Friday - Peace
11:57 AM | 
Posted by
Pixie's Mommy
The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift. - Albert Einstein
Keeping Peace is a hard thing to come by these days. Sometimes it seems as if everything in life is conspiring against our having peace. The dog is barking, the trouble with work/career, you're stuck in traffic and you just had an argument with a dear friend. In the midst of all of this unrest, we wonder how peace is possible. The answer to this question depends in part on how you define peace.
One way to define peace is simply the absence of conflict. If you can resolve whatever conflict you are facing, then you can have peace. But when conflict rears its head, peace runs out the door, and it won't return until the conflict is settled. This notion of peace is a good start, but it is also fragile, because it is totally dependent on your circumstances.
A stronger definition of peace is one that allows you to rise above your circumstances and remain calm despite the storm raging around you. It is a sense of assurance that no matter what happens, things will eventually get better, and that somewhere, someone trustworthy is in control. This sort of peace is not dependent on circumstances. Rather, it allows you to see beyond your surroundings and fix your eyes on a point in the distance that allows you to hold steady on your course and ride out the storm. How can you find this sort of peace?
By putting your trust in the one person who transcends all of our trials and struggles: God. God is the only one who can truly offer us this gift. If we put our trust in Him, He will give us the strength and the endurance we need to weather any situation. God doesn't promise that life will be easy. In fact, if we truly follow Him, He says we will experience trials of many kinds.
But rather than let these problems lead us to despair, we can be assured that we are not alone, and that we are not struggling in vain. As the writer of the book of James in the Bible says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance" (James 1:2-3). You can place your trust in God by asking Him ( and your guides and Angels) to help you deal with these circumstances.
Take a moment and tell God about it. Tell Him you trust in His ability to help you deal with the situation, and ask Him for the strength and wisdom you need to get through it - as well as for her. Then wait expectantly to see what God will do. Your circumstances may not change immediately, but your level of peace and contentment will.
I suppose we all have our ways, our methods, of keeping strangely sane in a world that seems to be changing with every minute. It's hard to keep your spirits up, and it seems so surreal sometimes, to think that we have to work hard at staying positive.
The key to staying positive is to rely on what's inside instead. But keeping positive inside for many can mean facing their past, and what is embedded in them. Most of which includes negativity. I think positivity for many does mean what is inside, and realizing that inspiration and good moods are much more than partaking in the aspects of life that make us happy.
Expect temporary setbacks and failures on the road to accomplishment. By doing this, you won't crash and burn mentally or emotionally at the first sign of a real challenge. Because life is not fair, and is far from perfect. We have to coast along, we have no option there. But we can choose how we feel, and somewhat train ourselves to be positive amidst the most grim situations and circumstances.
By expecting that setbacks will occur, that bad things will happen, we can lose our mindset that life is supposed to be perfect, fair, good, and just. Life is all of those, but unfortunately it's up to us to find those aspects that make life so sweet. That is not what everyone wants to hear, I think, but it's the truth.
The easiest way through life is to "follow your guidance." When you feel the action in right, follow it. If you don’t feel comfortable about it, don’t. This may sound simple, but most people don’t follow their guides’ direction. They exercise "free will," which is our God-given gift, but with the exercise of free will comes a whole new set of challenges they might not otherwise have had to experience. This is not a bad thing; just think of it as an assignment for "extra credit."
Life is a process of change to progress and to regress. We need to fully acknowledge and realize that. Otherwise, we won’t feel fit anywhere we go and in anything we do. Biologically speaking, mature adults experience regression, while at the same time progressing career wise and psychologically.
We have been experiencing changes all our lives, thus one tiny step shouldn’t be magnified in a manner that hurts our potential to self-empowerment. Being able to acknowledge this and be willing to appreciate the change as a process of growing up and getting empowered would be the best attitude to help ease the pain of any kind of transition. Life is an odd thing. Being alive is not.
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Friday - Peace
Finding Inner Peace
First Wwe need a definition of Inner Peace--
Inner peace (or peace of mind) refers to a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress.
Now that Wwe have the definition perhaps Wwe need to know WHY inner peace is needed in life.
Here are 20 Reasons Why you Need Inner Peace
1. It improves your ability to concentrate.
2. It improves your ability to handle efficiently the daily affairs of life.
3. It increases your inner strength and power.
4. Its possession eliminates impatience, anger, nervousness and restlessness.
5. It helps manifesting patience, tolerance and tact.
6. It makes you feel centered, grounded and stable.
7. Being mentally and emotionally calm contributes to enjoying better sleep.
8. You gain the ability to be emotionally and mentally unaffected by what people think or say about you.
9. You gain the ability to eliminate stress, anxieties and worries.
10. You enjoy happiness and bliss.
11. You gain self mastery and self discipline.
12. It helps you relax your body and nerves.
13. The healing energies of the body work unhindered.
14. Being peaceful enables you not to be swayed by events, hardships and difficulties, and to maintain inner poise, clear judgment and common sense in such situations.
