I think a lot about joy and hope.
Since starting this weekly writing project 33 weeks ago, I’ve come to understand that this practice of OOH LA LA! is truly a disciple, a ritual of devotion, a dedication to the light, a commitment to keep choosing to find the goodness all around.
For me, it is easy to feel the weight of the world and to succumb to overwhelm about the state of things. I believe this is all right and important too, but without the discipline of hope, I can quickly fall down the well paved path of despair, which leads to apathy and defeat.
Friends, this is not the way toward liberation, toward a life that is beautiful and true and free.
Instead, more than ever I understand that pleasure is power. To be rooted in wonder is to be able to envision the future world I want to live in. To be rooted in joy is to remember what’s possible for us all.
Still, I know what it takes to stay grounded in this place. Since starting this practice 33 weeks ago, I’ve started to ask myself more about my own capacity to be open to the good. I’ve realized how much I’ve learned to prize resiliency over softness, survival over awe.
Perhaps the better question is not, “how much suffering can I endure?” but rather “how much pleasure can I receive?”
The beautiful truth is that all the good is already right here. It’s all around us, in every moment, and it’s connected to the greater forces of love and peace in the world. The even more beautiful truth is that we can tap into this goodness and power simply by allowing it.
By opening up toward more joy and pleasure, you inevitably invite more joy and pleasure into your life. Like rearranging a room to make space for a new chair, when you reorient toward goodness, you clear out the cobwebs of your mind. This is my hope for us all.
How could you invite in more delight today?
This week’s OOH LA LA! list includes: people standing in line, butter popcorn at the movie theater, riding the bus.
I was walking in Williamsburg when I noticed people standing in line on the opposite sidewalk. I love observing people in line because it’s really a lovely human moment to witness strangers gathered in one place, patiently waiting for whatever is on the other side of the waiting. A line of people is quite a spectacle, and I know this is true because I heard other line observers making comments like, “what’s going on over there?” and another group who said, “let’s find out what it is!” I know there are people who will wait in line for sample sales at fashion boutiques or for a really good brioche or a new pair of shoes. I am not a line person, but I like to imagine the friendships formed by the strangers in line, or at least the tender moments of connection that are bound to happen in this shared space, and I think that’s really something.
If you’re having a bad day, may I suggest getting yourself a nice juicy bag of butter popcorn at the movie theater! I’m only offering this advice after I myself was feeling upside down about my growing to-do list and finally got out of the loop of overwhelm by doing just this! I promise whatever malaise you’re feeling will disappear even if only for the hour and 34 mins spent sat at the back of a cold dark cinema indulging in an overly salted, wet bag of butter popcorn. It’s good stuff!
Since moving to Brooklyn from Manhattan, most of my commute is walking or riding my bike. The buses in Brooklyn aren’t as reliable as they were in the East Village, and perhaps this fact alone has made me appreciate more the wonder of riding the bus. This week, on the Jamaica-bound Q54 bus, I found a solo window seat near the front and remembered the joy of being a bus passenger. For me, it’s the whole experience of the stops and starts, the whoosh of the doors opening, the chatter of other bus riders, and most of all, the space and silence to daydream while looking out the window.
From OLL readers…
Hannah: My Ooh la la this week is rekindling my love for Mary Oliver and intentionally reading poetry again.
Thanks for reading!
I’d love to know - what is an OOH LA LA something you experienced or observed this week?
Reply to this email with 1-3 sentences about your current obsessions, passions, joys, and pleasures, or anything else you love!
XOXO,
LJ
A poem shared by Hannah…
HOW I GO TO THE WOODS
By Mary Oliver
Ordinarily I go to the woods alone,
with not a single friend,
for they are all smilers and talkers
and therefore unsuitable.
I don’t really want to be witnessed talking to the catbirds
or hugging the old black oak tree.
I have my ways of praying,
as you no doubt have yours.
Besides, when I am alone
I can become invisible.
I can sit on the top of a dune
as motionless as an uprise of weeds,
until the foxes run by unconcerned.
I can hear the almost unhearable sound of the roses singing.
If you have ever gone to the woods with me,
I must love you very much.