager, healer and champion for flourishing and contentment, she is honored to inspire others on their journey of change.
She is a widow, a mom to two girls and a mutt named Sadie from Modesto, CA.
Contact her at beckywilbur@yahoo.com
