Friends,
It’s been a long week, hasn’t it? Well, TGIF, dear readers!
Carrie here, with a confession: We had great plans to write about *online etiquette* and *online identities* but are feeling … errr … TIRED. Instead we’re pivoting in a more visceral direction. Please enjoy this short little ditty of a newsletter on spontaneous joy.
We’re not talking about hard-earned Friday night wind-downs; we’re not talking about exciting but inherently stressful events in your life; and, we’re not talking about the relief of resting your head on the pillow at night.
Here, with spontaneous joy in the midst of our pandemic-y lives, we’re curious about the joyous moments that have surprised you.
The inspiration for this topic partly comes from Ross Gay’s “The Book of Delights,” which is a compilation of daily essays on the happy moments Gay encounters over the course of a year. It’s impossible to keep from smiling when reading the essay about the delight of carrying a plant on a plane. This American Life profiled Gay as part of its episode, “The Show of Delights,” which, btw, delivers on its name.
The question is: When did you last feel spontaneous joy?
We’ll go first.
Emily: When I brought my dog to a dog park in the middle of the day, expecting it to be empty, and we instead found four PUPPIES just rolling around … suffice to say both my dog and I experienced immense spontaneous joy.
Carrie: This week I stayed up late into the night reading for fun. Everyone in my home was asleep, and I had this vast expanse of quietude to relish. It was marvelous!
If you’re looking for more on joy, delight and happiness, this recent WSJ article posits that “genuinely happy people are emodiverse,” meaning that they manage a variety of emotions. The article is a deep dive into the ways researchers are redefining happiness in the wake of the pandemic. The upshot: There’s less focus on uninterrupted joy and more emphasis on punctuated moments of joy. Suppose we’ll stick with occasional bursts of spontaneous joy for now.
Water Cooler Conversation
Carrie: If you cannot get enough about how pandemic life is changing us, Ellen Cushing of The Atlantic reports out what this period may be doing to our brains. Hint: it has something to do with “environmental enrichment” and “synaptic plasticity.”
Emily: The opening line of this piece is striking and … relatable.
Emily: Speaking of joy, and building on my experience of spontaneous joy above, is there anything more joyous than dogs?! No. There isn’t. Carrie, please enjoy this roundup of dogs wearing shoes.
Carrie: Dogs wearing shoes. Stop it! That’s so great. Where is our picture of your dog Hazel wearing shoes?
Emily: With all the vaccine news I’m getting more excited about the prospect of travel, Carrie. Which reminds me of this story about the “world's last lost tourist,” who thought Bangor, Maine was San Francisco.
Carrie: The anticipation of travel: so true. Also, how did you possibly find this story?
Emily: I have to admit that Greg sent it to me.
Got opinions about joy, dogs wearing shoes, and what comes next in our aspirational travel log? You can respond directly to this email.
If you’ve been enjoying this letter, please consider sharing it with a friend.
Your pals,
Carrie & Emily