JOY has always been part of my life. I can remember as far back as aged 6, singing in Sunday School, I’ve got the JOY, JOY, JOY, JOY, down in my heart.
We sang it in a “round” like a camp-fire song. I also learned quotes from the Book of Psalms.’ In your presence is fullness of Joy’.
Not long after moving to Bournemouth in 1992, one afternoon after a bad day, I ran my car into the back of another car at a junction. Fortunately, the other driver was lovely and there was no damage done. This was pre-mobile phone days and I arrived home to the telephone ringing, adding more tricky news to my day. It was not audible, but I clearly heard it in my head, ‘Sheena, Joy is a choice’.
In 2016, the year our son Simon was diagnosed with terminal cancer, this became very real. A favourite Bible quote was, ‘The Joy of the Lord is my strength’, I decided I would choose Joy. The Bournemouth YMCA also called their Intranet ‘Joy’ that year after I won the name ballot! Over the last few years, I have found Joy in many places, Scotland, Lincoln, Singapore, Budapest and Australia, as it travelled with me, in my heart. At work I became known as ‘The Joy Lady’.
Joy was always there before, but maybe I just wasn’t looking for it.
More recently due to the COVID-19 outbreak, which involved home working, job role changes and new challenges from working remotely, my colleague Val and I had several interesting conversations in the course of my work.
My new role was to assist Val, our Bid Writer, doing research for her. This was a learning curve for me involving several calls to Val. One day, in my eagerness to get a very small bid submitted, I uploaded a wrong document and could not retract it. I fired off an email but felt that it would be among hundreds of others, and then prayed. The next day they emailed back, sorted my mistake and two weeks later there was Joy when YMCA received £500!
Another day, as a distraction for Val’s children, (she was also home-schooling), I asked her daughter, Tilly – 9, if she would draw me a rainbow picture to put in my window. As I live on a main road close to Bournemouth Hospital, I said that it would be seen by all the buses, ambulances, police, and those who walk along the road. Several days later a handmade envelope arrived containing a beautiful painting by Tilly. It was in beautiful rainbow colours and written in her writing the words, ‘Choose Joy’.
These are very unusual times where we have all had to make choices. JOY is also a choice and the choice is ours.
I am pleased to say JOY has always appeared just when needed it.
http://www.ymcabournemouth.org.uk