NOTE: I wrote this article on June 27th, 2010  prior to Goodbye for now, Dad

As many of you know, I’ve been through some shyt in my life. Of which I have come out on the other side full of inner-peace and happiness. Thus the tag line matching calamity with serenity: the ability to maintain inner-peace and serenity regardless of life’s circumstances.

This is where the rubber hits the road.

June 26th, 1:30 P.M.
I’m sitting next to my mother on a small couch as we wait for the surgeon. We’ve arranged the chairs in a semi-circle with my aunt, uncle, wife, and mother facing the empty chair where the surgeon will sit. Where he will explain the results of a biopsy they did of a lump on my fathers neck. I already know the results. The day before they found 5 tumors in his brain. Cancer. Logic tells me that’s not where it originated.

The surgeon comes in and sits down, he starts to explain the bad news. I watch his lips move and hear his voice and understand what he’s saying, but I’m not in my own body anymore. I’ve seen this movie before, it’s a sad one. Yet for some reason, no tears seem to come. I hear my mother say, “it’s in God’s hands now.” I think to myself, “it’s always been in God’s hands.” The thought brings some peace to my heart in the moment. I love my mother so much. We’re so alike. After the surgeon leaves I hear “it’s OK to break down now” as everyone else seems to let go of their emotions. I just sit there, watching… I’ve seen this movie before.

My mother and I walk next to my father as he’s wheeled back to his room. Still a little groggy from surgery, he asks “is it cancer?” I look him in the eye and answer “yes it is.” As of this writing we know the cancer originated in the lungs, that it is incurable, and that they are reviewing treatment options. The rest of this story is yet to be written.

I’ve cried some and reflected a lot the last few days. I love my dad and I know he loves me. The reality is, we’re all dying. Most of us just assume it will be later rather than sooner. None of us really know; so make each moment count. I haven’t cried that much, not as much as one would think. But then I realize he’s still here and I can talk to him on the phone anytime I want. Plus my parents only live an hour and a half away; I’m lucky.

These are the moments I’ll reflect on in the years to come. Did I do the right thing or is there anything I would have done differently? The gift is to be emotionally present and feel the diverse emotions entirely. At times I do feel a little numb or that I’m watching a sad movie, yet I am grateful for the ability to feel emotions at all. And again, I’m reminded that we’re all dying and that all my family members are still alive.

One priceless gift I’ve learned through my spiritual journey—especially now—is the ability to recognize the important moments in life: All of them.

I know deep inside that everything is going to be OK. I’m able to maintain a sense of inner-peace and serenity for the most part. There are short periods of time when I feel lost, gloomy, or confused emotionally. It’s at these times that I pray and meditate more, stay connected with my support group and remind myself this too shall pass. I know at times it’s really going to suck; although I can remind myself that right now in this moment, everything is OK.

This is the moment I’ve been training for; I just hope I’m ready coach.

Spiritual Training and Finding Peace in the Midst of Chaos

Law enforcement, fireman, military, medical professionals, etc., are subjected to intense physical and mental training. The goal is that when the time comes for them to perform, they intuitively know how to react in a way which may save the lives of their fellows or themselves.

Likewise, by putting deposits into our spiritual bank account we’re hoping to have something to draw upon when the crap hits the fan. As long as we’re breathing there’s crap out there just looking for a fan. Thus the importance and practicality of prayer and meditation. It truly is a way to help us become prepared for times of conflict within ourselves and the world around us.

Some may refer to this as being a “spiritual warrior.” I’ve decided I really don’t like that term; it’s a contradiction. The roots of my spiritual growth are love and forgiveness which doesn’t really jive with the word warrior.

Chaos can be anything that doesn’t fit into the little box we consider to be our manageable life. Maybe it’s emotions we’re not used to feeling or a change in our environment, career, or relationship. Whatever the chaos may be, there can be inner-peace since our happiness and serenity are not contingent on external sources or circumstances. This serenity can get thrown off for a short period of time when we’re faced with new emotions and/or challenges, but if we’ve done the work, we fall back on our training and intuitively know what to do.

