The First 5 Days of the 40 Days of Joy
Day 1
“Joy gives us wings! In times of joy our strength is more vital, our intellect keener, and our understanding less clouded. We seem better able to cope with the world and to find our sphere of influence.”
- Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p.109
Start Your Day
Take a moment to sit quietly and make the conscious decision to choose joy today. Be still with this thought for a couple of minutes and then go on with your day.
Today
Notice: Often, as we go through our day, we’re so focused on our ‘stuff’ and on the drama of the moment that we don’t notice the joy that is in our lives. We may briefly see it, but we don’t bring awareness to it, or we may brush it off with a hurried smile or even with slight irritation.
As you go through your day, notice the things that bring you joy. Maybe they don’t offer full joy, but just a small smile. Just bring awareness to these things in your life.
Finish Your Day
Review your day and write down all the things that gave you joy today, and why they gave you joy. Write down at least five things, preferably ten.
Day 2
“May all beings learn how to nourish themselves with joy each day.”
- Thich Nhat Hanh
Start Your Day
Take a moment to sit quietly and make the conscious decision to choose joy today. Be still with this thought for a couple of minutes and then go on with your day.
Today
Receive: The big thing I noticed while observing the joy in my life was that, even when I had joyful things in front of me, I wasn’t always fully engaged with them. My mind might be racing ahead to my contribution in a conversation, or it might be analyzing the situation at hand, maybe judging it. My mind saw the joy, but my heart didn’t receive it.
Today, pay attention to how you receive the joy that is in your life. Are you fully engaged with it? Or are you assessing with your mind, but not truly embracing it? However you are receiving it now, what would it take for you to receive it more fully?
Finish Your Day
Review your day and write down all the things that gave you joy today, and why they gave you joy. Write down at least five things, preferably ten.
Day 3
“Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy,
and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.”
- Helen Keller
Start Your Day
Take a moment to sit quietly and make the conscious decision to choose joy today. Be still with this thought for a couple of minutes and then go on with your day.
Today
Breathe: Yesterday, a life situation came up that I could easily have been stressed about. It suddenly came to me to do this exercise. I found that it gave me an opportunity to focus on something other than the stress, and instead helped me fulfill my morning intention, which was to choose joy.
Over the course of your day, as it occurs to you, practice breathing joy. As you inhale, say to yourself that you breathe in joy, and as you exhale, say to yourself that you breathe out joy. You may prefer to say to yourself that you ‘receive joy’ and ‘give joy’. Play with the phrasing so it feels natural for you.
Finish Your Day
Review your day and write down all the things that gave you joy today, and why they gave you joy. Write down at least five things, preferably ten.
Day 4
“Let joy keep you. Reach out your hands and take it when it runs by.”
- Carl Sandburg
Start Your Day
Take a moment to sit quietly and make the conscious decision to choose joy today. Be still with this thought for a couple of minutes and then go on with your day.
Think of a few affirmations about joy and write them down. At the end of your time of choosing joy, repeat the affirmations to yourself and feel the emotion of the words. Either make up your own affirmations or use the ones below.
- I am joy
- I am a joy-filled being
- I live a joyful (or joy-filled) life
- There is joy in all parts of my life
Repeat these to yourself throughout the day as needed.
Today
Others: Notice other people’s joy today, and how you respond to it. Do you acknowledge it, embrace it, resent it, brush it off? Are you generally too focused on your own life to pay any attention to others’ joy? Just notice.
Finish Your Day
Review your day and write down all the things that gave you joy today, and why they gave you joy. Write down at least five things, preferably ten.
Day 5
“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize
how good things really are.”
- Marianne Williamson
Start Your Day
Take a moment to sit quietly and make the conscious decision to choose joy today. Be still with this thought for a couple of minutes and then go on with your day.
Think of a few affirmations about joy and write them down. At the end of your time of choosing joy, repeat the affirmations to yourself and feel the emotion of the words. Either make up your own affirmations or use the ones below.
- I am joy
- I am a joy-filled being
- I live a joyful (or joy-filled) life
- There is joy in all parts of my life
Repeat these to yourself throughout the day as needed.
Today
Our Body: he other day I had this awareness of the absolute incredibleness of my hands, of what they do for me and give to me. How I use them to pick things up and feel and experience the world in so many ways. It struck me with awe and wonder. I know my hands’ functions can be explained by science – this muscle does this and this tendon does that – but when we allow ourselves to see it, there is a distinctly miraculous aspect to their capacities. And this applies to every part of our body. In some way, all our body parts contribute to our joy in life, if we receive it.
Media and entertainment has helped us become professionals at criticising our body – we know exactly what’s wrong and what we’d change. Yet in truth, our body is miraculous.
Today, feel the joy of your body: what it’s capable of; what it feels; its amazing functions.
Finish Your Day
Review your day and write down all the things that gave you joy today, and why they gave you joy. Write down at least five things, preferably ten.
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