When I think about the last time I cried tears of joy, in all honesty, I struggle to recall a time at all. I’ve felt moments of joy and excitement, but when was the last time that I was so joyful that I cried from my happiness and contentment? I couldn’t remember it. And that speaks volumes to me. The world has become so focused on the negative, that it drowns out the joy that still remains in the world today. I started to look back at pictures and videos, trying to recall at least one moment in my life that brought me tears of joy, a moment I could look at for inspiration and hope, a moment I would try harder to recall more constantly moving forward when times get tough. I finally found it in a picture from high school. It was a photo of me holding my nephew for the first time. When he was born, I had just come from a track meet, so I was still in my uniform. I was looking down at the small little bundle wrapped in a hospital blanket, my face gleaming with love and pure joy at seeing the newest member of our family. He was so beautiful! His face had a soft expression of bewilderment, his eyes heavy from exhaustion, but trying hard to keep them open to take in all the sights and sounds of his new environment. Seeing this photo again brought back the memory and the tears of joy that followed. This photo also triggered another memory, although I’m not sure where the photo of this memory is, of holding my niece for the first time. How beautiful she was sleeping away in my arms. These moments, the moments of a pure innocence and happiness, are the moments that bring tears of joy to my eyes. That moment of pure love and awe, that’s what we need to find more of in the world these days, even if it’s just a memory. The more we reflect on those times, even if they are few and far between, the easier it will become to identify more of these moments, no matter how small. My nephew is now in high school and I still feel the same love and joy for him that I did that first time that I met him. When I reflect on how much he’s grown up, the young man he’s become, it sparks hope in my heart. The lives and love of children inspire me to become a better person, to make the world a better place not only for them, but with them. I wrote a poem after my niece was born to express the love and hope for a newborn child. I call it “Young Heart”:

Her eyes of blue,
A beautiful hue,
Deep as the night sky
Right after sunset.
Her eyes of blue,
A beautiful hue,
Shows the old soul
In her young heart.
Her eyes of blue,
A beautiful hue,
Stare back at me
As she falls asleep.
Her eyes of blue,
A beautiful hue,
Will conquer the world
Someday.