Ep. 121: Silly Rabbit, Joy is for Grown-Ups!

We’re on the other side of 2022, and we're thinking about how we can cultivate joy in 2023. April recounts a moment from several years ago when she was struggling to even access joy and reflects on where she is with that journey now. Plus, we harken back to our childhoods and talk about what brought us joy then (and spoiler alert: what brought you joy then might also bring you some joy now!). 

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Discussion and reflection questions:

1. What in this episode is new for you? What have you learned and how does it land?
2. What is resonating? What is sticking with you and why?
3. What feels hard? What is challenging or on the edge for you?
4. What feelings and sensations are arising and where in your body do you feel them?

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Transcript

Tracie: 0:00

It's the first week of 2023 and a joyous justice, we're thinking about joy and realizing. Society has taught us that joy is childish.

April Baskin: 0:23

You're listening to the Joyous Justice Podcast,

Tracie: 0:26

a weekly show hosted by April Baskin with Tracie Guy Decker.

April Baskin: 0:29

in a complex world in which systemic oppression conditions us to deny others and our own humanity. let's dedicate ourselves to the pursuit and embodiment of wholeness, love and thriving in the world and in our own lives. It's time to heal and flourish our way to a more joyously just future. Happy 2023 y'all. Happy 2023 Tracie!

Tracie: 1:05

Happy New Year. So I thought one of the things that I'm thinking about as we kick off this new year, this new Gregorian year, and in terms of like intentions and, and even rededication as we've been framing it over the past several episodes, and us as joyous justice, is that I think that for many folks, the default understanding of joy is that it is something outside of our control. It is something that we lock upon, right, like a like a penny on the ground, that we it just like we maybe stumble into it. And I think one of the very simple and yet deeply profound alternatives to that notion that you offer the joyous justice offers is that joy is a thing that we can cultivate, it's not a penny that we happen upon on the street while we're walking. But actually something that we can cultivate it is in fact, a flower or a plant of some kind that we can cultivate and water and nurture. And we've I'm totally mixing up my metaphors. But I think I think our listeners that, you know, joy is not just something that just happens outside of our control, but it's something that we can actually work to nurture and make happen. And so before we hit record, you were talking about something that you've returned to, as a part of your work to make that happen. That we we thought maybe we would share with our listeners and maybe even encourage folks to try.

