The Jackpot of Joy

Strange though it may seem, but naughtiness and joy, in children, invariably go hand in hand: or so, I, in my years of being a naughty child, have experienced! My dear mother’s oft repeated refrain when I was young was that I could, “annoy a saint”! Well, need I say anymore of the kind of girl I was! Those three seemingly innocuous little words say it all, don’t they? My mischief made me memorable, but my dear mother, mad. God bless her heart, she loved me, mischief and all! No, no this isn’t the case of the “apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”, because my dear mother was a beautifully behaved child, unlike me! Guess I can jolly-well blame my Creator. Not sure whether this is a fact, but most naughty ones are also those that are a source of happiness, even joy – either because of their mischief, or in spite of it! Don’t believe me, do you? Then just look around and you will see, right there in your family, that ‘naughty and nice’ are also your joy-givers. But as we grow up, this river of joy that once brimmed over in childhood, recedes in the realm of grown-ups. Let’s face it – life’s toils and troubles play spoil-sport; steal our cup of joy.

   

In our fast-paced world, joy often seems like a distant luxury, something to be earned after hard work, success, or the accomplishment of long-term goals – all in the assumption that these things will unlock the door to true happiness and joy. Know what I (and am sure many others too) found? Joy isn’t at the end of our race; it is scattered all along the way, in those seemingly small moments of everyday life. This is what, to me, is the Jackpot of Joy: the understanding that life is full of hidden nuggets of unadulterated joy that needs no treasure hunt to actually find it!

 

When we were children, and here I speak on behalf of most children, we longed to bid goodbye to school and go into college. Once in college, we couldn’t wait to grow up and don the role of an adult -free to do our own thing – only thing, once in the real world, we realize the need to harken back to those good old days of school and college via alumni get-togethers/reunions. The jackpot of joy, my dear friend, lies not in mega occasions or monumental events, but in the simple, ordinary moments we often overlook. Helping a neighbour, finding a parking spot, an unexpected shower that brings relief from the scorching sun, the sun peeping out after days of gloomy weather, a baby’s wide toothless smile, the love in your elderly parent’s eye, the hope of a better tomorrow, the beautiful butterfly and the birdsong that uplifts your morning… the list goes on and on… are the small but powerful occasions where joy resides. These precious moments are abundant, accessible, and above all, free!  

 

Consider cooking, the most mundane of chore. It can be taxing, hectic (especially when one is working), but it can also turn out to be your jackpot of joy when the result of your efforts, the appetizing aromas assail your senses. I find joy in my housework, and all the other things God, in His mercy, brings my way. Oh, no, please do not, even for a moment think that I am a paragon of joy! Its just that I have learnt to find joy along my cobbled path. In fact, practicing ‘Mindfulness’ (being wholly in the moment), is one of the most effective ways, I have come to realize, to access joy in my everyday life. Didn’t happen overnight, but happen it did, maybe thanks to my innate naughty nature that found joy in the little things that came my way – my pranks and mischief included. Care to recall our days of yore when we played with our “Chappooz”- those miniature clay vessels, cooking up a storm with sand, sticks and stones and what not! Or playing “Teacher Game” and giving mother dear a feel of the other end of the cane! These fun-filled moments held us joyfully captive in their “sensations sweet” (Tintern Abbey) that in later years blessed us with “tranquil restoration” (Tintern Abbey). Odd though it appears, as children, we actually practiced mindfulness – lived in the moment of almost all that we did, didn’t we?

 

Life, as we know, is full of ups and downs and it is unrealistic to expect to feel joy at all times. But even in sorrow, joy can coexist – the bittersweet memory, a smile through tears, the comfort of someone standing beside you when you most need it. These too, for me, are jackpots of joy, reminders that light persists even in darkness.

 

It is crystal clear to me, my dear reader, that the jackpot of joy isn’t something we stumble upon once in a lifetime. It is really something we can tap into, every single day. The jackpot of joy is found in the ordinary, sparked by a grateful heart, deepened by connection and sustained by presence. Rather than waiting for joy to come from some future, perfect, ‘when I get there’, creating a conditional relationship with joy, let us open ourselves to the riches of joy every day of our lives. And when we do, believe me, we discover that life is full of jackpots of joy – tiny treasures hidden in plain sight, waiting to be noticed, savoured and shared. “I slept and dreamed that life is full of joy. I woke and I saw that life is all service. I served and I saw that service is joy” (Khalil Gibran).