Hope, Patience, Joy: Lessons from the Garden for Art and Life

My peach and cherry trees are filled with flowers. Daffodils are blooming and everywhere I look outside, spring is progressing.

20 Daily Delights: Writing a Joy List as a Reminder to Focus on Gratitude

I sat in the dining room with my coffee, cereal and journal.

“I’m crabby. Crabby. Crabby. Crabby,” I wrote.

gratitude, joyAnne ButeraOctober 8, 2022joy, Joy Lists, Joy List, joy list, writing joy lists, gratitude practice, gratitude, joy is a choice, joy as a habit Comments

12 Things Bringing Me Joy Right Now

I’ve been in a bit of a creative funk. I know it’s just a natural part of the ebb and flow of my creativity. It’s taken me years to be able to recognize this and let the funk happen.

creativity, joy, lifeAnne ButeraJuly 9, 2022Joy Lists, Joy List, creative ebbs, creative cycle, savor summer Comments

Challenge Yourself This Week: Pay Attention to Beauty and Write Daily Joy Lists

When’s the last time you noticed something that made you pause to look, to think, to wonder? A little moment seemingly outside of time?

joy, life, magicAnne ButeraOctober 8, 2021Joy Lists, writing joy lists, daily challenge, slowing down, paying attention, noticing beauty, wonder Comments

Celebrate Summer Joys: Engage Your Senses, Week 2 of a Month of Gratitude Practice

Noticing beauty needn’t be limited to seeing it. Last week we focused on COLOR, something we experience with our eyesight, but this week I want you to awaken your other senses.

Celebrate Summer Joys: Inviting You to a Month of Gratitude Practice

Summer is speeding past and before it’s gone I want to make sure I savor all the things I love about it.

To remind me to slow down and savor the days, I’m devoting the month of August to gratitude and joy.

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25 Summer Delights Bringing Me Joy Right Now

The days are flying past faster and faster. I can’t believe June has already come and gone. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I’m trying to slow down and enjoy summer’s magic and yet, time still flies.

joy, life, magicAnne ButeraJuly 2, 2021Joy Lists, summer days, summer joys, summer joy list, pay attention be astonished tell about it, paying attention, joy, how to slow down, slowing down, being present Comments

Shift Your Perspective and Recommit to Your Heart

I stumbled into my shoes, pulling on my hat and coat before rushing two wagging dogs out the door.

I was still wearing my nightshirt.

I wasn’t wearing any socks.

I hadn’t even put on my glasses.

Finishing My 10 Year Painting Celebration with Gratitude

Bright sunshine and warm breezes. Clear blue skies and crisp snow. Cold, dark, wet days. This month I’ve tried to be present for it all.

November has been a gift. A strange month, but a gift, too.

Getting Out of the Box

The other day my cousin Sarah* shared a post on Instagram which was a part of a longer piece she shared on her blog. In it she wrote “stepping out of the box I decided I was going to do something to treat me.” Although her words were about the importance of doing something for yourself, what kept running through my head was idea of stepping out of the box.

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soaking it up

I sit in the garden and watch the robins taking turns on the nest in the birch tree. The nest is perched in a crotch of branches high above my patio. It doesn’t look very secure, but I’ve watched it hold tight when its windy. One robin swoops to the branch and the other plunges away. A few minutes later they switch. And switch again.

Why Joy?

I talk about JOY a lot. The word is up there in my logo. It write about JOY in my blog posts. I describe my paintings with the word and when you sign up for my newsletter I send you a set of Joy Lists as a thank you. On top of that, I call my newsletter a JOYLetter.

11 Ways to Invite More Joy Into Your Life

When is the last time that you were filled with joy? How happy are you right now?

I've read that each person has her own set range of potential happiness, determined in part by genetics.

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Joy List Monday

It's been ages since I've done a Joy List Monday post (I've never done one in this space), but this morning I am overflowing with joy and wanted to share it with you (and encourage you to discover some joy at the start of a week, too).

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Summer Love Songs and Savoring Each Day

It's the last day of August. I can't quite believe it. Throughout the month I've been noticing the beginnings of fall. It seems early this year.

Summer's my season and although autumn can be beautiful its arrival always makes me a bit melancholy.

notes from the studio