April Baskin: 2:50

Yeah, thank you, Tracie, for that setup, I really appreciate it. I engaged in a process of rededication this past weekend, we took some time off to continue to rest. Our team did a joyous justice. And I did it not just for because it's good to do in theory, but because it is somewhat unusual for me as someone who generally has pretty robust self care practices. But I was genuinely, truly exhausted, and didn't think I could keep functioning unless I got restorative rest and was able to take time to refocus. And not just because 2022 was a demanding dynamic year of much learning that I do believe on a spiritual level that in part, I did bring upon myself by setting a very bold and ambitious intention. that played out and I just hadn't fully anticipated what that would entail. Anyway, over this past weekend, I did a number of things. And one of the things that is most jumping out to me is something that I want to share on our episode on the podcast today is revisiting a list that Manal lives in my mind. It's in one of my old journals, but my list of what brings me joy. As Tracy was saying, a moment ago, joy now has become to me the way I think about or describe joy. I wouldn't even talk about it the way Tracy talks about it because it's alkalized. And, and I've just deeply it's deeply embedded in my being and an existence at this point. But that was not at all the case. Before just even a few years ago, several years ago, when I was taking some time to learn about joy I think I was where a lot of where a lot of people are aware like it's like yeah, that would be a nice to have also There's a ton of tough stuff that's happening. And I don't want to be like toxically positive, that wasn't a really a phrase of that in that moment. But you know, I, but I don't, I don't want to be faking, feeling things that I'm not feeling. But I was starting to get it at that time of what I'm living into now of. I'll actually though this can be really strategic and on my terms, as Tracy was just saying, and especially, especially because of all of the bold leadership work I am doing, and the different demands that I navigate that I choose to navigate, because these are causes and issues that are important to me, it's all the more important that I deeply anchor and joy. And at that point, this is around to 2017, I taken on a really big, ambitious national leadership job, a professional role, that was in a number of ways, the opportunity and job of a lifetime. And as the first person of color in that role, and as I think also the youngest person who'd been in an executive, that a typical young executive for any large, near $100 billion institution, I was a young executive. And I remember, I was experiencing all these wonderful things and pushing myself and honestly, overworking often, but I remember noticing earlier earlier on in that journey around 2015 and 16, that it was a gentle noticing. But I noticed in between the busyness I'm not happy right now. Like I'm doing work that I love. And I'm working on causes I care about but I'm not feeling. And honestly, it was so busy at the time, I usually didn't take long to think about it like it'd be when I was walking to the subway, like in the midst of my commute, I would notice for a few moments like, I'm not really happy. I also wasn't unhappy because I I had the job of my dreams, and was doing incredible work. But there wasn't enough joy. I didn't have the word for them. But there wasn't enough joy in my life at that time. So circling back to what I wanted to focus on, and actually going through some of our joy lists and thinking about it together because I want to build mine more. Now in this season of my life. I was taking a class taught by Sonia Choquette. And in one of the lessons she talked about, do things that bring you joy and and this is a leader I really respect and she often talks about having high vibrational energy and to cultivate that from a place of sincerity and realness in a way that resonated with me that didn't feel fake or stupid or fluffy. And who's her family. Her family isn't Jewish, but her mother was a was still a Holocaust survivor and, and she had that grit of life experience that spoke to me. Anyway, so I had to sit down. And I really noticed that that time. So this is now two years into this role into doing what I loved. And as I went to make a list, and she recommended that we make a list of what brings us joy. I couldn't even I didn't even know which I actually think is quite common for people. And I think when I talk about joy at times, I think that's where they are. And at times I live, I dedicate myself to creating the reality I want for myself in the world. But at times I forget right where I was. And so in case and earlier, this, just you know, this past weekend, I wasn't in that place, like I'm in a really different place, because I did that work a few years ago. But I noticed like my list is a bit stale. And I've since moved internationally, the circumstances of my life are very different. My I have my own company. And I think I made list since then. But I'm in one of those moments that you might be to or where you have been or will be where it just feels like a really pivotal time of shift for me. Like we have Tracy and Sarah and I have revamped the structure of our company and the way we operate and the way we position ourselves so that we can work with more people around the most visionary bold work that they and we want to do together. And I've been navigating a lot of change in terms of growth and stepping into being my most authentic, brave self. And so I thought it's not time I'm gonna flip in, I have my notebook in front of me here and I'm gonna flip to the page and I thought, you know, it's about time for me to revisit this list. But to close that loop on the story I was telling when I first did this a few years ago, several years ago and around 2017 or so. And I want to name that later that year and in The following year, massively Amazing things happen. And it wasn't only because of this, but this was definitely part of it like me anchoring into what I love and noticing that and then it just led, there was a ripple effect, but I'm getting ahead of myself. So it's helpful to say this bill to share with you a little bit of my process. And also because I needed to revisit some of this. When I went to make my list a few days ago, were when I went to make the list. I was like, I actually don't, I've been working. And now in retrospect, I would say, overworking, I've been over. I've been working so much that I don't, I don't even know like I want I don't know what brings me joy. And I don't even really remember what brings me happy and the what brings what makes me happy. And the thing that helped me start to jog my memory was when I thought what brought me joy when I was a little girl. What made me joyful when I was little. Right. And then the idea started to and I was like man, I could remember really vividly like I liked playing with my light bright. And I liked doing this thing that is like weird now, but I really loved working with the materials I had, which was like the multicolor toilet paper. And like taking glasses and like layering them or like taking finding multicolored sand or like anything that I could find around me and making different like mosaics or collages, doing different things, playing pretend. Anyway, a bunch of things started to flow from there, and turning that to go back to a little bit of a slightly better variation that we talked about recently, but it like lit a little bit of a fire within me. And it illuminated my heart a little bit and it made me start to notice like, oh, yeah, I had a few years a few years ago, I had a vision, slash dream like a visionary dream, where I was on a horse. And I felt like it to honor that dream. In part I needed to go horseback riding. And I discovered when I did that, that I love horseback riding, I love horseback riding, horseback riding brings me joy. And then it kind of started to flow from there. And, and in the days and months ahead. I looked and I remembered at that time that like, Oh, I love knitting. And I like dancing, and I and all these things started to flow. And just even remembering them felt like a healing in and of itself. Like oh, yeah, because most of them were things that weren't that far out of reach. I just, I just gotten I just had been distanced from them for a long time. So all of that to say all of that. I don't know, Tracy, there's anything you want to respond to. And what I said before we share. And just to be clear, I had prepped this, I actually have the list, Tracy, didn't have time to prepare this. So Tracy may just be sharing things off the cuff. Which is great. And I'm also hoping, selfishly, that maybe through this conversation together that it might inspire me to make my list longer because it's I think it's a bit incomplete right now. So I'm hoping through listening to you, I might remember more things that bring me joy, from mundane things to bigger things. But before potentially before we get to that, is there anything and what I shared? You were certainly giving me body language over video, but it was there, like affirmation and resonance or intrigue, anything you want to share.