It’s OK to fall apart; yet sometimes we need others to remind us of that. However, I don’t want to force emotions which aren’t quite there yet. Maybe I’m in shock, maybe I’m just grateful for the time I do get to spend with my dad. I just know that whatever I’m feeling in each moment, that’s OK and I need to feel it.

Emotions are neither good or bad, they’re just emotions. If you’re feeling a certain way (emotion), then it’s valid; never let anyone tell you otherwise. “You shouldn’t feel that way” is like telling a river it shouldn’t flow towards the sea. The key is learning how to identify the underlying cause. In most cases, the cause is fear stemming from the perception that we’re lacking love in some way; either of ourselves or from others.

If our spiritual training is routine, comfortable, and ingrained, it can provide us some security and comfort (peace) during stressful times. Others from outside may wonder why you’re not a wreck, or you may watch others become basket cases. Yet by falling apart, I’m making it all about me aren’t I? I don’t know, I get confused sometimes on what I should be feeling… I know, I just said emotions are neither good or bad right?

One realization I did have is it’s not my job to make my father right with God and his place in the world. That’s his job. My job is to be a son. A light of sunshine and life when others only see sadness. Although I must allow others to deal with the process the best they know how. As my good friend said, “death is both a sad and a beautiful process.” I can see that now, but we’ll see where I’m at in a few months.

Thanks for stopping by.

photo credit: h.koppdelaney

Matching Calamity with Serenity: Spiritual Training and Finding Peace in the Midst of Chaos is a post from: How To Be Happy
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Love yourself and love for others becomes automatic.

“My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.”
-Dalai Lama

While researching the term mindfulness as it relates to kindness, I came across an amazing little book titled Mindfulness in Plain English (Amazon *see bottom of post to find out how you can read it online for free) by Ven. Henepola Gunaratana. Henepola Gunaratana was born in 1927 and became an ordained Buddhist monk at the age of 12 in Sri Lanka and has been teaching and learning ever since; let’s just say he’s qualified.

Since mindfulness is an essential aspect of practicing kindness and meditation facilitates mindfulness, I figured what a better time and place to talk about mindfulness and the benefits of meditation. Plus I couldn’t wait to share all the amazing things I discovered in this great book!

Buddhism and Types of Meditation

Buddhism really addresses two major types of meditation, Vipassana (insight) and Samatha (concentration or tranquility). Neither of which I knew much anything about until reading Mindfulness in Plain English. I have always considered myself as one to practice meditation using some personal techniques; I work on my breathing and spend time in prayer… basically my theory on the subject is payer is asking for guidance and meditation is listening for the answer.

Mindfulness in Plain English looks at Vipassana meditation practice which translated means insight: a clear awareness of exactly what is happening as it happens.

From the book:

The Vipassana meditator uses his concentration as a tool by which his awareness can chip away at the wall of illusion which cuts him off from the living light of reality. It is a gradual process of ever-increasing awareness of the inner workings of reality itself. It takes years, but one day the meditator chisels through that wall and tumbles into the presence of light. The transformation is complete. It’s called liberation, and it’s permanent. Liberation is the goal of all buddhist systems of practice. But the routes to attainment of the end are quite diverse.

To truly be aware of how we’re treating others, we must be mindful of how we’re treating ourselves. Learning how to look at our life in this moment—reality—and find the kindness and beauty around us is essential in conveying kindness to others.

Vipassana meditation is not an attempt to forget yourself or to cover up your troubles. It is learning to look at yourself exactly as you are. See what is there, accept it fully. Only then can you change it.

The book starts off with the simple question: Meditation: Why Bother? It brought up some really interesting topics on why people even need to mediate; after all, it takes time, energy, and as the author Henepola describes “gumption.”

So why bother meditating?

Simple. Because you are human. And just because of the simple fact that you are human, you find yourself heir to an inherent unsatisfactoriness in life which simply will not go away. You can suppress it from your awareness for a time. You can distract yourself for hours on end, but it always comes back–usually when you least expect it. All of a sudden, seemingly out of the blue, you sit up, take stock, and realize your actual situation in life.

