By Sue DiFranco
Copyright © 2002 Sue DiFranco/Fun Facts Publishing  

One of the habits that occurs with owning your own business is the work ethic you adopt for yourself. Naturally, if you're depending on only yourself to get paid, you tend to work a little harder! But sometimes "working hard" fails to show you the little pleasures in life. So I offer this suggestion to all of you workaholics (you know who you are): take some time for you!

Last week I awoke to a long list of things to do, and I was mentally preparing myself before I even got out of bed. But then  Michael said, "Would you like to go for a walk in the park?"

We have the blessing of living three blocks away from Central Park, and one block away from Riverside Park. At first I thought, "There's no way - I have too much to do!" But then I thought - what good is a blessing if one doesn't use it?

So we walked, and I was filled with more joy in those two hours than I can express. Here is what we saw:

A father guiding his daughter on one of her first times on a bicycle. He had his hand on her back and patiently stayed beside her as she wobbled, and eventually fell, at which point he helped her up and got her back on the bike. About an hour later we saw the two again: except this time she was pedaling away and he was running, trying to keep up with her. We cheered.

A mom and her son walking up a hill. The son was pushing his bike, and said, "I'm tired!" His mom said, "You can do it!", to which he replied, "I think I can! I think I can!" The lessons of The Little Engine That Could applied to real life!

New moms chatting, grandparents and grandchildren playing, partners kissing. Squirrels thrilled with the nuts we gave them. Birds chirping, carrying on conversations we humans will never understand. Life...happening.

Joy can be found everywhere around you. The next time you are at the store, or driving down the street, or picking up your morning paper. Joy is everywhere, just waiting to fill your heart with that burst of passion. Open your eyes to the joys of every day, and you will find it in places you least expect!