Tracie: 13:24

I love the idea of starting with the memories, the childhood memories. Yeah, it's an i and it's really interesting in telling that. Um, and so some ways we have easier access to joy from childhood and adulthood. And I don't I don't think it's a sad coincidence. Industry, that part of our conditioning has been to deprioritize I don't know if that's a word. But but that part of our conditioning has been to say, I mean, you even kind of alluded to it when you were talking about how hard you're working with that major, that international or national position leadership position that you had, when you were saying, you know, weren't really thinking about it, because you were just too busy. And it was like in those like, quiet moments where you were like, I'm not, I'm not happy like that, that really resonates with me that as adults, we've sort of been taught that. Well, it's paradoxical because we've we've definitely had been taught that we should be happy. We've also been conditioned to do things that make our happiness, second, a secondary or tertiary or lower priority in terms of how we spend our energy. So that was really resonating to me and like remarkable note that like our childhood joy is, is in some ways more accessible than what

April Baskin: 15:00

than the national. Right. And I have a couple of different thoughts about that. One thing I want to say is that as you're reminding, as you're talking that I've, for a while now, I mean, I think when I was a kid, it was different. But as I was thinking about, Am I happy, and then even then, like, when I was more joyful and content before, I often didn't resonate with the word happy, even though I think it's somewhat I think it's part of this is truly just semantics and that they really are basically mean the same thing. But to me, I, I connected happiness with more of the superficiality of American culture. So even when I was in a happier season in my life, I thought of it as me being content, right or me experiencing pleasure, right, that there was something that felt kind of like almost like a balloon about happiness, like, not in a good way that it felt. Even though I think, again, like, part of its semantics, part of it is about different the different ways or the different messages around white supremacy, culture or capitalism or different things. But I share that just to share in case anyone else to also finds that like, whether they whether you directly resonate with precisely what I'm saying, or just more generally resonate with Yeah, like, as I'm thinking about this, like, I'm not really into joy, but like, comfort, like comfort really speaks to me, or all of that, to say that, I think that that's a worthwhile exploration and, and train of thought for us to notice and identify where are we? What language or concept are we most cozy with, in terms of the Pantheon? words relating to well being and pleasure and feeling good? Right. And I also thought that I was debating and in my mind, and as I was listening to you reflect back the childhood memory piece. I was thinking not, but I think I was remembering correctly that I also want to shout out I think that that was also a suggestion that Sonia Choquette gave in that lesson around joy. There was definitely a part of the lesson. I think it was that I stopped. I paused it. I think that's part of it. I paused the lesson because I was like, I don't know, I needed to like try to figure it out. And I thought about and I think I literally went to my closet, like what was kind of in storage was, you know, in the part of my closet, but it typically didn't go into and I was like, oh, yeah, yarn. Oh, yeah, I like to work with. And then I think I went back to it. And she said the thing about childhood, and then I and then I went back into my own zone. But so I also wanted to shout out and acknowledge that. That good idea was not one that I originally conceived. Yeah, so maybe we can start there. So I named some of my things. And I couldn't be more Tracy, do you want to name and I would invite our friend listening in to to also reflect on this too. And maybe if it's helpful for you, if you want to write it out or eat if you're someone who likes collaging or drawing or if you want to draw or Doodle it out. Either while we're talking or afterward, you might want to do that. For both this and the next phase of it. What brought you joy? What what brought young Tracy joy?

