Add Joyful Times to Balance Out the Painful Ones.

Once, I told my little brother, “You’ll always have tough times. Those will come no matter what. But to balance them out, you need to seek out the joyful times and really enjoy them when you’re in them.” 

I have no idea whether or not he remembers this conversation, but I do. 

It’s solid advice. I took me many years to actually follow it myself. 

I really only got into it after I realized something else: It’s the joyful times that fuel you through the difficult ones. 

In a tough moment (or month or YEAR (looking at you, 2020)), one happy memory can make a difference on whether or not you still reach for hope. A happy memory reminds you: you’ve had some joy once, and that means you can have some joy again. 

So, if you can give yourself a little room to do something fun this week, please do. 

If you don’t have time or capacity for that, take a moment to REMEMBER a joyful time (looking at old pictures helps me).

The only constant in life is that everything changes, and changes again. Even if it feels like everything has changed for the worse, the opposite is also true: everything can change just as much for the better. 

(FYI: Picture is from me REALLY enjoying the mountain fall weather in October 2020.)