Noun. “There was great delight in the child’s eyes when she saw the prettily wrapped package underneath the Christmas tree.”
Adjective. “This meal was simply delightful!”
Verb. “I delight in knowing you.”
But how about “causing light” for a definition?
Delight. It’s a simple, safe word. Not overly expressive, but with a positive connotation of pleasure and approval.
But could it be something more?
Someone recently pointed out to me that “light” appears in “delight.” But how is that light shared or conveyed in our delight?
There is a much less common word that is similarly used: denude. It means to strip bare or deprive. Often in reference to a forest. De-nude…to make nude.
That got me thinking: what about de-light? Can it mean to illuminate, to give brightness, to make light?
The emotion of delight gives us an opportunity to impact those around us. In our own feelings of joy and pleasure, we have the chance to seed, enhance, and nurture the feelings of others. Joy is often said to be infectious, as is laughter.
What of delight? Might the “light” that we are feeling be imparted to others? Might our own expressions of approval and valuation be an impetus to others?
I think it can be.
But we often hold delight for ourselves; we are simply delighted, content to feel and acknowledge our delight–without regard to how we may also help birth delight in others.
A man once said, “I write so that my joy may be made complete.” In sharing our delight, it becomes more full…but it also has the possibility of creating joy and delight in others. Delight can be infectious, if we invite others in, if we are free in the expression of our own experience of delight.
Admit and Explore 