“Joy is not in things; it is in us.” — Richard Wagner

Writing about joy is tricky business. Are you enjoying yourself today? Does delight creep in to wash over the tasks that make up the day? Who even talks like that?

Each day offers its share of boredom and drudgery, but also moments that sparkle with joy or contentment. We know when we’re in it. The magic is in the layers of the cake. But it’s not all sweetness, or we’d get sick pretty quickly. We aren’t exactly riding around with It’s a Small World playing in our heads. I’ve been stuck on that ride—believe me it’s not joyful for long when you hear it over and over again.

There are a few Navy SEALs that would remind us to “embrace the suck” that each day throws at us. That grind through the worst of it isn’t pleasant, but it’s bringing us to someplace we are destined to get to. If the suck doesn’t kill us anyway. But they’re on to something: No day is perfect, especially not this one. We can shift our attitude about the mess we’re wading through. We can be aware of but ignore the misery and maybe even enjoy the process of getting through it.

Enjoy the day. Maybe even embrace the suck if there’s purpose to it. Wherever we are in our lives is where we are. Learn to focus on where are we going. Joy is surely in us, looking to escape and meet the world. It will drag our sorry ass along with it if we let it. So why not let it?