Easter Sunday, the pinnacle of the Church’s calendar year, is a day filled with joy. The Monday after? Perhaps not so much. It’s back to work, back to “normal,” and this year for many people living in the Northeast, still cold and winter-like. So how do we sustain the joy we have experienced as the Easter season fades? One way I would suggest is to be grateful.
For most people, happiness is usually a feeling that one has in response to one’s circumstances (people, places, things) although we can decide to try to be happy no matter what. As Abraham Lincoln once said, “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.”  Still, when faced with the blues, a health problem, work issues or disappointments, it is tough to feel happy, especially on a Monday. Experiencing joy – like feeling happy – can also be a response we have to outside circumstances…but I believe joy can also be cultivated despite our circumstances. Not feeling well today? Be grateful you don’t have any serious health problems and hopefully can be on the mend tomorrow. Don’t like your job? Be grateful you have a source of income you can hopefully save to one day get the job you dream about. Stuck in the winter blahs? This too shall pass because spring, although seemingly distant to some of us now, is definitely on its way. And the list goes on.
Another way is to ask the Holy Spirit to fill you with guidance and joy. The apostles and disciples of Jesus were filled with fears and doubts for days, weeks, even months after the Resurrection. That is why Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to them…to guide them and give them hope so that they could spread the Good News with joy so that others would come to believe. And so it is with us as well. But we have to ask. Jesus told the disciples, “you will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.  So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.  Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” (John 16:20-24)
I know God’s Will for us is to be joyful to show those around us that we as Christians believe He is good, that He loves us and that He wants only the best for us. Think about it…we usually don’t want to hear news (or anything really) from people who are downcast and downtrodden – we steer clear of those people. But joy is contagious! I hope if you are feeling a little bit of a let-down this Easter Monday or in days or weeks to come, you will turn it around and experience joy by not only reflecting on the Good News of the Resurrection, but by being truly grateful for your Christian beliefs and asking the Holy Spirit to fill you with joy.