There you are, and you suddenly realize that you are spending your whole life just barely getting by. You keep up a good front. You manage to make ends need somehow and look OK from the outside. But those periods of desperation, those times when you feel everything caving in on you, you keep those to yourself.

We Spend the Majority of our Lives Chasing or Avoiding

“The essence of our experience is change. … Perpetual alteration is the essence of the perceptual universe.” Everything around us in life is changing; our friends, finances, etc. no two moments are ever exactly alike. Now, really think about this idea… we label these experiences, mental images, or moments as good, bad, or neutral and spend the majority of our time either rejecting bad or grasping towards good.

When we have a good experience we spend time and energy trying to hold onto it; fondling it, or figuring out how to re-create it. Conversely, we spend just as much time running away or trying to avoid those experiences labeled as bad. All the other stuff, or the majority of the experiences we perceive as neutral or boring, we pack away to look at or examine at another time—if ever—so we can get back to the drama and action of avoiding or pursuing.

The direct result of all this lunacy is a perpetual treadmill race to nowhere, endlessly pounding after pleasure, endlessly fleeing from pain, endlessly ignoring 90 percent of our experience. Than wondering why life tastes so flat. In the final analysis, it’s a system that does not work.

That precisely describes my life for so many years. Even though I would experience moments of joy and happiness, there was always this underlying current of dread and feeling of nothingness. I was constantly trying to achieve the next goal or challenge yet knew deep inside that regardless of what I accomplished I was never going to be truly satisfied. During moments of happiness I would often experience guilt for feeling happy in a world full of suffering.

Suffering

The saying goes Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional. Does that mean all these people in the world are choosing to suffer?

Suffering is a big word in Buddhist thought. It is a key term and it should be thoroughly understood. The Pali word is ‘dukkha’, and it does not just mean the agony of the body. It means the deep, subtle sense of unsatisfactoriness which is a part of every mental treadmill. The essence of life is suffering, said the Buddha. At first glance this seems exceedingly morbid and pessimistic. It even seems untrue. After all, there are plenty of times when we are happy. Aren’t there? No, there are not. It just seems that way. Take any moment when you feel really fulfilled and examine it closely. Down under the joy, you will find that subtle, all-pervasive undercurrent of tension, that no matter how great the moment is, it is going to end. No matter how much you just gained, you are either going to lose some of it or spend the rest of your days guarding what you have got and scheming how to get more. And in the end, you are going to die. In the end, you lose everything. It is all transitory.

Sounds pretty bleak, doesn’t it? Luckily it’s not; not at all. It only sounds bleak when you view it from the level of the ordinary mental perspective, the very level at which the treadmill mechanism operates. Down under that level lies another whole perspective, a completely different way to look at the universe. It is a level of functioning where the mind does not try to freeze time, where we do not grasp onto our experience as it flows by, where we do not try to block things out and ignore them. It is a level of experience beyond good and bad, beyond pleasure and pain. It is a lovely way to perceive the world, and it is a learnable skill. It is not easy, but is learnable.

That’s great news if you ask me and something I’ve learned to some extent; that in this moment everything is OK. Learning to harness the power of now is an amazing and powerful skill. Most suffering that we feel is created in our minds either from fear of something in the future or regret or guilt of something past; right here and now everything is essentially OK.

Finding happiness is something we all seek, but as I’ve discussed before it is impossible to obtain everything we desire and that we think will make us happy. So the only alternative left is to change our thinking. Granted it is a difficult task and may take years if not a lifetime, but surely we would prefer something difficult as to attempting the impossible. In order to change our thinking and make radical changes in our lives we must have a realistic view of ourselves. A view of how we are now in this and every moment possible. That is where the power of meditation and mindfulness come into play.

