Somewhere along the way, I started saying it: life is always lifing.
It’s my way of saying that life doesn’t wait for you to get it together. The bills still come. The car still makes that noise. Somebody still needs something. And right in the middle of the heavy stuff, life keeps right on happening.
For a long time, I thought that was the problem. I thought if I could just get everything handled, then I could breathe. Then I could enjoy things. Then I could laugh.
Wellllll. That day never came.
What I’ve learned is that joy doesn’t wait for the mess to be cleaned up. It shows up right in the middle of it, if you let it.
During the pandemic, when the whole world felt upside down, my husband and I picked up dinner one evening. I had asked for a specific salad dressing, and of course they gave me the wrong one.
I fussed, cussed, fumed and screamed. I turned that vehicle around and was headed back to that restaurant. I was going to tell those people a thing or two or three!
Then I looked over at James, who had been sitting there quietly through my entire fit, and it hit me.
I said, “Oh my God… I think I’ve been pissed off for six months. I think the entire world is mad.”
It wasn’t about the salad dressing. It never is.
But we laughed until we cried, and something in me let go that night.
That’s what I mean. Sometimes the laugh is the release valve. Sometimes it’s the moment you finally see yourself clearly, and instead of beating yourself up, you get to shake your head and smile.
Another time, my family started an Easter bunny cake-decorating competition, in the middle of one of the craziest years any of us had lived through.
Grown adults, frosting everywhere, arguing over coconut. People we didn’t even know voted online.
It was ridiculous. It was wonderful.
It’s still one of our family's favorite traditions.
Inspired by the winning cake in our family's 2026 Easter bunny cake competition.
I don’t believe laughter erases pain. It doesn’t.
But I’ve learned that pain and joy can sit at the same table.
You don’t have to wait until everything is fixed to laugh. You don’t have to earn a good moment.
I believe God gave us laughter for a reason. Even on the hard days, especially on the hard days, there is room for a little joy.
So if your life is lifing right now, if everything is piled up and nothing feels finished, look for the moment that makes you smile.
It’s there. Let yourself have it.
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
— Proverbs 17:22
The mess will still be there tomorrow. So will the joy, if you keep looking for it.