JOY AS A VERB
How to Reclaim Your Light After the Holidays (When You’re Still Kinda Tired)
Okay, confession: I’ve been slow getting these blogs out.
I needed a break. A real one.
The kind of break that isn’t a flight or a deadline disguised as “rest.”
So here we are — post-holidays.
The decorations are packed away, the group chats are quiet, and everyone’s pretending to be “refreshed.”
Meanwhile, most of us are still trying to remember what day it is and why we thought back-to-back social events in December were a good idea.
This is where joy as a verb comes back into play.
Because the truth is, joy doesn’t automatically reboot on January 1st.
It doesn’t show up with confetti or champagne.
It crawls in slowly — sometimes wearing sweatpants and smelling like leftover burnout.
And for artists, that in-between season — the one after the sparkle but before the sunlight returns — can feel especially heavy.
We run on emotion, and the post-holiday quiet can sound like failure if we’re not careful.
So let’s reset the narrative.
Joy isn’t a mood that arrives once you’ve “caught up.”
It’s a verb — something you do, not just something you feel.
It’s participation. It’s a small, stubborn act of returning to yourself even when you’re moving slow.
As artists, we feel everything twice — once in the world and again in our work.
So when the days are gray, it’s not about forcing productivity; it’s about re-learning softness.
Letting the light come back in tiny, non-dramatic ways.
Joy is maintenance, not magic.
It’s stretching before the spiral.
Leaving one light on in your studio when the mood says hide.
Answering the text you’ve been avoiding just to remind your nervous system that connection still exists.
Joy says, “I’m tired,” and still goes for the walk.
Joy burns the toast but makes another piece anyway.
Joy writes something terrible just to prove you’re still in conversation with your craft.
So yes, I took my time. I needed quiet.
But the work — the real work — is figuring out how to make peace sustainable.
And if you’re still shaking off the glitter and the guilt, here are a few small steps to help you find your rhythm again:
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5 WAYS TO REBOOT YOUR JOY AFTER THE HOLIDAYS
1. Step into the sunlight.
Even ten minutes matters. Vitamin D is a natural antidepressant, and the body knows how to follow light. When in doubt, follow it too.
2. Ease up on the sugar.
Holiday leftovers linger — so do sugar crashes. Start swapping sweets for fruit, herbal tea, or dark chocolate. Give your nervous system the grace of balance.
3. Move your body (gently).
No boot camps required. A walk around the block, stretching while your coffee brews, or dancing in the living room counts. Motion convinces the mind that hope still lives here.
4. Redesign your rest.
Schedule solitude that restores you, not isolates you. Rest doesn’t mean disappearing — it means choosing when and how to recharge.
5. Practice micro-joys.
Light a candle that smells like optimism. Play one song that makes you grin before checking email. Wear the soft sweater. Joy can start small and still count.
Because joy, real joy, isn’t a New Year’s resolution — it’s a daily decision.
It’s the muscle you build after grief and before the next goal.
You don’t have to feel ready to start again.
You just have to start small and keep showing up for yourself like it’s part of your art.
Joy is not passive. Joy clocks in.
And lucky for us — it’s flexible with late arrivals.
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