Tracie: 18:27

Um, I'm really my brain is stuck on the fact that I that I have been conditioned to think of these things as child ish. I love stickers. I was a sticker kid. Oh, stickers. Yeah, I really liked drawing. As my childhood aspiration was to be an animator, so I liked I loved drawing I loved cartoons. And yeah, those are those are some of the ones that I don't know. You're probably a little too young, but my Gen X listeners will remember a show called The Electric Company, which was the show for kids. That was like a skit kind of a show. Mom's educational, but it's entertainment. And like they had this mystery thing at the end with the bloodhound gang. And anyway, this credits the credits for the electric company at the very beginning. They always there was like this kid yelling Hey, you guys. And my last name was guy. And I genuinely believe that at your house, it would have said hey, you Baskin.

Unknown: 19:42

I genuinely believe that and so I was probably like 15 And I didn't know how they did it. But it was amazing that they were like using our name. And that brought me joy every time. Every time we watched the beginning credit. Hey, you guys and I was like I'm Emily talking to us.

April Baskin: 20:07

I'm going to insert something about you that reminded me of a share that but I loved it, you know, and it reminds me of a whole genre of things like that. Like it wasn't even in the song. But in Michael Jackson's black or white song, which I loved when he says like, it doesn't matter if you're black or white, it brought me joy every time for years even now to say, or both. Like, I like I like it felt like it was my song with with that, like little caret addition. It's like, it was great. It was just like, yes, exactly. I like subpart I like was kind of confused about it for years in different ways at the beginning of that song, you know, it's like the scenes they have on the recording itself to where it's like a boy playing rock music in his room, and then the dads like, turn it off. No, like, banging. And I was also always intrigued with that sound just like my dad when he yells at my dad's black and I was pretty sure in that story. It was like a white kid and his white dad, but my older maybe as a black dad since the song about oh, to me, it was about multiracial families. I don't think that's actually what it was about. Exactly. But for me, I was living for that song. Yeah, or like, or a little bit less so but still, like in high school. dating myself. Maya song ghetto superstar at one point. The hip hop artist says cry like a matador. And I would just get so excited because that was our school mascot. Like, exactly. So, you know, like those little signs of being seen, you know, that were just so joyful. It's like, oh, it's kind of but it's like, for me, it's like for us like for our school. Right. And I think that there's something like, without taking too long into it that I think is actually quite spiritual and meaningful and isn't simply childish. I think that there's a child inspired wisdom in that, that actually. Yes, we are dust and also this world was made for us.

