JOY
JOY is my intention this year.
Not my resolution, plan, or goal.
My intention.
I’ve long since given up making New Year’s resolutions. There will always be chocolate in the world. Ice cream, opportunities to not be practical. Which means if you ask me to do something and it sounds fun, I’m going to say YES. That doesn’t need to be a resolution for me. I will always say YES. (Ask my friend Jenny. Or anyone who knows me.)
Joy isn’t my resolution. Joy isn’t my plan. Joy isn’t my goal.
Joy is my intention. And it’s about time.
For me, and the way I think, we can always find something or someone to make us happy. Happiness comes from within as well. And it can be fleeting. A great song can make us feel happy. A good movie, a book that makes us feel something. Giving of ourselves. Returning a call, receiving a call. Helping a friend or relative. The ocean. Spending time with friends. Well, okay, that one can bring us joy, too.
JOY is within me. Deeply part of my being, in every cell. JOY feels different. JOY encompasses happy, empowerment, being present, purpose, flow, choice, and agency. Joy comes from a deeper place. Nobody can take my JOY because JOY is simply part of who I am. JOY can be part of who you are, too.
Last year, I had written something and sent it to Jennifer, one of our yoga instructors. When I got to class that week, she said she enjoyed reading it and, “I can tell. Writing brings you such joy.”
That stopped me in my tracks.
That’s exactly what writing and storytelling is for me. JOYFUL.
And by writing, the actual act of writing (for example the present moment) I am filled with joy that I can sit at my computer in yoga clothes in my light filled room listening to 550 KTRS, Stevie Nicks and Footloose and…write.
Nothing brings me as much JOY as writing.
JOY makes me smile. I think JOY is who I am at my core.
What else brings me joy? Or maybe the question is what makes me even more joyful?
I immediately think about my kids, the German Shepherds I’ve raised, the beach and ocean, sunshine, dancing, family, and chocolate. (I am after all human.) Biking, hiking and being with friends. Traveling. Reading. A good story well told. So many many things BRING me joy.
My friend Lauren, upon hearing this added another layer suggesting I can ask myself in every situation, “How does this align or not align with my plan to live with joy?”
I decided to go one step further with this intention.
Asking myself the following questions: What am I going to write about in 2026? (Thank you to Diane Klenke for asking me this before New Years Eve). What do I want more of? (JOY) What choices am I making? Do I feel good about how I’ve spent my time so far? What do I think about my relationships with myself, (we do have many discussions), my family, friends, body, and my relationship with work? Do these relationships bring me JOY? What do I value? (The idea and a few of these questions are courtesy of Ron Shaich from Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper.)
Via the Life Time app, I read and then asked myself these end-of-the-year questions.
“Reflect on what you have. This is an opportunity to honor who you are, how you are doing and celebrate the life you happen to be in. What if, in this reflection, you realize that you have everything you need and are seeking in the first place? Then, every action you choose in the coming year can build on who you already are.” I absolutely LOVE this idea. Instead of trying to add something I am able to look at my life and honor what IS. What I have created and what is important to me and for me. Challenge accepted: every action I choose in 2026 can build on who I already am.
The following questions helped me think about living with JOY, maybe they will help you, too:
Purpose: HOW can I ensure what I do right now is more meaningful to me? For me, it’s continued writing about life, what I’m learning, how I’m changing and evolving. Sharing my stories, thoughts, and ideas. Continued work with incredible authors who trust me as a collaborator. And happily writing and podcasting about people, places, and endless opportunities wherever I find them!
Gratitude: WHO can I call to share my appreciation of them? If you’ve been called (or texted) in the last few weeks, you now know why. Yet there is more. I’ve learned about deep, heart-felt gratitude in the last few years. I’ve always been a grateful person…it feels different now. On some days I am grateful for the sunshine. Some days I have such gratitude in my heart for those friends and family around me, I feel like I might burst. Here and now: I am saying thank you from my heart.
Celebrating your wins: WHAT can I celebrate this year? What do I want to celebrate this time next year? I AM celebrating the changes I’ve worked so very hard for. Delving deep into the angst and setting down the heavy backpacks I’ve been carrying around for years. Exploring the “easier” way of living. Letting GO of anything that no longer serves me. Whew. That feels good to say. And it FEELS even better to be living freer.
I want to celebrate this again same time next year. And maybe, just maybe…I’ll be able to continue to celebrate the “easier” ways of living and loving. Working and being.
Evaluating progress: WHAT have I accrued this year and what have I let go of? What have I lost? I’ve accrued ease, centeredness, grounding. Understanding what I really want in life, love, and relationships. How I want to travel through life. I’ve let go of situations that simply were not right for me.
If this past year were a chapter in my book of life: what would the title be?
Hell Yeah! Creating a life that feels right…one step at a time.
If you change the way you look at things…the things you look at change. (Wayne Dyer)
The 2026 book title I’m working on: Sparkle ON!: Be the girl you are meant to be!
We have the opportunity to choose HOW we feel, WHAT we do and to know what matters to us. WHAT brings us JOY.
Every choice -big, small, or in between - CAN be an opportunity for JOY.
Google defines joy as: “a feeling of great pleasure and happiness” and “a source of great delight.”
Exactly how I feel. And exactly how I want to live.
JOY is my intention this year. May your 2026 be a year filled with JOY, peace, light, love, and everything you dream of.
Expect Good. Defy Gravity. Sparkle ON! JOY is my intention this year.
For more St. Louis Girl Storytelling blogs and St. Louis Girl Podcasts and to find out how I empower people to discover and use their voice through storytelling:
JOY photos taken at Wildwood Hotel December 2024 and 2025.
Comments