As we all work in our yards and gardens or just enjoy taking care of our porch plants this summer lets remember to “plant seeds of happiness, hope, success and love; it will all come back to you in abundance. This is the law of nature,” Steve Maraboli. Sat outside in the swings between chores this morning thinking of a verse of scripture from Psalms, “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” A beautiful day is a joyful day.

Got too hot doing all my bird chores and vegetable waterings. Turned on my window unit air conditioner in my bedroom and vegetated in the cool for a while. Went back outside later and a little gathering of purple finches was fighting and arguing over the perches on a tube feeder. There are six perches and four finches and they squabble over the bottom four perches all day. With twenty one feeders spread around the yard you’d think they’d just go to another. I know the cardinals wanted some quiet time. Made for an angry sounding yard symphony specially when the woodpecker drummed the oak tree.

Thinking today that I’ve been fortunate lately to have so much joy in my days. True joy comes from God and our connection to him. God has a plan for each day of our lives and is present in all our moments whether sunny or stormy. In John 15:11 Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”

I have a joyful heart from my vegetables and flowers growing and blooming, joy visiting my grandchildren, joy in a Mother’s Day phone call from my oldest son, joy in my youngest son’s second novel being published, joy in a cherry popsicle, joy in hearing my nephew laugh and tell tales from a trip to Europe, joy in the beautiful songbirds visiting my yard, joy from a hand full of Hershey kisses, joy from a letter in the mailbox, joy in a pack of chewing gum, joy in the storm clouds and boisterous wind, joy from a spoiled dog sleeping at my feet, joy from visiting my brothers and their families, joy in phone calls from my dearest friend, and joy in a beautiful old house with a front porch full of flowers and two swings where I can idly pass the days away.

Dictionaries define joy as a “feeling of great pleasure and happiness.” Just the simple things in life can bring us joy if we take time to enjoy them. Just a drink of cold water on a hot day from a pint Mason jar can put a smile on my face. My world turns so slowly now that I’m retired, I can fully appreciate the sunsets and sunrises because I’m still and not rushing around. Chief enjoyed the stillness of the world, too, and appreciated all his blessings. He loved Mother Earth and her red clay soil in Alexander City. Simple things brought him joy, too, his gardens, his cat clowder, reading in front of the fireplace, his friendships, his writings, letters from friends, coffee and hot buttered biscuits.

“Joy comes from simple and natural things, mists over meadows, sunlight on leaves, the path of the moon over water. Even rain and wind and stormy clouds bring joy, just as knowing animals and flowers and where they live,” Sigurd F. Olson. The simple pleasures in life can gladden our hearts if we let them. Ordinary moments in life can bring us much joy. Celebrate these moments as gifts from God.

“Joy springs from a grateful heart.” — Pope Francis