Joie

 Yes, it's French for Joy and I have used it for no other reason than variety. This is my next post on finding Joy or Joie. However, before I evaluate my week for its relative amounts of Joy, I will take a moment to remember a student in one of my grade 10 English classes. In September her name was Joy. In the second semester her name was Joie. I also remember that she left school early, married and had a daughter, whom she named, Jasmine. She might make an interesting character in a novel.

Now back to my week of finding Joy.

1. My writing partner completed her post on "light" and gave the next word "hook." I wrote my post on "hook." Writing always brings me Joy!

2. Metro had pasta clams, that looked fresh, so I bought 30 and had pasta with clams Friday night for dinner with my daughter. This is a favourite dish. It reminds me of summer, vacations to the sea, and lots of adventure. These memories always bring me Joy!

3. I was struggling with a quilt square based on my daughter's Fire Safety badge. I might have just omitted it, but it was the one badge she had mentioned. I pressed on and finally finished a whimsical interpretation. Whimsy always brings me Joy.

4. Someone posted on FB a poem by Billy Collins - Aimless Love. Well, I not only have the poem, I also have his eponymous book, which I bought at City Lights book store in San Francisco a few years ago. Connections always bring me Joy.

5. The jig saw puzzle progresses. Five or six pieces fitted in per day. As I have said before - moments of fleeting Joy.

6. The Tattooed Gardener posted the number of days until Spring. I think today would be 58 days until the equinox. Spring in itself is pure Joy, (unless it snows in May.)

7. No snow. I am not a fan of Winter, but the fact that we have had almost no snow and one blissfully mild day on Wednesday 5°C that reminded me of England, always brings me Joy.

So now, if I had to pick just one of these thin slivers of Joy, which one would it be? I think it has to be #1. Writing is my touchstone. It reminds me that I can still put a noun in front of a verb (or vice versa) and crystallize a moment in time. Writing is my record of time. It's also my Rosetta Stone. My translation of all those unspoken, and at times, cryptic messages the world sends you, which you have to decipher, and possibly even reply to, in your own enigmatic way.

Have an awesome day!!