Tracie: 22:25

Yeah, I just to be clear, like I actually having this conversation is making me really reassess that, that this is a disservice that we have done to ourselves that this is a form of repression. If not oppression, yeah, we've been taught to, to discard what makes us happy or joyful, as childish. That's messed up. Yes, yes. Yeah. Yeah, that that we weren't sort of, I mean,

April Baskin: 23:00

I had that realization too, in a different kind of ways. I was doing it as I was thinking about, like, the light bright, that's for a kid. But then I quickly saw that there were things that were either exactly the same or similar that I could enjoy like that. It actually wasn't, you know, that I could look for light shows or I could enjoy things that were sparkly, you know, like, that's why now like, I do these little things here and there. Like I have this. I'm showing Tracy right now this like, Uber gold glitter, notebook cover, right? Or like when you said stickers that reminded me I added that to my list, Tracy by like, oh, yeah, like when I was really in my joy zone at times, I would notice like, Oh, look at that one stare deck. I'm gonna put that in my mind. Oh, yeah, we did as a team. We did that with my team. In that job as I was starting to get into that flow when I started weaving it into my job and started noticing to kind of jump ahead for a moment that actually especially once I got through the first two years, which I was building a brand new department and like, I probably could have open more joint and also that it was just tough, but but that there actually was tons and plenty of space to weave in inspiration and humor and funny, funny videos. And that actually helped make the work lighter also further clarified for us our focus when we were in connection with joy. It helped us to be more ambitious and bold, in what we were doing. So yeah, so I am curious for you. What's coming up for you? And is it making you giggle? Is it making your eyes sparkle? Is it making you feel a sense of comfort? Something else that I liked from childhood, was planning out in scheming, weird Halloween costumes with my mom and also having the perennial annuals debate with our with my childhood Rabbi about whether or not Halloween observing Halloween was kosher or not, he was in the No thank you. No, it is not camp. And every year we would try to do things that were like harvest or fall related or but either way, but either way, we were able to do it in our own home that was part of our American Jewish men hog or Custom. And I was some weird stuff. But it brought us across a lot of joy to make it like one year I decided I wanted to be a bunch of grapes. Who knows why. And so we just like, got a bunch of purple balloons and strung them together and found a way to wrap them around me in such a way that I looked like a bunch of grapes. Another year, which was really tiring for my arms, but I made it work. I decided to be a dye, like multiple like dice, but like, like a dye. And like kind of box and and that was really fun. And it's interesting because in some ways compared to other people I wasn't so into costumes and like for poram Every year like you can see pictures of me from poram over the years and I just generally had like a tear that I got at Warren carnival. And it would just be wearing something like a floral jumper. romper. But um, but that was something fun was the Halloween costumes and just making weird stuff. Tracy are there other things from childhood? That you recall that brought you joy?

Tracie: 26:46

My sister and cousin I and I used to love to play floors lava.

April Baskin: 26:52

The floor is lava.

Tracie: 26:54

Yeah, I'm like jump from furniture. Sorry, jump from furniture to furniture. Like we would test couch pillows. Like I don't know why we thought the couch pillows could survive the lava. But they did.

April Baskin: 27:09

Their tough, rugged, rugged pillows.

Tracie: 27:12

Yeah, that was a that was a good time.

April Baskin: 27:16

One thing that I recall, that is exactly the same now. And it's surprise. It's just as magical is even as a kid I really loved solitude in nature, like when to call it that Ben but I loved just sitting in nature and exploring it or going on walks and like feeling the breeze on my cheek, or seeing the different animals and sometimes making stories and sometimes not just watching them and seeing where they go. And just feeling really good. And that was something that that aged with me that over time that felt like wine that I just, I just continued to notice like it just deepened like the relationship just deepened over time. And even if I'm gone or not proximate to nature, and all of this is we're all in nature. But you know, but in terms of being closer to wild, wild environments. There was a lot of magic and burying things and I don't I have no idea where it like I buried multiple time capsules, I could not tell you, I have a sense of where like I was like, It's 10 steps, like I wrote it. But even then, even as I was doing it, I was like, I'm not gonna remember this a week from now, but maybe I will, you know, but it was like it's 10 steps to the right, and then over the railroad tracks and then near the rock. And if you look at like I somebody at some point, who knows, maybe we'll find whatever it was that I buried, but I enjoyed I enjoyed that.