“What you are now is the result of what you were. What you will be tomorrow will be the result of what you are now. The consequences of an evil mind will follow you like the cart follows the ox that pulls it. The consequences of a purified mind will follow you like your own shadow. No one can do more for you than your own purified mind—no parent, no relative, no friend, no one. A well-disciplined mind brings happiness”.
-From the Ancient Buddhist text Dhammapada

Meditation is a way of clearing the mind. To rid our minds of all the garbage and trash that skews our perception of reality. Meditation is a mental and emotional house cleaning. By taking out the garbage we can get into the moment and be mindful of how we’re interacting with the universe.

Mediation benefits the meditator by helping them understand themselves and thus cultivating the most radical and significant change one can experience; a change from within. The more we understand and cultivate compassion within ourselves, the better we are at expressing it towards others. As we love ourselves, love for others becomes automatic and the kinder we become. We become kinder because we need less externally as we demand less of ourselves and others. Our expectations are reduced as are resentments and fears. We feel love for others because we understand them; we understand them because we have learned to understand ourselves.

Meditation is the beginning of cultivating new thoughts; like clearing the land before planting and nourishing a seed that will later bare fruit and nourishment. Meditation helps clear the mind of unsalable goods and inventory that is no longer needed or provides any lasting value in our business of life.

The purpose and thus main benefit of meditation is personal transformation.

If you have never tried or considered meditation, I strongly encourage you to do so. If you are not sure if it will work for you… well, the only way to figure that out is to try. Maybe you’re afraid of what you’ll discover? Maybe you like living in a constant state of aversion or pursuing, if that is the case… well, I’m assuming it’s not if you’ve read this far. If so, I encourage you to take a look at Mindfulness in Plain English. It is the first real practical guide I’ve discovered on how to meditate.

Here’s just one example of something I got from the book; why exactly the breath is so important to mediation. As I’m sure you experience, the mind cannot focus without a mental object. Whether its images of the past or something that we plan on doing in the future, we always have an image or object running around through our minds. So in order to truly get into the current moment, we must concentrate on something that is always there in each and every moment. What do we have readily available to us at all times? Exactly! Our breath! This book lists half a dozen different ways to concentrate on your breathing.

Even if you have been meditating for years, you may find this book really engaging and refreshing. Henepola Gunaratana’s writing style is amazingly simple and quite humorous at times as well. Such as when explaining the lowest level of morality as simple adherence to a set of rules set by someone else. “Even a trained chimpanzee could do it if the rules were simple enough and he was smacked with a stick every time he broke one. This level requires no meditation at all. All you need are the rules and somebody to swing the stick.”

Whether you’ve been mediating for years or especially for those who are just getting started, this book will certainly get you on your way to the amazing benefits of meditation.

*You can you read Mindfulness in Plain English online here. However, if you’re like me and enjoy having a physical copy, you can purchase a paperback copy of the newer expanded version.

Here is a list of the Chapters:
Chapter 1 (Meditation: Why Should I Bother?)
Chapter 2 (What Meditation Isn’t)
Chapter 3 (What Meditation Is)
Chapter 4 (Attitude)
Chapter 5 (The Practice)
Chapter 6 (What To Do With Your Body), General Rules, Clothing, Traditional Postures
Chapter 7 (What To Do With Your Mind)
Chapter 8 (Structuring Your Meditation), Where To Sit, When To Sit, How Long To Sit
Chapter 9 (Set up Exercises), The Threefold Guidance, Universal Loving-Kindness
Chapter 10 (Dealing With Problems)
Chapter 11 (Dealing With Distractions, I)
Chapter 12 (Dealing with Distractions, II)
Chapter 13 (Mindfulness – Sati)
Chapter 14 (Mindfulness Versus Concentration)
Chapter 15 (Meditation in Everyday Life)
Chapter 16 (What’s in It for You)

photo credit: Bindaas Madhavi

Mindfulness and the Benefits of Meditation is a post from: How To Be Happy
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I came across a post recently (8 Unconventional Ways to De-stress and Release Tension) at Zen Habits by guest poster Jai Kai of SharingSuccess.tv. He lists some actions for de-stressing like finger painting, stripping down your living room, or dancing in the rain; which I think are brilliant, especially since I am a big fan of action! However, for me, I need more than just a temporary distraction to really de-stress.

