Joy

  By the time I got out of bed, the first word had left my mind but then "Joy" came and I grabbed it. Just the appearance of that word in my mind brought some speck of joy.What a word.

I only drink coffee, laced with Coffeemate Carmel Latte, twice a week as a sacrifice and I can tell you that abstaining the other days makes Wednesday and Sunday feel like a holiday with fireworks. Sweet, sweet Carmel. Today was coffee day.

It reminds me of a story I read about the monks on the solitary rock island know as Skellig Micheal off the Irish coast. They ate simply, prayed all day and had little contact with the outside world. They were so deprived that the slightest bit of beauty, a passing bird, a blooming weed filled them with intense joy. There is a lesson here.

This brought back memories of the times when my kids were young and I would head to Helen , Georgia by myself for three days. I stayed at a motel right on the Chattahoochee River; my first hour spent sitting on the small patio looking and listening to the soft river sounds. I never remember a more peaceful time.

I always went in early Spring when crowds were few. A small purple flower is pressed into my journal page dated April 10, 1989. I remember picking it, the purple so lovely against the brown leaves along the road :.... "thoughts strung together like beads, lilac scent, small purple and white violets, horses greeting me at a fence, river sounds. Discovered a lovely waterfall behind the motel. Every trip here is different. I treasure every moment."

The joy of solitude where your thoughts can go where you want and not be interrupted. A cool breeze on your face as you run by the river. No television and sleeping until you wake up. Starting the day with the Psalms open on your lap and the river at your feet. And then the joy of the four little faces that greet you when you come home, renewed.

                                                           Celtic Prayer
                                      The love and affection of the angels
                                      be with me.
                                      The love and affection of the saints
                                       be with me,
                                       The love and affection of heaven
                                       be with me.
                                      To lead me and cherish me
                                       this day.