Does it Spark Joy?

Having previously loved reading TheLife-Changing Magic of Tidying, I just had to pick up the follow-up to the book: 

Spark Joy: An Illustrated Guide to the Japanese Art of Tidying by Marie Kondo, translated by Cathy Hirano.


There is so much that sparked joy for me in this book: the adorable illustrations, the thorough index, the useful tips, the references to Japanese culture and the pervasive sense of respect for the things that serve us purpose, or that don’t.

With bookshelves still laden with tomes, even after my attempt at letting go of some, my attention was drawn once again to the topic of books:

When you’ve finished tidying your books, step back and take a good look at your bookshelves. What kinds of words leap out at you from the titles on their spines? […] 

The energy of book titles and the words inside them are very powerful. In Japan, we say that ‘words make our reality’. The words we see and with which we come into contact tend to bring about events of the same nature. In that sense, you will become the person who matches the books you have kept. What kind of books would you want in your bookcase to reflect the kind of person you aspire to be? If you choose with books to keep on that basis, you may find that the course of events in your life changes dramatically.

Try as I might, I look at my books and I don’t see a theme emerge. What do you think that says about me?



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