So here are my 9 ways of de-stressing:

1. God Box

Find a nice wooden box, old penny bank, or anything you can drop notes into. When something is weighing on you mind, write it down and drop it in the box and let it go! The most amazing thing will happen; months or years later you can go back and review the notes and realize how amazingly well everything turned out.

When your head starts to worry,
And your mind just can’t rest,
Put your thoughts down on paper,
And let God do the rest…

If you don’t have a box, don’t worry, just write it down. I do this a lot at night when I’m having trouble getting to sleep due to a racing mind. I get up (action) and go right it down on paper; not necessarily a solution, just what I’m worrying about. Then I know it’s there and I can let it go.

2. Prayer

Prayer is asking for guidance.

3. Meditate

Meditation is quieting the mind and listening for the answer.

4. Initiate a Perspective Adjustment

Things happen around me, not to me. I have to remind myself to stop making everything about me!

It seems the only time I get really stressed is while driving. That has increased over the past few years as my commute time has increased. I heard a friend say once, “If I’m getting upset while driving, I’m driving selfishly.” I like that.

Last week I announced to a group of like-minded individuals that the next time I feel like flipping someone the bird in traffic, I’m pulling off the road and forcing myself to just sit and watch traffic for 10 minutes. I’ll let you know how that goes.

5. Running

Running outside with nature is always a spiritual experience for me. Some of my prized moments of inspiration have come while running, like the day I decided to propose to my wife.

6. Playing/Writing Music

Whenever I feel really stressed, trying to express myself through playing and writing lyrics always helps.

7. Call Someone

This is one of the hardest ones to do (for me) yet the most effective. There’s always someone to call who may need to know someone cares about them.

8. Hold A Child

See #4

9. Random Acts of Kindness

This idea again goes along with #4. No matter how bad or stressed I think my life is, there’s always someone that has it worse off then me. If you find yourself stressed, sit down and come up with something nice you can do for someone else. Maybe shovel the snow off their sidewalk or send them the perfect card letting them know how much they mean to you. To reap the full benefit, do it anonymously.

The simple cure for stress and tension is gratitude. However you find it, just find something to be grateful for.

It is truly amazing how God and the universe works. When I woke up this morning and started thinking about this post about stress, I was full of excitement. My wife and I are in the process of trying to sell our house, which is ready and looking good to show! We met with a builder the first of this week to go over plans for a house we want to build; small but new and our own little dream home. We had gotten pre-approved and were scheduled to meet the builder again tomorrow to submit part of the deposit so we could get the process officially started. I found out on my way home from work that there’s a problem with “the process.” We’ve went over the numbers dozens of time to make sure we would be OK and living within our means. Our calculations show we would be fine and have some room to spare; we just wouldn’t get to travel every six months like we have been. But now it look as if we aren’t going to be building our little dream home after all. At least not now.

At first I was a little disappointed, but I realize it’s all going to work out the way its supposed to. If any of you are familiar with Lisis over at Quest For Balance, she’s been a real inspiration in taking some risks and living life to the fullest. Especially in her adventure of selling their home and setting out on their quest of an authentic life: Adventure: Taking a Giant Leap of Faith.

In all honesty, I know our dream home is wherever we are. We’re blessed beyond belief and I know in my heart we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be. Maybe we’re suppose to keep traveling….

Although as I type this my wife is over punching on the 10 key, so we’ll see what happens tomorrow.

Spiritual Lane Change: 9 Ways to De-stress is a post from: How To Be Happy
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“The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, or not to anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
-Buddha

Today, I am a spiritual warrior, fending off anything that threatens my spiritual fitness. My enemies are anxiety, depression, regret, resentment, and fear. Although some of these can be helpful at times—like the fear of cutting off my finger while using a skill saw—mostly they threaten my spiritual zen. When I’m anywhere but in the moment, I’m of no use to myself or others. I have discovered some actions that help me stay in the moment.

