December: 

It’s December and delight is in the air! I LOVE December. I start celebrating the holidays right after Thanksgiving, and I don’t stop until January.

Every month, the team at the Linn Academy pulls an oracle card. The card pulled for this month, from my new Soul Coaching® Oracle deck, is Delight! (Perfect for me for December!) I then peer into the deeper energy of the card to see what thoughts or memories emerge. Here’s what came forward for December’s card.

As I’m writing this, it’s a very early, winter morning . . . it’s dark. Through the mists softly lingering on the mountain ridge to the west, an almost full moon is illuminating the morning sky as it sinks below the skyline. It feels like there is magic in the air. A feeling of absolute delight surges through me. I lift my arms into the air and say, “Yes!!!”

I know it sounds strange, but it seems like the moon heard me.

There has never been a better time to activate delight in your life. Amidst the heaviness of current events, for some, it might seem irresponsible to prioritize joy. However, when everything seems uncertain, this is exactly the time to seek the light and be open to delight. By doing so, you become like a shimmering candle flame that illuminates the darkness. Far from being a frivolous practice, when you allow delight to flood into your being, you are making a stand. When the world seems like it is plunging into darkness, by seeking delight, you are saying to yourself and the Universe, “The Light will prevail!”

Not only is this beneficial for the world at large, but it’s also great for oneself. There are psychological and physical benefits to feeling delighted. When you experience delight, your brain is flooded with oxytocin, which is the neurochemical in our brains that makes us feel safe and relaxed. This, in turn, is beneficial for your entire body and emotional well-being..

As a spiritual practice, find things that activate delight in your life.

1. As you are reading this, look around. Is there anything that could bring you delight in this moment? It doesn’t have to be big and life-changing. It can be as simple as watching a fluffy cloud meander across the sky. Or looking at the way that the sun shines through the frost on your window. Nothing is too small.
2. If nothing jumps into your awareness, think of a time in your past when you were taken by surprise in a moment of wonder. What was that experience like? How did it make you feel?
3. Another way to activate delight is to use your imagination to visualize a joyful scene. Curiously, some of the same beneficial hormones are ignited when you visualize as when you actually experience a scene.

Sending you immense love for a delightful holiday season! (This is a photo I took of the moon with my Canon camera, but it’s not the one setting right now.)

Denise