Finding Joy

A piece about being responsible to finding our joy within.

I came across an article in The Mind Unleashed this morning that drew my attention titled "Maybe it's you". It tackles the tough question of responsibility and suggests that if your life is not to your satisfaction then possibly it's your job to change that. Viktor Frankl in his book Man's Search for Meaning writes of his experience as an inmate of a concentration camp and how he sought to find meaning in all experience. He proposes that while others may constrain or control our physical existence we have the power and ability to control our thoughts and attitude - what we make internally of what happens to us. For me the first step to this is taking responsibility for my own thinking, to realise that I have both the responsibility and the power to lead a life that is joyful and fulfilling. Part of this journey involves a searching and honest look at myself - something I avoided doing for a long time because I was scared of what I would discover. However, through doing this work I now think that I am no more or less "bad" than any other, and that by being conscious and deliberate I am able to behave in a way that is consistent with my values and beliefs. By taking responsibility for my thinking and behaviour I am actively engaged in creating a life that is, at base, joyful and rewarding. This is also the work I am blessed and privileged to do with others.