This week, we're talking about Joy.

Be honest, has joy been hard for you to find? Have you spent years treating joy like a reward you had to earn? Something you could only feel after everything else was finished, fixed or perfect? Do you think you can only find joy in life’s big moments and celebrations?

Joy doesn’t need a reason, she just shows up. She especially loves the simple, ordinary moments throughout the day.

Last month, joy found me and hasn’t left. I spent four beautiful days in Prince Edward Island with three of my best friends. We stood barefoot on red sand beaches, watched the sun spill gold across the water, ate and ate until we couldn’t eat anymore and laughed until our bellies hurt.

Joy shines brightest for me when I’m spending time with people I love and when I’m connected to nature. I feel so much joy when I place my palm against an old tree, close my eyes and feel its bark under my fingers. I swear I feel the Earth’s heartbeat beneath my hand.

Joy, for me, doesn't live in big celebrations or finish lines. She lives in that tree. In my morning cup of tea. In fuzzy socks, cozy blankets and candlelight. In my son's laughter echoing through the kitchen. In a bowl of soup on a cold October day. But joy also lives in the ache of a song that makes me cry. In old photographs that remind me how fast time moves. In watching my son sleep, knowing he’s growing up too quickly.

Sometimes joy is bittersweet. Tinged with longing, wrapped in the awareness that nothing beautiful lasts forever. And somehow, that makes joy more precious.

Susan Cain writes in her book, Bittersweet that joy and sorrow are forever paired, that "we're built to live simultaneously in love and loss, bitter and sweet" . Joy doesn't ask us to eliminate sadness. It shows up with it, through it, reminding us that beauty and ache can exist in the same breath.

​ When I touch trees and cry, it's not just joy—it's longing, reverence, gratitude, and grief for how fleeting this all is. It's bittersweet. ​

Research shows that finding joy in small, everyday moments isn't just nice, it's essential. It cultivates resilience, reduces stress, and reminds us that happiness doesn't have to wait for someday. It's already here, found in the ordinary moments of our lives.

This week, I've been practising noticing. The way light pools on my desk. The sound of rain against the window. My boys snuggled beside me in bed, warm and safe. These aren't "extra" joys to celebrate once everything is done. They are the life I'm living. They add up to something beautiful.

If Sadness asks us to pause and honour what we've lost, Joy asks us to pause and honor what we still have—right now, in this moment, even if it's imperfect.

​Joy doesn't need a reason. She just needs you to look.

So this week, I'm inviting you to find joy. Not in the big moments, but in the tiny ones. The first sip of coffee. The texture of your favorite sweater. A stranger's kind smile. The way your pet looks at you. One small joy, every single day.

Because the little things? They're not little at all. They're everything.

P.S. Susan Cain reminds us: "Everything that you love, you will eventually lose. But in the end, love will return in a different form" . Let that ache make your joy even sweeter. Let yourself feel both.

Therapeutic Art Activity:

My Joy Jar

Joy doesn't always show up big and loud. Sometimes it's your coffee hitting just right, or the way the light comes through your window. But we're wired to notice what's wrong, so the good stuff slips past us.​

Research shows that actively noticing and collecting moments of joy, even tiny ones—can reduce stress, improve immune function, and build emotional resilience. People who practice what researchers call "micro-acts of joy" experience about a 25% increase in emotional well-being over just one week. That's not about toxic positivity or pretending hard things don't exist. It's about training your brain to notice that both can be true at once.

This activity is simple. Write down moments that felt good this week inside the jar. Colour it however you want. Put it somewhere you'll see it when things get hard.​

Joy isn't something you find later when life settles down. It's already here, in small moments, waiting for you to notice.​

Some prompts to help you with your joy jar:

What made you smile today?

Something beautiful you noticed

A person who made your day better

Something that made you laugh

Journal Prompts for Finding Joy