15. Inner peace eliminates negative, futile and restless thinking.
16. It improves your relationships with other people.
17. It makes life look brighter.
18. It increases creativity.
19. A peaceful mind improves the ability to meditate.
20. Possessing this ability opens the gateway to enlightenment and spiritual awakening.
Ok, so now that we have that covered, we need to start getting down and dirty and involved in obtaining Inner Peace. While shaia realizes that there are many ways to go about this and that maybe her readers have inner peace, it might be good to take a refresher course just in time for spring!
Inner peace is the most valuable thing that we can cultivate. Nobody can give us inner peace; at the same time it is only our own thoughts that can rob us of our inner peace. To experience inner peace we don't have to retreat to Himalayan cave; we can experience inner peace right now, exactly where we are. The most important criteria are to value the importance of inner peace. If we really value inner peace, we will work hard to make it a reality.
Finding Inner Peace in 10 Ways
Accept what is
There is only so much we can affect. What we cannot change, what we cannot influence no matter what, should not be a concern to us. This is what shaia notices with so many people, in that we focus and linger on things which we have no control over. Why worry about something that all the worrying in the world will not change? Why care about what other people think of us when we're not even sure what it is they are actually thinking? Once you open the blinds to this fact, and start accepting what is that you cannot change, you automatically relieve yourself of a mountain of stress and anxiety. It's like a huge weight has been lifted from your shoulders. Taking this path is following a road towards peace.
Meditate
If you do not meditate yet, you are missing out on a very important activity that can change your life. Meditating for 20 minutes daily can have an enormous impact in all areas of your life. Take a look at this page shaia wrote 100 Benefits of Meditation. If that doesn't convince you to start meditating, shaia doesn't know what will! If you have a lot on your mind and you feel like your thoughts are driving you crazy, meditation can help you find peace. Simply close everything, sit back, close your eyes, and clear your mind of every single thought. Focus on the emptiness. You will be surprised what a mere 20 minutes of meditation can do to turn things around for you. If you have trouble meditating, shaia would suggest getting a professional guided meditation CD, which will help you get used to this level of peacefulness.
Spend time in nature
We spend so much time confined in buildings of steel and concrete and bricks that we quickly forget where we come from. It is natural for us to be in nature, and this is why it feels so good and it is so peaceful when you take a walk in a park or bike on a trail in the forest. As she is typing this blog, she is looking out the window to this gigantic tree in back of the apartment. Watching its stillness, with the wind blowing through its branches calmly, it is a sight that not only inspires me, but that she finds peace within it. shaia hasn't blogged before about how she enjoys hiking and one of the reasons is that it brings me closer to nature. It is something you just can't experience in a car. If you feel overwhelmed, take a stroll outside where there are tons of trees and far from the city. Be there and just enjoy the sights, the sounds, and the peace.
Learn the power of a smile
Whenever you are laughing or smiling, something interesting happens. Not only does something happen on a chemical level to make you feel better, but it also stops all stress and negativity from entering your psyche. A simple smile can make such a difference. For example, the other day shaia mishandled a dish and it fell on the floor, breaking into pieces, creating a big mess. Now, shaia could have been angry with herself for being clumsy and thinking "here's another reason shaia's life sucks!" But she did the opposite. shaia began to smile and kind of make fun of herself for not being able to hold on to that plate properly. As she cleaned up the mess, there was no bitterness or anger. As a matter of fact, she did it with a smile on her face…she does it with peace. So whenever you find yourself in a similar predicament, just think of the silver lining, and don't be shy to poke fun at yourself. You will quickly realize that peace finds its way much more easily to you when you smile.
Think outwardly
What shaia means by this is that most of the time, we are so consumed within our own problems that we can no longer see the forest from the trees. Therefore, it helps to remind ourselves how big the world is. Take a moment and read up about some other countries, cultures, and the likes. Be aware that the world does not revolve around your problems. shaia finds that when she hears about a tsunami or an earthquake killing hundreds of thousands of people on the other side of the world, her problems aren't really "problems". Looking beyond ourselves is very important in finding peace and it leads shaia to her next point.
Care about others
You will never find peace by being self-consumed and only worrying about your own needs and wants. When you begin to genuinely care about other people, so much goodness comes right out. This only helps into solidifying your inner peace. It can be people close to you or pure strangers, but any act of kindness and goodwill eases your way towards peace. When shaia helps other people, she stops focusing on her so-called problems and realize that her life isn't so bad after all. This rids my entire being of all the stress and feelings of overwhelm. There is great peace and wisdom in thinking and caring about other people, which we are blind to when we are too deep within our own selfish ways.