Stop and Count Your Blessings

Early in my journey, I knew nothing about “living in the now.” Quite contrary, most of my efforts were spent avoiding it. I was not equipped with the tools of learning to live for today. I dreaded the future and the wreckage of my past. I learned during that time to stop, look around, and reaffirm to myself that right then, in that moment, everything was OK. I still practice this today. I mean really take it all in, looking at where I am physically and who is around me, that I am safe, alive, and have basic things like food and shelter. This process helps me get back in gratitude where I am closer to the now then the depression of the past or anxiety of the future.

Writing a gratitude list is one way I use to count my blessings. Stopping to write down on a piece of paper things that I am grateful for is a great way of getting back into the moment.

Spiritual Development

Spirituality is different for everyone. However, at some point there’s a belief system that comes into play and influences how we live our lives. Mine is pretty simple, I believe that I’m not the center of the universe and that spiritual development is about humility and love. Part of that for me includes believing in a power outside of myself; which is constantly evolving so I avoid trying to define it.

Staying spiritually connected is difficult at times, one thing I do is look for signs of guidance. For instance, paper-clips are God’s way of saying to me, “hey, I’m thinking of you and you’re right where you’re suppose to be.” It may sound silly, but it works. You’d be surprised at how many paper clips you can find in all sorts of places. Whenever I see a paper clip laying on the ground, I pick it up, thank God for reminding me of his presence and my insignificance in the master plan, and place it in my pocket. They always seem to show up at the right time. When I get home I place them in a jar. Right there, sitting on a shelf in front of our kitchen window, is a reminder that I am loved and watched over.

Being of Service

Picking up the phone and calling a friend and asking them if there’s anything they need is a good way of getting into the moment. I spend a lot of time with others who are on similar journeys, whether just listening or sharing my story. Everyone has something to give, have you struggled with something and found a solution? Try sharing it with someone else.

Meditation

I meditate in many different ways, but one type I can do anywhere is breathing. When feeling anxious or spiritually unfit, I like to stop and really concentrate on my breathing. Breathing in God and out self works wonders for me. Also visualizing things which I want in my life. Similar to the secret law of attraction which then must be followed by action towards those goals.

Reading

I love to read. I’ve found Emmet Fox’s The Sermon on the Mount is a great book for learning how to live life. Some of my other favorites are The Five People You Meet in Heaven, and The Greatest Miracle in the World.

Staying in the moment is easier said then done, but with practice, it does get easier. What techniques do you use to stay in the moment?

Photo credit: h.koppdelaney

Staying in the moment is a post from: How To Be Happy
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“We can be sure that the greatest hope for maintaining equilibrium in the face of any situation rests within ourselves.”
—Francis J. Braceland

Inner peace is not something I simply woke up with one day. Finding inner peace came out of necessity from years of living a life run on self-will. The result of which were failed relationships, low self-esteem, self-destructive behavior, never knowing how to be happy, and depression. In a moment of desperation, I was forced to abandon my life as I knew it and ask for help. Through a spiritual program and accepting the help from a fellowship of caring, unselfish, and loving people who had something I wanted—serenity and inner peace—I found what I had always been looking for. The belief in a power greater than myself, in my case a loving God as I understood him/her, and a loving relationship with myself. In my time of desperation, I did not know this was what I was looking for, I simply realized I did not want to die and was willing to do whatever it took to relieve the pain.

Inner peace and true serenity is something I cultivate on a daily basis. It is always contingent on my spiritual condition. Getting to a place where I am able create it, or rather let it manifest itself within me, is difficult yet life changing. Below is a list of five ways I continue to cultivate inner peace on a daily basis.

1. Write a gratitude list

I like to get out a piece of paper and write down the things I’m grateful for. This can be anything from the ability to walk, feel the cold winter air, friends and family, or realizing I’m doing the best I can do today. I usually come up with at least ten.

