Your Peaceful Journey

Are you a hiker? Our immediate family doesn’t hike, although we did walk around the block a few times last year. Earlier this week I heard comments that prove we’re not hiker-types. One child stated how hiking generally lacked a competitive element and our other child didn’t see the point because there’s no score. Sure, you could add a point system and race to the top of a mountain, but that kind of defeats the purpose.

Does the fresh air, the challenging terrain, and wildlife motivate you to tackle the trails? If I were to hike, I’d do it for the incredible views. Have a look:

                                                        https://youtu.be/fHCemviY06Y   
Wake up! I'm sure the sights and sounds sent you into doze mode. Wouldn’t you want to explore this area? Lace up a pair of hiking boots and trek through the wilderness to experience  this gorgeous scenery in New Zealand. We’re so busy multi-teching (my word for multi-tasking with technology), and rushing in a dozen different directions that we forget how to appreciate the “minor” moments. If hiking doesn't bring you peace, what activity does?

Modified and reposted from March 2014   

Grabbing Your Peace

Young people enjoy constant movement and entertainment—in short—non-stop fun. As a child, Sundays shut down my neighborhood. Occasionally, an adult crept from their front door into their car, but the kids stayed hidden, and the streets empty. During the winter, you might have heard melting snow. Silence ruled the day. Bored and restless, it was my most least favorite day of the week. 


Flash forward several decades and I’m loving my Sundays. I enjoy the pausing, the exhaling, and the napping, and group naps add to the fun. Picture several family members watching TV as the cat nestles nearby. Before long, everyone’s snoozing while the world’s cares drift away. And that’s the thing. Sunday’s a time for relaxing and casting aside worries. We’d be wise to do it before this happens: 

                                         https://youtu.be/FkiDh3tgaSk                          

 We often go-go-go when we’re made to go-sleep-repeat. We’re not designed to constantly push through fatigue, and ignoring our natural make-up results in illness, not peace. Along with napping, how else would you spend a restful Sunday?      

Not Happier

If someone asked you to name things that make you happy, you might say eating a big bowl of chocolate ice cream, sleeping in on a weekday morning, or spending a sunny day at the beach. All three can make us smile—temporarily. Once the ice cream disappears, the day’s challenges begin, and the beach trip ends, our happy feelings may subside. We’re left to chase the next wonderful moment, which might be a perfect morning cup of coffee, a throw for the ice cream chills, or plans for a return trip to the beach. Experience, rinse, repeat. Our emotions fluctuate with the moment’s twists and turns. Do any of these experiences offer endless happiness? 

                                         https://youtu.be/sJ8xZtxXLc8

Adventures end, relationships experience ups and downs and few situations provide endless happiness. Maybe it’s better to focus on peace and contentment, since they help us weather whatever comes our way. So, what’s the best way to gain peace and contentment?

Lighten Your Load

When we're at the cash register, we expect the salespeople to greet us, maybe comment on the sale price or compliment our purchase choices. That’s especially true during the holiday season when the retail industry wants to ring up every possible sale. So imagine my surprise when the cashier looked up midway through my check out and said, “You look like you’re in a bad mood.” Pardon me?

Maybe she misinterpreted my expression to seeing her appear from behind the crowed line of customers and rush up to the register, forgetting to say anything until midway through my transaction. I’m sure she felt stressed. Projection is real. In any case, I wasn’t in a bad mood, even after she kept giving me several odd glances. I probably should have asked if she felt well. I think my salesperson needed a vacation day. At least the interaction wasn’t like this one:

                                         https://youtu.be/4Yq-2Mo6coU

I can’t confirm if the product mentioned will help your situation, but I do know stress makes people more likely to say and do unusual things. Given the hectic season, don’t overlook the importance of taking a break from all the hubbub. When you take your important rest, how will you spend that special time?         

      

Peaceful Power

I’m a pseudo-meteorologist. You probably don’t hear that confession very often.  My mother said that, as a child, I always asked about the weather conditions. At my house, my husband or kids seem to think I have the inside scoop on the weather. Almost daily one of them asks, “What’s the weather today?” and “How hot is it going to be?” Maybe it’s because they catch me listening to the forecast about twice a day, and more often when a big storm is predicted. I just like to be prepared for whatever comes.

Although I dread getting caught in bad weather, that’s exactly what happened last week. Driving home, a curtain of wind and rain slammed across the windshield. I don’t usually pull over during storms but the blinding rain obscured everything. I couldn’t see and I couldn’t pull over. The curvy road offered no shoulder for the faint – hearted. Fortunately only small branches littered the street and nothing fell into my path. After the storm, numerous split tree trunks testified to the storm’s strength.

A tornado‘s power is amazing, and one videographer managed to capture beauty amidst chaos. Take a look:

                                         https://youtu.be/Crpit2DNtw4

Despite a tornado’s massive size and destructive power, it can also create a majestic and tranquil scene. When you find yourself caught up in life’s storms, how do you reclaim peace? 

Modified from August 2011

The Path to Peace

 After pulling a solitary stick of gum from its package, I heard a young person sigh and say, “Last piece of happiness.”  If happiness came in a stick of gum, we’d grab onto it and never let go. How different life would be if we only needed a simple stick of gum to make us happy. Some people think happiness is just that easy to obtain. Take a look:

                                         https://youtu.be/sJ8xZtxXLc8

Searching for what makes us happy sometimes leads to everything except happiness. So many people want the easiest path. As the rate of heroine usage climbs, we see the problems with quick-fix tactics. Closing the door on short-term fixes forces us to focus time and money in healthier experiences that bring long-term contentment. They say happiness is fleeting, but joy is eternal. What are you willing to invest in to gain long-term peace and joy?

