We do live in a world where external success and happiness is seen as desirable. We tend to have a surge of happiness when we achieve success, or something happens to make us happy Have you noticed how long that happiness lasts? The novelty wears off and your happiness level returns to its former level.

But joy is different – it is not triggered by external events or acquisitions. I think of joy as in inner feeling – a feeling not prompted by anything in particular. A feeling which is sustained through the daily ups and downs of life. A feeling that does not come from the brain, but rather the heart.

Reflection on ‘beauty and art’ and the relationship between this, our hearts and our longing for an entity greater than ourselves. If we look for it we can see Beauty all around us – in creation itself. We can also see it in art, music, our imagination, a kind word between strangers, a new life, the love between two lifelong partners.

Does the beauty contained in art provide a pathway in our search for the divine?

Today I am reflecting on the marvels of creation. Thecreation of the universe by a divine power – or God – a power larger than we can imagine with our limited cognitive abilities.

Cultures and faiths throughout the world have their ownversion of a creation story, and this is not surprising. We all have the need to answer the questions we carry in ourhearts such as - ‘where are we?’, ‘who are we?’ and ‘why are we here?

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