i've been meaning to post in this thread for weeks and i keep forgetting
nat...thank you so much for starting this thread. and thank you to everyone who's posted.
one of my favorite devotional writers says that gratitude is the basis of joy...so i've been trying to make a more conscious effort to write out what i'm grateful for. i made the "gratitude" thread my bookmark for bfp so i can remember to write in there more often
i've found brene brown's books extremely helpful for facilitating deeper connections with people in my life...and with myself. for me that's a big part of cultivating joy. her books
i thought it was just me and
the gifts of imperfection go into the roots of shame and how shame can create disconnection between people, and how to build resilience against shame and build connection with one another. she writes a lot about empathy and how to practice/develop our empathy skills. she also has two awesome ted talks
http://www.ted.com/speakers/brene_brown.html