It’s the height of orange season here in Arizona. Wherever you are, I hope that you’ve been the beneficiary of one of these beauties. Because, let’s face it, there is no pleasure quite like partaking of a perfect orange. The moment you peel it, when that sweet mist hits the air, you know it. I’m still not over the disbelief that comes over me in first juicy segment of a really good one. Involuntarily, I find myself passing out sections and saying, “Can you believe this orange?!”
Oranges are a fruit with instructions. You open them up and it’s pretty clear that this was a snack nature meant for you to pass around. Clearly, these little orbs were engineered for sharing. And, I think I know why. It’s not just that sharing is good manners. It’s the paradox and principle of the orange: Our capacities for joy are exponentially increased by sharing. Divide an orange and multiply the goodness. Sure, one may enjoy an orange in solitude, but it is quite another experience to give delight away, have your own delight validated, and to walk away with a memory happily held in two bodies.
Teams conducting happiness research have found that seeking someone to share positive experiences or appreciation with and telling them how much you value the moment may be the strongest predictor of the level of happiness that moment.
Sharing positive experience is a potent avenue to mindfulness, to savoring, and to being present. If you find yourself wishing that a more cheerful disposition would invade your heart, I invite you to find simple pleasures and to share, share, share. I can promise you’ll find your joy in small things amplified.
The joys of sharing grow when we move from consuming to creating. While there are definitely positive emotions associated with eating chocolate or taking in the sound of rain on a roof, there is a different, more powerful positive emotion we feel when serving a meal to the homeless, making music, climbing mountains, or creating art. What’s the difference? The second list involves creating. Generating. Serving others, solving problems, and creating beauty draw on our virtues and require us to show our seeds of greatness. Sharing positive, creative experiences is a potent way to lift your heart and build mental and spiritual resources.
My favorite poet, Mary Oliver, once wrote, “Every day, I see or I hear something that kills me with delight.” Let’s find delight daily. Let’s involve friends and strangers in creative, generative work that moves the world. Let’s share community. Let’s adopt a few more happy, little practices.
And, let’s share oranges.