Sprinkle Joy
by Steve Goodier
"Sprinkle joy," said Ralph Waldo Emerson. And at least one little creature
seems to do just that.
There is a small bird in the northwest part of the United States called the
ouzel, or the American Dipper. This unusual bird lives around fast rushing
water, sometimes nesting behind water falls. It has been seen flying in and out
of white water rapids of mountain rivers that crash and splash through steep and
rocky canyons. It loves the violent, noisy, chaotic life of the rugged river
environment.
And through it all, it sings! When rain falls in sheets, when wind blows in a
violent fury, when other birds huddle in sheltered nooks against the rage of the
storm, the dipper frolics in the tempest and blissfully sings.
Don't you love to be around people like that? People who don't wait for
circumstances to change or for happy times to come before they laugh and sing?
People who can be happy in the confusion and chaos of life?
These people do not expect life to make them happy. Nor do they spend time
looking for joy - instead, they decide to give it away. Like that remarkable
little bird, they can be found in the midst of life's turbulence, enthusiastic
and hopeful.
These resilient people teach us an important lesson about survival. They show us
that people who "sprinkle joy" grow stronger. Sprinkled joy immunizes them
against despair during difficult and tumultuous times. They actually weather
storms better because of a lifetime habit of approaching difficulties with a
glad heart.