An Ode to Joy: Appreciating the Little Things
Life often feels pretty joyless – there, I’ve said it! The daily grind of routine driven tasks, whether that be those imposed on us by parents, teachers and bosses, or those of our own making; they can get us down and feel monotonous and mundane.
My daily grind is often exacerbated by the ticking clock; usually, predictably, between 6 and 7 am, when time seems to go double speed and all we want to do in my household, is to go a bit slower! Ironing shirts; walking dogs; emptying the dishwasher, the washing machine, the bin… the list goes on, and it becomes pretty dull. I know I’m not alone – the feeling is shared by kids, teenagers and grown-ups alike; it is that universal sequence of ‘stuff’ that elicits rolls of eyes, strops and stomps, sighs and grumbles.
I’ve been observing our Fifth Form and Upper Sixth as they head into that final stretch of their exam years, and I can see the prospect of long days slogging it out revising, weighing on them. Revision is about repetition – that’s the key – but it’s also what makes it tough and pretty boring. I remember the run up to my A Levels being one of the most difficult times of my youth because it was an intense period of locking in; giving up nice things for a long-term gain. But now looking back, I wish I hadn’t punished myself with such an intense regime of study and trusted that I could do it without a relentless schedule. I also wish that there had been someone telling me how to study effectively – there are now literally millions of TikTok videos dedicated to quick fire study tips. Whilst I do despise TikTok with a passion, I see there is some good in the ‘micro’ element of it – the gobbets of information that can be consumed quickly and efficiently.
This is what has dawned on me recently – the idea of splicing through chunks of time, blocks of feelings, and yes, the lists. ‘Micro joy’ is defined as finding little joyous moments in the everyday – noticing the little things; something relatively insignificant and finding it pleasing. It doesn’t need to be something that will blow your socks off or have you rolling around in a fit of giggles – just something nice. Noticing these little things can not only lead to a shift in mood, but there is evidence that these small moments of positivity can improve our health. If I were a scientist, I would delve into the stats and facts and details, but that wouldn’t bring me joy, and let’s face it, emotion isn’t an exact science. So, I’ll keep it simple – my advice is to look for the little things, purely for the sheer joy of it – and at this time of year, I think it is pretty easy.
Spring brings with it so many opportunities to seek out the nice stuff: the blossom, the daffodils, the lighter days – all of the stock ingredients – yet looking a bit closer at the detail can be genuinely uplifting. For me, today, it was seeing a word on the front of a monthly magazine that had just arrived in the post. ‘JAUNT’ – a fabulously jolly, silly word that made me feel positive in that moment, on what was a predictable evening, in a predictable moment, thinking about what to cook for dinner. And that’s the point – seek and thou shalt find.
As we head into the holidays, and for many of us that brings a break from routine, for our most senior pupils this is the start of the heavy lifting; when life can suddenly become a bit two-dimensional. My advice to them is to look for the little moments of joy – they are there – and to slice through blocks of time and feelings by looking outwards. Go for that walk, kick a ball about, make a phone call. Take time, make time – and find that joy is always there, waiting.
Mrs Rachael Delaney, Senior Deputy Head