Tracie: 28:42

One thing that I did as a kid that I still do, well, I think I started when I was a teenager, but I will like do voices for animals, like I used to make my friends laugh. I remember very clearly sitting my student on a field trip or something, or watching pigeons. Were like, watching pigeons interact with each other and I was like doing voices for them. And so do that I cracked my family out making voices for our dogs and stuff. We had a good old Beagle. He's no longer with us. But I used to do this voice and he would call me lady would be like, waiting.

Unknown: 29:17

Can I please have some of what

April Baskin: 29:18

you're eating? I'll make myself laugh every time. I have whole conversations with him. It's something that I started doing in my 20s That was very childlike. And I can't remember how I did this was I did it with my dog. I did it with my dog as a kid and then when I was missing, not having a dog in my 20s I would do it when I would be carpooling with my friend when she would be driving but basically, anytime I would see a dog, I would make up on a song on the spot. You know, be like Hi, I'm Sparky and I have a little tan. I'm printing like a queen level at the bar. Like it'll just like get my spots I look like a permit or whatever. Like, what does that call? Like your dog? I was I started to make a song when you showed me. God willing, it all works out. Yeah, we're

Tracie: 30:08

getting her. Um, actually, there's a couple days.

April Baskin: 30:11

Yay. Yeah. So like, as soon as I saw it started to make a song about how your dog looks a little bit like cookies and cream cookies. Cookie used to crave.

Unknown: 30:22

The guy Decker dog

April Baskin: 30:24

is needed cookie thing. Yeah. Yeah. And so those are pretty good. Like, at one point, my friend was like, you're actually pretty good at that. I'm clearly like not, I'm not in shape right now with it. But I was like, do these whole little absurd things. And sometimes people enjoyed it. And people thought it was weird. And for me, it was like, it was my chance to remind myself that I have a love of like, I didn't I honestly didn't care. Whatever was happening, I was like, There's a dog and it deserves a song. And like, you know, I and what inspired me around that was the famous 80s movie. The one that I grew up with, I think it was classic, the version of Little Orphan Annie that I grew up with. I also saw it on off Broadway, but I also my mom showed me the film with that has Carol Burnett and and what's her name? What is that brilliant vocalist, Peter Peters. Peters, thank you. Thank you, Bernadette Peters. That cast and that's the one I know. Yeah. And that inspired me right where Annie singing to Sandy. And so I always saw and so that got me like, I love that, like, I'm gonna sing to Beamer and sing it. And also, I would sing him songs, because you have a lot of anxiety, he was abused. Before we got him, my parents would get rescues and, and he would just freak out when a guest was there. And if we didn't let him like bark at them, and we brought them into our room, he would cry. And I would like sing him how much is that been in the window, you know, and I would just say him different songs and stuff to try to comfort him. So I think just really great and sweet and so sweet. That I think I want us to continue to ruminate on this. And I want to give you a chance. And I want to give our listeners a chance to think about just ruminate on this a bit more what brought us joy when we were young. And to take some time to capture it, and also to think about what brings you joy now. And let's continue that in our next episode. I think this is I think this is sweet and good for now. Do you want to feel like you have some inspiration to bring us home? Tracy?

Tracie: 32:47

I just Yeah, I guess the thing that I this is, this is probably self explanatory. And I'm gonna say it out loud. Anyway. Great, that's good. But for me, I like from where I started. And part of the reason the part of the power of this list and this kind of like, back and forth, is so that we can recognize and look for if if my initial metaphor of the pennies or if it's a plant, whatever that were, we're walking our path and joy as they're growing on the path on the side or in the path like having these conversations and remembering them will allow us to recognize you recognize that plant instead of just walking right past it, which is what we have been conditioned to do. We've been conditioned to think that moving along that path as fast as possible is our goal. And having these conversations and making the list or just, you know, remembering allows us to be like, Oh yeah, there's stuff besides the path. And I'm allowed to enjoy those,

