Joy is my middle name.
As part of an application process, I was asked to share a time that I've recently created unexpected joy for someone.
Creating unexpected joy has been one of my lifelong mantras, or rather an art form I have been practicing for a very long time. I really just like bringing a smile to people's faces, or sometimes say that I just have so much love to give, but it could be as simple as the fact that "Joy" is my middle name. Really.
Unexpected joy comes in all forms. Birthdays might be my forte. I will be there for you: when you think all your friends have forgotten your birthday--I will take you to dinner at a romantic gastro-pub; or we will spend the day together, and bake pastries, drink some vino, and laugh at tales of dating disasters; I will rent a car, travel to Humboldt Park, parallel park with unexpected finesse, just to to buy you a case of your favorite hot sauce and ship it to you in NYC; or because you're a super-talented architect, living in London, but missing Chicago, I will send you the Lego versions of the Sears (W̶i̶l̶l̶i̶s̶) Tower and Big Ben.
It doesn't even have to be your birthday. Say you worked with MSF (Doctors Without Borders) in the South Sudan last year, and not only were you having a miserable day, but a difficult time all together, and you weren't sure if what you were doing was even making a difference in the grand scheme of things. But it was--it is. And my package (the letter, the little non-perishable gifts, every touch of love) that arrived on the truck has reminded you of that. Or that one time you were touring in town, and ended up with a sore throat, right before you were going to perform! You don't take medication, but a dose of four lemons works every time. Unfortunately, I only had one lemon, so I was on a quest to find three more lemons before heading across town to see your show. Crisis averted!
And I may not be the best tour guide, but I will make sure you feel welcome, not only in this fair city I call home, but in my circle of friends. I will spend time, as much as I have to give, to ensure that you have the best time possible, not just so you can tell all your friends and family in Montreal (or Taipei, or Columbus) how nice the people in Chicago are, but so that you have fond memories that will last a lifetime.
I realize that they had asked for me to share "a" time, but each one of these moments have put smiles on people's faces, and who am I to decide whose joy is more important? However, it is an application process, and therefore, I must show that I can follow directions.
That being said… I do hope that sometime soon, if I haven't in awhile, I can bring you some of this unexpected joy, and you can smile that beautiful smile of yours, that I love so much.