Quiet Joys
One of my favorite practices I have developed, which I utilize as both an educator and a director - any time I’m in charge of setting the tone for a room, really - is that of sharing Quiet Joys. It’s a very simple practice: I start every meeting asking each participant in the room to tell me a Quiet Joy they experienced since the last time we met. I define a Quiet Joy as something simple that brought you satisfaction or peace or otherwise engaged you in a moment of glad noticing.
The examples my students have come up with over the years have ranged from touching to hilarious to surprising to deeply resonant. They have noticed blooming spring trees on otherwise dank streets, the calm beauty of a person putting on rings, appreciating the artwork and play-structure in a videogame, moments when they were taken care of by loved ones in small, kind ways, the pleasure of reading, the underestimated satisfaction of a bowl of popcorn, the enwrapped, low-ceilinged comfort of a walk in a foggy, misty rain in morning.
The intent of this practice is both overt and sneaky:
