What is joy to you? It can certainly take many forms. For one woman, it may be the sound of children laughing or the smell of puppy breath. For another, it's dancing in the moonlight or eating ice cream. For yet another, it could be a soothing massage or pedicure.

We often associate joy with the things and events in our lives that produce the warmest and fuzziest feelings of pleasure, but true joy requires no external stimuli. It's a state of mind that exists regardless of what's happening around you. Children can easily find laughter and joy in just being. I once read that children laugh hundreds of times a day. Goldie Hawn, who seems to have a perpetual giggling child inside of her, once said in an interview that all she ever wanted to be when she grew up was happy--just like she was as a kid. As an adult, she makes a conscious effort to pursue inner happiness through quiet meditation. Her inside joy is reflected in her outside life and work, including a documentary she developed called In Search of Joy and an organization she founded, the Bright Light Foundation, to help young people live more positive and fulfilling lives.

Bringing joy to others feeds our own happiness. If you grew up around my family, you'd know that food always brought us much joy--preparing it, serving it, eating it, or just talking about it. I remember a story my father used to tell me about a time when he was away from home in the Marines. One

Joy can be accessed during both the happiest and most difficult times in your life, because it is present in your heart at all times. You have a place for it inside of you (which can be found) and a memory of it (which can be reproduced). Reaching into your store of joy is like going to the automatic teller machine and making a withdrawal of happiness. But unlike your bank account, there's an unlimited supply of joy to receive and share!

Abraham Lincoln said, "Most people are about as happy as they choose to be." As a goddess, it's your choice to use your joy, and your privilege to share it.
About the Author

Debbie Gisonni, aka The Goddess of Happiness™, is an author (The Goddess of Happiness: A Down-to-Earth Guide for Heavenly Balance and Bliss and Vita's Will: Real Life Lessons about Life Death & Moving On), speaker, happiness expert and columnist for iVillage.com. Contact: www.goddessofhappiness.com

Copyright, All Rights Reserved, Debbie Gisonni