Week 1: Peace

Peace:

--freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility--

As I have pondered on this word throughout the week I've focused on a couple different aspects.

The first is thinking about peace as the opposite of stress.

I'm one of those people who stresses like crazy. A good portion of the time I try to not let it show but I get stressed out to the point that my muscles ache and I make myself physically sick. 

As I have made an attempt to embody the word "peace" in my life I've tried out a few stress relieving methods.

When I feel pushed for time or late, I sing a calming song.

When I think so much my mind is going to explode from complicated secrets, I tell the truth.

When I feel overwhelmed by the amount of work I need to get done, I focus on one small aspect rather than my huge list.

When loud group gatherings reach the point of making me antsy, I take a break.

And it has worked-- I can temporarily relieve my stress level and get what I need to accomplished.

But peace is not just about being in a quiet spot and slowing things down.

Peace is also about accepting things for how they are and being okay with them.

Peace with ones self.

I have found a lot of peace this week in looking at aspects of my own and others' lives with a more mature perspective with an attitude of understanding rather than denial.

As we are accepting of circumstances and choices, we are able to stop fighting and surrender ourselves to a feeling of peace.

And who doesn't need a few minutes of that each day?