I have been working hard to find joy. Okay, so reading “end-of-the-world” books may not be contributing to easy joy, however, these books help me understand the importance of finding joy every day.
My most recent read is One Second After a book mentioned by a most unlikely candidate, the small diminutive librarian at the Lincoln County Thayne Branch. A short, gray haired sixty-ish very librarian-looking librarian mentioned I might like the book after I shared with her my recent experiences with Octavia Butler’s riveting tales. She hooked me, of course, and I am reading my first free audible book off Libby. I have ten more days to finish - a terrifying thought in itself!
Allow me to share some recent joyful moments, hoping it will inspire you to do your own joyful inventory and celebrate the moment, the day, LIFE!
Incubating Eggs! There are 40 eggs incubating in two warm, humid vessels within our house right now. Today is Day 2. It takes 21 days for a chicken egg to hatch. It’s the first go-round for this effort. We may have 40 peeping chicks at the end of the month, or a few, or none. It’s one big experiment!
New Serger! My old serger finally gave up the ghost, spewing smoke smelling of burning oil and electronics. It was a used machine and old when I bought it years ago. I went quite awhile without the benefits of a serger sewing machine, but the day came when it was determined that it was just stupid that I no longer had a serger. They are amazing machines doing many things an ordinary machine cannot do. Our round 70” dining room table has been the challenge in creating some new tablecloths. There are mistakes in both pictured (the fish swim upside down on the opposing panel, ugh!), however, the rolled hem is lovely - thank you Serger!
The Joy of Cooking! The kitchen is a fun, creative place for me. Friend Joseph requested the mandarin orange cake for his birthday - what an honor to provide! It’s a fun, unusual, surprising and joyful cake which can be found at
Save Me A Slice Substack page. And then, this Somoa cake! Wow! It really looks and tastes like the girl scout cookie version! How fun! Find it on Sweet Teeth page on Substack. I promise it will be a hit! A friend gave us some fresh lake trout from the icy cold waters of a frozen lake and I was able to can 8 jars. There is no better treat than fish you know where they came from, you packed it as you like, and you enjoy months after. A real treat! Most recent creation, this morning’s brunch. Homemade thai sausage, homemade baguette toast, homemade kimchi, and fresh eggs from the chickens, over easy and topped with sauteed shitake mushrooms.
The Dogs! What gifts are dogs! They bring us such joy, such unyielding love, such pure happiness. Take a dog for a walk and watch the joy radiate out of their eyes, around their dog-happy smiles, in their running for unbridled joy. Dogs are truly joy. Rooster and Ruby help me find joy every day.
So there you have it. A round up of so many joyful things I find in my life. It is super easy to let the stress, the disfunction, and hate seep into your being right now, truly hard to ignore the negativity of the times. With work and dedication, we all can find joy in every day simple things. I dare say, if we all would, we could collectively make the world a better place. Simplistic? Maybe so, but it would sure be a great start! I’ll be off now to cook up a batch of
White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies!
FIND THE JOY!
His 76th. He loves it and so did everyone else! It’s really quite remarkable!
So glad you enjoyed the Samoa cake!!! It looks so great!!! 🥳🥳🥳