I was asked recently to write about the path of joy.  I said to myself (with a duplicitous smile on my face)…. “The What?”

Oh, yes, of course, joy.  Having a good time.  Enjoying myself.  Bringing a smile to the face of others.  Feeling a lightness of being.  While this is not my normal operating system, I do know joy.  I have experienced its elusive and always glorious nature.  Still, joy feels like a foreigner in a foreign land.

Take a deep breath here Mr. Jay.   You may actually enjoy this.

If I remember the best sex I ever had, there it is.  Joy.  Actually, if I remember just about any sex I have had, there it is!  If I remember the birth of any of my children, there it is.  If I remember how I feel after an initiation ritual, there it is.  If I remember how I feel after making a big sale, there it is.   If I remember sitting around a campfire with my close friends, there it is.  If I remember how I felt when I looked at the scale, and I had achieved my 3-month weight loss goal, there it is again.

Now it is the time for joy in all it’s glory: ongoing, ever lasting, and full on.

I notice that all my joy comes as a result of an experience, or the memory of those experiences.   Seems I have never been much of a “smell the roses” kind of guy.  Growing up as a male in America, I was taught to have goals, work hard, achieve great things, and then take on the next project.  There was never much emphasis (actually none) on joy.  And I know I am not alone.  Having spent 15 years of my life in transformational weekend events, I can tell you there is not much joy amongst the brothers.

I call in joy.  I call in my joy.  I am too old to do things I do not want to do. If I want to do something, then I will do it with joy in my heart.  I call in joy that is not dependent on a situation, an accomplishment, nor another.  I call in joy as my way of being.  Today I say to myself:  “I am joy!”   While this will no doubt make some of my buddies want to vomit, I am too old and too tired to keep pushing a boulder up a hill.  Rather, I will follow the boulder down the other side of the hill, and smile all the way to the end.

Taking a stand for joy requires some courage.  Dare to be happy.  This affirmation will require discipline.  This way of being is not for the dramatic, the emotional, nor the weak.  It takes some balls to say I choose joy.  Try it out and really mean it.   Just for today, greet every experience with joy.  When your husband or wife or boyfriend or girlfriend does that thing they do that you hate so much, greet it with joy.  Transform your experience.  When you lose that sale that you were counting on, bring joy rather than disappointment.  When the waiter brings you a cold hamburger, can you experience joy rather than anger?  When you realize this life, this one glorious life that you have, when you realize it is all going to come to an end, can you still greet each day with joy?  Through heartache and betrayal, through hurt and failure, will you chose joy?

There was a time when I thought talk of joy was utter bullshit.  I would say to my brothers, life is about challenge, life is about burning, and unearthing those searing bits of my unconscious, and reliving past painful events, so as to become the hollow bone through which spirit may freely flow.   I have done all that.  It was hard, and at times, brutally painful, and it required a powerful vision to stay the path.  Occasional exuberance was a welcome by product of the work.  However, as one who has walked the path for three decades, I can now say there could have been more joy.  Hell, there could have been a whole bunch more joy.  I am not one to lament the past, but there is a truth to be gleaned from my own experiences.  I never chose joy in the past.  Today I choose joy.

I tell you, I hear you snickering on the sidelines.  I know well of your feelings of derision.  “Has he lost his mind?”

Yes I have.

It is about time!

About the Author

Jay Cradeur is an author, blogger, internet marketer, world traveler, and coach. Jay has helped thousands to achieve their dreams of financial independence. As an internet marketing coach with a focus on personal development, Jay may be able to assist you in reaching your goals. You can work with Jay for a 100% refundable fee of $49 by clicking on this link and committing to your future. Work with Coach Jay.