the bliss of choosing joy

“Choose joy,” they said.
But how can I choose joy when all this is happening?
“It will happen with or without you,” I heard.
Then I heard the question: “In this moment, are you well? Safe? Secure?”
I am, answered I.
“Choose joy.”
But … there are so many with less, so many hurting, fighting, shouting, screaming, blowing things up and tearing things down.
“When they cross your path,” I heard, “you’ll know what to do.”
I’m gently letting myself off the hook for the state of the entire planet. I am not, however, letting myself off the hook, gently or otherwise, for the state of my own experience. I realize that the world “out there” mirrors what’s going on in my stressed heart, my tired soul, my overly-worried brain.
This I can, must control.
“Choose joy.”
In order to do this, I must set the ego aside, the need to be right, to be heard, to matter.
I listen.
I look out the window, watching the muhly grass rustle in the slight breeze, near the succulent garden growing without thought to what the other plants are doing, not a care.
The knot in my stomach begins to loosen and let go. The frantic concern over what to do next ebbs. My heart slows down just a bit, enough to hear the break of silence.
Joy might still be elusive, but at the very least in this moment is seems … possible.
Choose joy.
Turn the rest off.
When the world next crosses your path, you’ll know what to do.