Never lose hope
Hope is something you can never afford to lose. With hope you always have a path towards peace. Whenever we get too stressed out and overwhelmed within our own life, we forget that hope. We forget that the sun always shines after a rainy day, and that this is merely a bump in the road. shaia finds immense peace in just knowing, deep within her heart, that everything will be ok. With hope, shaia knows that whatever is seemingly terrible is only temporary and that soon enough, things will be just fine. This lifts off all of that negativity from her entire being, and she feels better pretty much instantly.
Embrace your beliefs
shaia is not one to pick or favor one belief system over another, so whatever it is that you believe in, embrace it with your entire being. Be within your faith 100% and peace will find its way into your heart. Now, we may all disagree on each other's beliefs but one thing we must all agree on is that having a solid, healthy faith is crucial in founding a proper conscience that helps into guiding us towards peace and wisdom. There is a reason why research has shown that people that are deeply devoted to their faith have a higher life expectancy and are less likely to have diseases such as cancer. This is because they experience more inner peace, which is important if you want to increase the quality of your life.
Keep learning
One thing that provides us with much stress in life is the fact that we always worry about not having all the answers. Just accepting that you do not know everything and that you are open to always keep learning is a tremendous step to take towards achieving inner peace. shaia finds great joy in learning all kinds of different things, and just being aware that shaia is growing as a person each and every day provides me with great feelings of peace. Accept that life is one big journey of never-ending learning and you will find yourself closer to experiencing true peace within yourself.
Live in the present moment
Most of the time, what we worry about is relating to something either in the past, or something that hasn't happened. Living in the present moment erases all such thoughts. Why worry about something in the past that we cannot ever change? (see point #1, accept what is). Why worry about something that we are not even sure will happen or not? This is why in the present moment, you find true inner peace. In the present moment, there are no problems and no concerns. There is only stillness, and it is within that stillness that you can uncover peace. shaia used to be such a person that worried all the time, to the point where she had trouble sleeping. Once shaia learned to live in the present moment, she stopped thinking about the past and any potential future, and just worried about being ever-present in each and every moment. shaia's life is definitely more peaceful since then!
Making up after an arguement
In the process of planning and writing this entry several thoughts and ideas went through shaia's head. Part of the reason that this entry was written is because about a month ago, Master and shaia had a HUGE disagreement and finally shaia has accepted that sometimes she needs to just learn to let the issue go and move on. This is how she goes about defusing the argument and making up after it. shaia hopes that many of you find this entry helpful, shaia and Master have found it has made a huge improvement to Oour relationship. Master is also not of the belief that He is ALWAYS right, but shaia admits that really, He does seem to be right most of the time, even if she doesn't want to admit it.
-What to do during and after an argument -
Written by: shaia{R}
Relationships are important in order for strong mental health. There have even been studies that show the positive health impacts regarding having a good relationship with others, not matter what the relationship may be. One of the strongest types of relationships is boyfriend/girlfriend, husband/wife, and lovers. In these types of relationships, the other person matters greatly to you.
In any relationship, there are bound to be arguments and disagreements. There have been arguments and disagreements among people dating back decades into history. Back then there was not as much to argue about as there is today, but there still happened to be couples that would break up, just not as often. They would kiss and make up more times than not. However, in present day people seem to get divorced without even trying to reconcile their differences.
There are things you can remember when you have an argument and you want to make up:
1. Time out – Take a time out from the argument for 30 minutes and go off into your own corners and cool down. Everyone knows that emotions are extremely high in an argument. Just remember, when a child is highly emotional the best thing is to put them somewhere to cool off, well the same thing goes for partners. So when emotions are high, one of the two needs to call this time out to keep things from getting out of control.
2. Do you laugh about the small things? – An example is when your wife throws something out of the refrigerator that you planned on eating, you need to ask yourself if wish to keep neutral ground and not cause an argument. You need to be sure you stop and think about what you are going to say before getting upset. This will allow you and your partner a chance to have a happy and drama free home.
3. When is it right to kiss and make up? – This is something that has been discussed for years. There are some who believe that couples must make up before going to bed. There are others who would rather sleep on it before continuing. Both arguments are reasonable. Those who believe the first thought are people who want to wake up fresh and start over again. They will talk as long as it takes to get things straightened out and then fall asleep together.
The other couples that wish to sleep on the feelings over night are of the belief that sitting and talking all hours of the night will not accomplish anything. They know their head will be clearer in the morning. In all actuality, the argument may actually be diminished.
Whichever side you are on really depends on who you are and your personality. You may end up in a relationship where you feel one way and your partner feels another. If this occurs, you will need to work out a compromise.
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