Mudita is defined as pure joy, unselfish joy. It is joy without self interest. When we can be happy at the joys of others, it is called mudita.
On November 17, 2015 exactly one month after Madison was born asleep, I had that word tattooed on the inside of my right wrist. At the time, I didn’t fully realize what it would mean to me to have this one word permanently written on my body. I was so racked with grief and despair that joy seemed so distant. It was a wish and a prayer for that joy to find its way back to me.
Grief is a tricky beast. She rears her head at times I wish she wouldn’t. She makes it way too easy to be cynical and jaded. She tries to keep you isolated from the joy of living this life.
This one word helps to remind me to stay on this path — “openly grieving, graciously serving, stumbling and striving for joy” – MUDITA.
