The Roots of My Joy

For those of you who know me, you know I’m smiling or laughing 98% percent of the time. The other 2% is me attempting to keep a straight face and failing. I decided to write about a few things that make me unbelievably happy in hopes that you too would think about all of the things that bring a smile to your beautiful face!

1. Family and Friends

Maybe I’m biased but I like to believe I am related to and friends with some of the funniest people ever. Everyone from my siblings and parents, to my extended family members that live across the country, to my friends from home and friends at school, I am truly blessed with the best people ever! They of all people know my sense of humor and can make me laugh harder than anyone else.

2. School

Yeah, school’s hard and it brings about work but college is definitely an experience that I’m so glad I get the opportunity to enjoy. Liberty has been the place that gives me friends, a new landscape too perfect for words, and new spontaneous adventures. These adventures have landed me from a local (and VERY small) ice cream sandwich place to hikes on gorgeous mountains and even karaoke.

3. Road Trips

Either you love road trips or you hate them, there’s no in between. However, it definitely depends on who you’re with. I find that whether I’m with family or friends (or both!), there’s different ways to enjoy a nice, long road trip. The time in a car can be easily well spent in conversation with your loved ones. The music jam sessions are always welcome in my opinion as well!

4. Kids

I have always loved kids but being at college has made me value the joy that they bring so much more. I’ve been working in my church’s nursery this semester and the kids have the energy I love to feed off of and just be there to entertain them and have a good time. Sundays are my favorite day of the week because cuddling babies and going to church is just a win-win!

5. Music

Music makes everyone happy, right? I’ll listen to pretty much any type of music, depending on who I’m with. My overall favorite thing about music though, is that hearing certain songs lets me relive a moment from the past. Another great thing about music is that I may have not listened to the High School Musical soundtrack since 2006 but I’ll bet I still know every word to every song.

6. Notes

I love receiving notes and letters just as much as I love giving them to other people. I have posted all of the notes and cards I’ve gotten while being at school, above my desk so I can re-read them at any given moment. There’s nothing more rewarding than knowing someone is having a bad day and getting a text that they saw the note you left for them to read before class and it made their day a little brighter!

7. Birthdays

Celebrating other peoples’ birthdays is one of the coolest things to be a part of. Mainly because if you’re celebrating their birthday, you probably mean something to them and you’re someone they value. It’s also fun to give them presents that you’ve been waiting to watch them open. A birthday is a good excuse to eat dessert and that’s another plus.

8. Taking Pictures

Okay, okay, I know this one sounds basic but hear me out. Taking pictures allows you to capture a specific moment in time so that you’ll never forget it. You get to have a forever memory displayed before you that you’ll get to show your kids and grandkids as you tell them about the time you wore mechanic-style jumpsuits and built a porch with your best friend on a mission trip.

9. Rain

This might be an unpopular opinion but rain is one of my favorite scenes in nature. I love the way it smells, I love the cozy feeling that the overcast brings, and I love that it brings about a clean-slate atmosphere. Rain also brings rainbows and you can’t tell me you don’t like rainbows! Rain has the ability to cool off a hot summer day or freeze in the winter so we wake up to glistening and untouched snow.

10. My Faith

Most importantly, the biggest thing that makes me happy is that I know that no one is possible of loving me more than Jesus. Just believing that He died for every sin I would ever commit and that He loved me enough to do so, long before I was ever created, is just impossible to fully appreciate. For His love, I am forever grateful and thus, forever happy! (:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13 ESV).