Suffering is inevitable in life, but joy is not. So relentlessly pursue joy today. Laugh often and listen well. Celebrate the wonder of the smallest, most ordinary things
Tragedy comes to us regardless. But joy is a butterfly, an elusive melody waiting to be named. Our surprising, unsolemn duty, therefore, is not just to weep at life's pain but to seek and savour its bounty with fierce delight. To marvel at the simple magnificence of the mundane; the ephemeral light through a dirty window, that eternal moment between the first and second mouthfuls of banoffee pie.
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Light a fire tonight. Make the coffee strong. Stretch your limbs. Write someone a letter with a real, actual pen. Play 'Love Supreme' by John Coltrane. And should you happen to see a tree bedecked in lights, or an ornate tattoo, or the iridescent flash of pink on a pigeon's head, stop and stare in wide-eyed wonder like a child.
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Hallow the fleeting hours of this sacred pulse with an oratory of sighs, a liturgy of hugs and whoops and laughter. Believe again in the fundamental goodness of stuff, transubstantiated for us. Receive again this day the blessèd sacrament.