April Baskin: 33:59

savor, savor it, enjoy it, use it to help guide us where we want to when we have a point in the road, like, notice the things. Oh, there are more flowers down that road. Are there more pennies, which do I want? You know what? And I would just add on to I'd love what you said someone had full body chills, because I was just reminding myself revisiting a lesson of a more advanced metaphysical lesson that ties into exactly what you said. Basically, I'm just thinking about the fractal nature of what you said that this that making the list is helpful one so you can actually start to weave in some of the notice and I find often it's organic. You need me to as you make the list, you're like, Oh yeah, I can. I can weave that into my morning ritual right now. Or like, or this thing or or I've been doing the shower this way. But if I listen to music, or I already get stickers to put on the wall or whatever, like are there other things that that it's not as distant as we think it is? And some of the things are but actually by doing these things in Live in Zeiss, and as Tracy said, it conditions us even if you don't write it down just to be able to recognize it. And this applies in a fractal sense in bigger ways to around other things, that practicing getting into this feeling place. And I also wanted to say what when you were talking, not just the idea of it, but part of what I'm taking from our conversation Tracy, which was so much more fun to do it with you than just with myself solo is the feeling that it generated within me, which wasn't this like high elevation, joy, it felt like in my kitchens and in my chest and just felt good. It was like, oh, yeah, like that it felt intuitive, and wonderful, right. And so as we're walking along the path to noticing opportunities as they arise, and also attuning ourselves, practicing noticing, that feeling. So it's such that as we're navigating through the path, as a certain set comes by, or as different things happen, or we're in an exchange, we don't immediately recognize it as joy, but we notice on it, but I'm feeling that feeling again, but I felt when I was listening, when I was in conversation, spiritually with Tracy and April. And as I was in conversation with my journal, and my spiritual entourage, or however you choose with my higher self, or we are just, you know, myself or the divine. Oh, yeah, that feeling is coming up again. And it this. And so my hope for us is much less, although if that is your bag, and if that brings you joy to map this stuff out, you know, down to the hour or minute or something, then you do that. But also what I want to invite for folks, especially when we have so much going on, is to let this just be let it be a scavenger hunt in different ways. And as Tracy said, to start noticing these things and savoring them as they come up on our path, as you're crossing someone who don't expect this, you're talking noticing like, Oh, I'm getting that feeling again, I noticed actually, is this someone who I want to invite them? Or am I just noticing that these kinds of exchanges bring me joy? So as they happen for me to remember, Oh, this would be a moment for joy? The next time it happens, right? And that it can be like this appreciative, a scavenger hunt of appreciative inquiry around what makes us feel good? And how can we actually start to plan that in. And so I think we can, and weave it in both plan it in at times. And also take advantage of moments. And it doesn't have to be hours, it could be just even moments of oh, wait, this is really funny. Let me just allow myself to be immersed in the joy of this moment. And start to collecting those different moments and see how they string together or weave together for you. So I'm excited for us to do a part two on this and bring it into the present moment. And in the meantime, for me to take more time. And remember because I've done this exercise before, but in talking with you, Tracy and I'm thinking about it now and with everything I've learned and I've been through, I think there's more to mine. I think there's more memories that I'm not remembering right now that with a little bit of time. And the loving invitation that I'm offering to you and to me and to us to remember that magic, because a lot of it actually hasn't gone away and a lot of it is within reach for us now. And in the spirit of rededication it's so much easier to reach for and engage with things that part of us already knows that we already have a relationship with or are adjacent to then recreating the wheel which we don't have to do in the process of reunification. So with that, wishing you a joyous and just a meaningful 2023 filled with hopefully lots of love life lessons and support. And we're excited to be with you on that journey. Much Love for now. Thanks for tuning in.

Tracie: 39:13

To learn more about joyous justice LLC, our team and how you can get involved with our community. Check out the info in our show notes, or find us at joyous justice.com

April Baskin: 39:24

If you enjoy this episode, show us some love. Subscribe wherever you're listening. Tell your people share what you're learning and how your leadership is evolving. Stay humble, but not too humble.

Tracie: 39:37

And keep going

April Baskin: 39:38

because the future is ours to co create