I forget her last name. Something like CanDo. Anyway her show is about thinning our possessions to the few sterling ones that spark joy. It has therefore been on my weekly list for the last two months, to whittle down the clothes in my bedroom.
But I get distracted.
A friend offered to be my sorting buddy, not that we would subject each other to the contents of our closets, but would cheer each other on from a safe distance. The first day he asked how it went.
"Uh, I made a quilt instead."
"Ha! I didn't do it either!" and high fived me.
In my defense the quilt did bring me joy.
There is no air conditioning on the second floor and the heat has been brutal. The majority of my wardrobe came from a thrift store, and will go back there, so what's the diff if it spends another summer at my house?
Still Marie's premise is worth carrying around in my psyche. I began to hold it up like a yardstick to my thoughts. A snarky comment formed on the shelf of my mind, not to be spoken but to put on like clothing. Then I wondered.
Did it spark joy?
Absolutely not, unless I believe the ruse that contempt is one flavor of happiness. You know, that sense of self righteousness that props up our ego like balsa wood. Me right. You wrong.
Later in the morning another notion flew in the trap door of my mind. It involved complaining.
Did it spark joy?
Not even close. I tossed it.
It started to gain momentum. The extraneous contempt, and worry, and blame were like a mountain of clutter, making it that much harder to find those shining inner garments that bring me joy.