2. Pray and Meditate

I pray every morning before I leave the house and at night before going to bed. When praying, I keep it simple. In the morning I ask for guidance for what God would have me do today, and the strength and confidence to carry it out. By asking for guidance in the morning, I’m better prepared to recognize opportunities throughout the day where I can be of service to someone. In the evening I say thanks and ask for Grace to be in the lives of those who may need it. I try and use specific names of people I know are struggling, it makes it more personal.

While praying at night, I also do sort of a quick moral inventory. I review my day and try to recognize areas in which I could have done better. These areas mostly include interactions and/or conversations with others. Are there areas I could improve on? Do I need to make any amends? Are there things I need to follow up on?

I believe praying is asking for guidance and meditation is listening for the answers. To meditate, I sit quietly and breath in and out slowly. While inhaling I think to myself “God” and “self” while exhaling. I try and do this for 10 or 15 long breaths concentrating on my breathing. There’s a lot more to meditating for me which I discuss in a little more detail in a previous post In the midst of winter: finding my invincible summer.

3. Reading

I read a lot of feel good books. Some of my favorites are: The Greatest Miracle in the World by Og Mandino, The Sermon on the Mount: The Key to Success in Life by Emmet Fox, Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller, Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality by Donald Miller, Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom.

Many of these I revisit, especially The Sermon on the Mount and The Greatest Miracle in the World. Both of these are packed full of ways to find inner peace.

4. Running

Putting on my headphones with some good music and going for a run is always spiritual for me and brings me to a peaceful place. There’s something about being in nature that brings peace and a bit of humility.

5. Writing

Writing for me comes mostly in the form of music. No matter what is weighing on my mind, sitting down with my guitar and attempting to put into words what I’m feeling helps me find inner peace. This could also be considered meditation.

Inner peace comes when I accept the consequences of being myself.

5 Ways of Finding Peace Within is a post from: How To Be Happy
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In the midst of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.
—Albert Camus

While sitting in the hot tub a few nights ago, I discovered a wonderful way to meditate. Meditation is a process I like to practice when I’m feeling the internal winter that sometimes creeps into my soul. By “winter” I’m referring to a gentle nudge of my serenity. Ninety percent of the time this feeling is based in fear. Fear of loosing something I think I have or not getting something I think I want. By quieting my mind, I can listen for the answers.

I like to SCUBA dive. Diving is one of the most spiritual experiences I engage in. Being submerged in another world full of beautiful creatures is truly amazing and nurturing for the soul. So here’s my process of meditation which works for me:

• Find a comfortable position
• Close my eyes and concentrate on breathing. I tend to think “God” or “Spirit” when breathing in and “self” when breathing out.  This helps me relieve myself of “me” as much as possible
• I imagine I’m drift diving over a beautiful reef in crystal blue waters. Drift diving is as close to flying as I’ve ever come, you simply ride along the current and float over the reef.
• As I’m drifting along looking at all the beautiful sea life, I concentrate on as much detail as I can, trying to make out the different types of coral and schools of fish.
• If something comes into my mind—work, school, finances—I try and let it float by. If it keeps returning I have to do something to get it out of my mind. If the thought is school, I picture one of my text books, again concentrating on as much detail as possible. I must find something that visually represents the thought. Once I have a clear image of it, I imagine the object is floating over head and beginning to block out the sun and is disturbing my beautiful dive. As the object begins to block the sun, I watch it move slowly down from above and right in front of my face. I then imagine the object beginning to morph into a colorful fish. Like a bright yellow angel fish or something I’ve seen before under the ocean. As the object morphs it begins to descend past me towards the reef below. I then watch as the fish begins to swim around some rocks and coral. I then let the current take me on down to the next coral head or item of interest.

I try and continue this process for as long as possible, usually around 20-30 minutes. Afterward I feel refreshed and revitalized. This is when answers come to me. My mind is clearer and ready for guidance. Its at these times when I find my internal summer. The feeling deep inside that no matter what happens, everything is going to be OK. True serenity.

In the midst of winter: finding my invincible summer is a post from: How To Be Happy
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