Finding Joy

Finding joy is more accessible when the sun is shining. No, literally, it is.

It’s incredible how much better I feel living in the land of eternal sunshine than under the icy clouds of the Great Lakes.

Winters in Michigan were often melancholy. No amount of friends, outings, or activities helped shake off the sleepiness, disinterest, and general sad demeanor that came with the changing of seasons. However, what comes before a Michigan winter is a Michigan Fall. This season is my absolute favorite part about the climate in the northern Midwest. Bright colors, sweater weather, damp leaves, freshly pressed apple cider, corn mazes, hay rides, butternut squash bisque from the squash picked from your garden . . . it’s an endless source of joy I thought I would miss in California.

But to my pleasant surprise, we have that here too . . . well, sorta.

Yes, the seasons are very different in SoCal than in Michigan. It will take some getting used to. However, just because they are different doesn’t mean I can’t embrace the change.

Fall in Southern California doesn’t necessarily provide the hayrides through the apple orchards to the pumpkin patch, where you see your very own pumpkin off the vines. It’s much more likely that you will find your pumpkin pre-picked, sitting in a pile of slightly mutilated gourds that endured quite the bumpy truck ride to arrive in a parking lot near you. And as the sun beats down on you while sipping your PSL in your heavy sweater in 80-degree weather because “it’s fall gosh darn it,” you browse through the gourds, longing to feel like you are a part of the rest of America celebrating the season the way the pilgrims did—because we know they ALL carved jack-o-lanterns.

The colors do change, just more slowly, so you can appreciate them longer. The temperate hovers between 60 and 75 degrees during the day through the winter, so there’s never a need to hack my windshield with an ice pick. I can go for walks, sit outside, breathe the taco-filled air, and snap a few photos of leaves at my leisure.

On a sunny SoCal afternoon in December, I can take a drive with my husband on sketchy roads through Box Canyon and not worry about hitting any black ice. The best part for me is when the sun shines every day that it doesn’t rain—and when it rains, it is refreshing and doesn’t last long. The sun is available from fall through winter, and I expect it to continue to share its light throughout spring.

There are definitely many things I miss about Michigan and the MidWest collectively, but I could get used to this. What I am hoping to convey, is that it’s not difficult to find joy if you’re willing to seek it out. Have an open heart and open mind and you may be surprised.