With Scott Grace, Your Joy Ambassador
I have come to believe that how much joy I experience in this life pretty much boils down to how much I allow it. Yet for many of us, after a lifetime of withholding permission from ourselves, we might notice some subtle resistance to expanding our joy allowance.
Last Friday night I moved my joy ceiling up and out, through the roof, and then some.
I took out my guitar after dinner at Good Earth, my beloved neighborhood health food store/restaurant here in Fairfax, CA. They have an outdoor area for dining and a table by a fireplace that qualifies as prime real estate for my intentions. I snagged it via the law of attraction (it was empty) and shared dinner with a friend, eating as quickly as possible cause I was very excited about dessert.
Dessert in this case was music by the fire... me, my guitar, and a bunch of classic sing-alongs from Cat Stevens to the Beach Boys to the Beatles. First it was just me and my friend, but soon the music charmed, the people gathered, and a few of the flock were quite adept at harmonies. We had moments that surpassed an orgasm in terms of pleasure. I had multiple ear-gasms. It was good for me.
A young man named Josh sat down next to me. He was Caucasian and nineteen years old. But when I closed my eyes, there was nothing white or teenager going on. His voice and his soul sometimes reminded me of Stevie Wonder, Rev. Al Green, and other times Ray Charles. Then he would switch gears and sound like the Beach Boys, or a Gibb from the Bee Gees. The kid had range! I was most impressed with his willingness to let it rip, belting it out without a care about what the neighbors might be thinking. But in this case the neighbors were loving it.
The crowd increased in numbers and volume. Dancers started dancing. Drummers drummed. We stayed till two hours past closing time, getting more and more outrageous, playful, tribal.
The next night I went back for second helpings. A different cast of characters congregated.The fun factor was on par to the previous night. In fact, the word, 'fun' didn't do it justice. It was euphoric.
At some point I had the thought that maybe I’m having too much fun. A police car came by, and I actually had the fear that somehow we were doing something wrong, making too much of a joyful noise, and that they would shut us down. Maybe even write us a ticket or arrest us for loitering, or Joytering, or maybe Creating the Peace.
This wasn’t the first time that leaving my comfort zone in a joyous way has brought up the fear of punishment. I even have caught myself a few times, when people ask me how I’m doing, replying, “I’m having so much fun, I think the Fun Police are after me.”
Now I don’t know where I picked up the idea of a Fun Police, but if the words came of my mouth, I figure they must exist, even if just in my psyche. So this morning I went into meditation and asked to speak to the Chief of the Fun Police and, low and behold, he got on the phone and was as interested in speaking to me as I was in speaking to him.
Scott: Thank you very much for taking the time to talk to me.
Fun Police Chief: No problem, I want to talk with you too - but I’ve only got a few minutes — then it’s back to my job.
Scott: And what exactly is that, your job?
Chief: I’m on the lookout for you having too much fun, spontaneity, gaiety, laughter, joy … you know, that sort of thing.
Scott: There’s a danger? Someone could have too much?
Chief: Well, yes! The danger is that if you have too much fun, you might stop thinking about all the things that are wrong with you and your life. You could get real lazy about trying to fix these things, which in my opinion, you already are. Fun, if it isn’t balanced with a generous helping of unpleasantness, is downright irresponsible. And, if you are not suffering and struggling, even just a little bit every day, how deserving could you be of any joy, success and prosperity that come your way? For your own good, we at the Fun Police are here to make sure there’s a limit to your good feelings and good times. We are here to serve and protect.
Scott: How do you get me to stop having fun?
Chief: Well, it used to be easy enough. A little guilt, properly applied, has always gone a long way. Whispering the “s” word in your ear (as in, “Scott, you’re being selfish”) used to shut you down real fast. What’s making our job difficult lately is that you are entertaining notions so dangerous that, if you really pursued them with abandon, we wouldn’t be able to manage you anymore. You’d always be off just having a good time, while we’d be dealing with more lay-offs here at the station.
Scott: Oh, I see. And what, in a nutshell, are these new notions?
Chief: If I tell you, you have to promise not to share them. Part of our job is to prevent chaos from breaking out, and these are pretty revolutionary ideas, especially if they fall into the hands of the wrong people. You would not want the masses quitting their jobs and letting their inner children run wild in the streets, now would you? It would wreak pandemonium.
Scott: Oh, yes, I can see what you mean. All right, I promise not to disclose what you say — scout’s honor. (I crosses my fingers behind my back)
Chief: OK, then I’ll tell you. You are starting to consider the notion that unconditional, across-the-board self-love and self-acceptance might be more valuable and medicinal than heaping guilt upon yourself and waging war against your faults and inadequacies. You are getting more and more gentle and patient yourself, even imagining there is some kind of Divine Purpose to your wounds, weaknesses and stumblings, and that you just might be evolving and growing at a perfect pace, a pace that does not require pushing and forcing things. You are beginning to trust yourself as your own authority, to guide, serve and protect yourself. How can we do our job against ideas like that? It's like you don't need policing anymore! How do you think that makes us feel?
Also, whenever you used to have too much fun, we would remind you about all of the suffering in the world. Against that tactic you were defenseless, and it would crash and burn your party pretty fast. Nowadays your subconscious just shoots back, “All the more reason to have fun. Somebody’s got to maintain the joy vibration so people in pain are inspired to see there’s another way.”
So, you see, it seems that we at the Fun Police might be forced to go the way of Blockbuster Video stores and Radio Shack. The times are a’changing. Oh, and another thing, you've been meditating again, and that’s even more bad news for us. When you meditate, you go into a witness state, and just watches your thoughts and feelings pass by without judging them or trying to make them go away. Sometimes you even witnesses the Fun Police at work. When you do that, we can’t work at all, cause you fall under the jurisdiction of the Witness Protection Program.
Scott: I can see why you’re worried about your job.
Chief: And I’ve got to get right back to it. I see that you are starting to smile and laugh while you are writing this article. Shame on you!
Scott: Well, Chief, thank you for your time, and for your commitment to serve and protect me from too much fun.
“Why do dolphins leap joyful from the sea? Why do the morning birds sing? Why does the earth dance in trees and reach forests to the sun? Why do children play? The purpose of these realms is enjoyment. This is a recreational universe. When you remember the play that lifted your heart as a child, you will know the heart of God.” — Ken Carey, The Third Millennium
Scott Grace makes his living eluding the Fun Police, and helping others become successful fugitives as well. He is wanted in all fifty states and beyond for Creating the Peace, and Practicing the Presence of Love Without a License. Scott is the creator of the Spiritual Dr. Seuss for Adults Performances (over 2.5 million hits on YouTube) and Song Portraits (Custom Made Songs for Gifts That Honor and Touch the Heart Like No Other)
When you have too many things on your to-do list and you would rather procrastinate them all by surfing the web, consider these Divine Distractions:
See Scott Cut Loose as the Spiritual Dr. Seuss
Song Portraits: Giving the Best Gift Ever - Custom Made Songs For Someone Special
Scott's Outrageous Musical Comedy
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