The Duty of Delight

Dorothy Day said, “We are called to the duty of delight.” I’ve always considered delight to be intermittent and fleeting, but by using the word “duty,” Day suggests that it is something we need to cultivate and practice intentionally.

We need delight because it fosters gratitude, and we need gratitude because it leads to humility and perspective, and we need humility and perspective because they instill wisdom, and wisdom leads to the good life: contentment, trust, patience, and peace.

It may seem like a difficult task to find delight in troubled times, but even when we ourselves and our world are struggling, the birds continue to serenade us, strawberries still taste sweet, people continually create art and music, and we are surrounded by humor and acts of kindness. Our duty is to adjust our focus so we see the delightful things of the world clearly. That requires the humility to value what might seem small or insignificant and the perspective of remembering that our earthly life is short and the world doesn’t revolve around us.

We all have many duties, but the duty of delight is not burdensome—it is the way of Christ, who said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Mt 11:28-30). The yoke of delight in creation that we share with God does indeed lead us to rest for our souls. The more people take up this duty, the more peaceful our world will become.