In my early years, 20s and 30s, I lived as if there was always a tomorrow.  Always running full speed, busy, yet procrastinating on the important things and missing out on what truly mattered.  Now that I’m 50+ I realize that tomorrow is not a given.  I need to make every day count.  Whether that is expressed through love and service to my family, time spent with friends, or a moment for myself to enjoy the things I love…I need to make each hour matter.  Not matter to other people, but to me.

So, who is Traci Canterbury?

I grew up in a small Louisiana town, the eldest of three children. From an early age I was tenacious and curious with a love for creative writing and the arts. I remember writing, directing, and sometimes acting alongside my cousins in my own plays at the age of five.  I carried a fondness of the arts through my teenage years in gifted art classes, school drama clubs, and a passion for reading.  (Nerd alert!  I read the 1975 World Book Encyclopedia, all 22 volumes from cover to cover on multiple occasions.  I loved connecting to foreign places and things.)

I aspired to pursue a fine arts degree, but my father was adamant that 'arts were hobbies, not careers' and at my parent’s persuasion I earned an accounting degree with concentrations in corporate finance and economics.  Now I find myself a long way from the arts.  

I’m at a stage in life where I want simplicity, something I think is scarce in our society. And in my pursuit of simplicity, I’ve determined that what I truly desire is JOY…plain old joy that comes from the inside, that’s always with me, woven into the fabric of my soul, found in the small insignificant things on a daily basis.  I’m not talking about happiness, the emotion that comes from an event or circumstance.  I mean happiness even in times of sorrow, when there are no accolades, no reasons to be happy, the glass half full point of view.

As I navigate this new lifestyle, I’ve vowed to find and appreciate simple joy in everyday life in and through the things I love:  art, literature, gardening, hospitality, healthy active lifestyle and travel. I have so much to say and want to get it out of my head …starting a social media feed seems a natural outlet.

I pledge to you, my followers and to those just stopping by for a visit, to Keep.It.Real.  I promise to be real (no covering up the wrinkles) and honest in content, product reviews and simple-beautiful living inspiration.  I’m sharing so that you can hold me accountable to find JOY each and every day in the small stuff, the quiet moments, the unexpected visit, the rare book find, even the new leaves on my dying dogwood tree.

My goal for findingJOY.life is to become your friend. To share thoughts and ideas.  To inspire and mentor along the way.  Whether it be through painting, reading, flowers, trips, friendships, learning something new, or just going for a walk, I’m looking for the simple everyday joy that presents itself along life’s journey. 

Will you join me?

Remember…

• JOY, an attitude within, not the emotion happiness that comes from an event or circumstance

• Check it out!  The photo of my sweet friend, Kathryn, and a dragonfly that befriended her this summer, is the brand image for findingJOY

• Become a friend.  Visit TraciCanterbury.Com for more information on findingJOY, join my newsletter, and follow/like me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Youtube

Welcome, friend!

Find me on Facebook at TraciCanterburyFindingJOY and on Instagram @TraciCanterburyFindingJOY