Practicing Joy
Month by Month Reflections for the Year of Joy.
Nine Goddesses to Nurture Nine Steps on the Path of Joy
This Year of Joy calendar gathers nine steps along the Path of Joy into nine months, composed of four ten-day weeks. The weeks invite you to explore joy through each of the four elements: earth, water, fire, and air, which can be experienced as metaphors – the fires of passion, for example, or the tears of sorrow – as well as richly concrete in themselves. The nine months, 360 days, come to an end on December 26, leaving five intercalary days before the Year for Joy begins again on January 1.
CLICK ON THE IMAGES OR TITLES below to read the full month’s reflection.
#3 Joy in the World 2020 Awareness
The Month of Joyful AwarenessMarch 21 – April 30, 2020 God’s joy moves from unmarked box to unmarked box,from cell to cell. As rainwater, down into flowerbed.As roses, up from ground.Now it looks like a plate of rice and fish,now a cliff covered with vines,now a horse being saddled.It hides within these,till one day it […]
#2 Beliefs about Joy 2020
Joy in the World 2020 The Month of Exploring Beliefs about Joy February 10 – March 21 Belief becomes biology Norman Cousins There is no clear dividing line between a person’s philosophy and physiology. William James It is not a matter of faith; it is a matter of practice. Thich Nhat Hanh During […]
#1 Sourcing in Joy 2020
Joy in the World 2020 The Month of Sourcing in Joy January 1 – February 9 Happy New Year Begin Again Welcome to 2020, and this first month of a new journey through The Lady’s Year for Joy. These forty days invite us to plunge into ever-deepening experiences of those elements of life that […]
#10 Happy Birthday to the Gods of Joy 2019
Birthdays of the Joyful Gods The nine months, 360 days, come to an end on December 26, leaving five intercalary days before the Year for Joy begins again on January 1. On these days, we celebrate the birth of the gods of joy, using the fingers of our hands as a device for remembering. Humanity […]
#9 Joyful Service and Sharing 2019
Joy in the World 2019 The Month for Joyful Service and Sharing November 17 – December 26 And now as long as space endures, And as long as living beings remain, Until then may I, too, remain To drive away the sorrows of the world. —Shantideva, The Way of the Bodhisattva The glorious month […]
#8 Joyful Transformation 2019
Joy in the World The Month for Joyful Transformation October 8 – November 16 “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” ― Rumi These days are turning-of-the-world days, stretching into a new season. So it is with our lives. Every day a […]
#7 Joyful Remembrance 2019
Joy in the World The Month for Joyful Remembrance August 29 – October 7 There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; Pray you, Love, remember. Ophelia in true Shakespearean fashion distributes herbs and flowers to the characters onstage with her during the dramatic and poignant moments of her madness. One of her fears is the all-too-heartbreaking […]
#6 Joyful Dedication 2019
Joy in the World July 20 – August 28 The Month of Joyful Dedication The Way It Is By William Stafford There’s a thread you follow. It goes among things that change. But it doesn’t change. People wonder about what you are pursuing. You have to explain about the thread. But it is […]
#5 Joyful Presence 2019
Practicing Joy in the World June 10-July 19 The Month of Joyful Presence O friend, understand the body is like the ocean rich with hidden treasures. Open your inmost chamber and light its lamp. —Mirabai, translated by Jane Hirshfield Mirabai, mystic, singer, dancer, celebrant of the Divine Beloved, guides us through these days, teaching […]