Stressed Out?

Since experts recommend we minimize our stress levels and treat ourselves to something special once in a while, I obeyed their advice and ordered a piece of jewelry through an Avon-like home-based business. When I held up my arm to display the bracelet, one of the kids asked if I burned myself again. Well, that spoke volumes. First of all, that only happened once. Okay, maybe twice as I rushed to slide food into the oven. Take my advice, that’s not the time to rush. Mistakes happen when we rush. Sometimes they’re painful results that last a brief time, and other times the consequences stick with us like a scar. In either situation, we experience this: 

                                     https://youtu.be/bdAsm2QCvdo

He said a mouthful. Have you ever been on the road and spotted the driver who tailgates and weaves through traffic like a bully? Invariably, that car ends up at the light alongside everyone else. There’s a lesson there. Most of our rushing causes unnecessary stress, making an awful impact on our mental and physical health. If you’re tired of rushing from point A to point B, what will you do to live stress-free?     

(Not) A Walk in the Park

When did Alaska get so popular? Cable TV airs several shows featuring the state and its newest residents who, by moving there, prove they don’t always need neighbors or indoor restrooms. While we complain about polar vortexes and single digit temperatures, they’re fine with sub-zero weather. If it’s a cold wilderness you want, Alaska’s the place to go. Alaskan winters are tough, but people tolerate them for the freedom and solitude of peaceful living. Life in the wilderness isn’t for everyone, but for resilient folks, it’s perfect. Here's someone's version of paradise:

                                         http://youtu.be/HVE2BdypnTI

The gentleman makes living alone in Alaska look easy.  Once the trend catches on and hordes of people abandon their busy lifestyles for an isolated log cabin, you’ll see shows like “Buying North Dakota and ”Buying Wyoming.” If summer breezes give you goose bumps, you probably won’t relocate to Alaska. But when you want a bit of solitude, where do you go?       

Living a Life Without…

“I can’t live without books!” I heard someone say that last week. Raise your hand if you agree, or maybe you’d call that an overreaction if you compare books to items like food, clothing, and shelter. Actually lots of people love books. I know someone who used to fall asleep at night surrounded by them, and I know another person who buys twenty second-hand books at a time, reads them, and then heads back to the store for more. Maybe books are life-sustaining.

Here’s a lady who found more than a few things she could live without:

                                          http://youtu.be/lDbrUk2xYBo

Your heart rate must be slower after all of that tranquility. See how peaceful it feels living in an uncluttered environment? And did you see the collection of books? I’m sure they’re book lovers, too.

Mrs. Lorence only kept the items she considered basic necessities, but I don’t see us giving up most of the things she dumped. She eliminated electricity, so there’s no refrigerator, which also means no ice cream. That’s where I draw the line. Count me out!

What about you? What can’t you live without?         

Want a Time-Out?

My family still has a problem with my selection of television shows. I don’t know why they complain about programs on Egyptian pharaoh tombs or balk at documentaries on the ferocious honey badger and how it got its name. Who wouldn’t want to see a show that describes how WWII ended? Oh, cable! So many stations, so little time.

Growing up, we had access to about ten TV channels. Three channels could hold my attention all evening. After school I watched cartoons, then switched to a different station that aired game shows like Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy, and just before bedtime I caught the sitcoms on a third channel. Today if a TV show doesn’t grab our attention in the first fifteen seconds—flip—we’re channel surfing to the next one. We want quick clips and constant blips of action. How much have our attention spans have decreased over the past twenty years?

During high school I had the opportunity to attended Quaker church services.  Instead of singing and listening to a sermon, we sat for forty minutes in silence until one or two people stood up to share a brief, thought-provoking comment. Even back then it wasn’t easy to stay still for the entire time. Watch how this guy handles it:  

                                         http://youtu.be/GxbDuyJ4o6s

We haven’t had a test in a long time. Try this one. Sit for twenty minutes with no talking, reading or moving, no listening to music, television or a friend. Once you’re done, tell us how it felt. How might this experience benefit you?                                      

Fa-La-La-La-I’m beat!

Let me officially announce the start of the Christmas shopping season. I know—I’m too late.! Sooner than necessary, the music plays, the decorations sparkle and Santa sits on his throne. Traffic snarls make us late and the never-ending stream of stores catalogs fill our mailboxes. Newspapers bulge with coupon offers and the frenzy to get your dollars will continue unabated until well past the last gift-wrapping party. The shopping season flows well into January with the long lines for Christmas gift returns, New Year’s Day sales and opportunities to purchase a little something nice for yourself.

Thanks goodness online shopping allows us to shop at two a.m. in our pajamas, if we want. That’s efficiency.  Of course, it also makes more time for hosting and decorating, creating an even more frenzied holiday season. I’m tired just thinking of it all. Shouldn’t we slow down? A night spent camping out in front of a store doesn’t count. Watch this:

It’s time to stop and smell the poinsettias, admire the sun glinting off the snow (it’ll be here again soon) and enjoy a warm beverage by the fire.  This year let’s break the Christmas shopping insanity cycle.  How will you modify your holiday season to grab a few more moments of peace?