"Nobody can bring you peace but yourself."

“If you are depressed you are living in the past if you are anxious you are living in the future,
if you are at peace, you are living in the present.”
Lao Tzu

by Skip Cohen
​
Sunday Morning Reflections are always the same in that they're miles away from topics like business and always a little more personal than most of what I write about. At the same time, I hope it's relatable. We're all stress magnets at various levels and times. It's that stress that beats us up, challenges our creative spirit, and simply interrupts our internal peace.

I'll always be a work in progress, but as I've gotten older, I've realized more and more just how much control I really have every minute of the day. There's that old line: "Don't sweat the small stuff - it's ALL small stuff." I'm older than most of you, so you'll just have to trust me that it's true.

My life is outrageously simple. It's me, Sheila, and the two pups. We have a small number of close friends, a couple of nice neighbors, and our kids are only an hour away. I love my career, most of the time. On Saturdays, we all head to the farmer's market, then go out for breakfast and spend the afternoon doing little things around the house and floating on a raft. The biggest challenge is deciding what Alexa will be playing outside and throughout the house. 

After years of stressing, I've accepted that I can't undo mistakes from the past, and I have minimal control over the future except when it comes to my health which includes getting a decent night's sleep...EVERY night. That's it - a simple, peaceful existence, having learned how appropriate the two quotes below really are:

"Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.”
Dalai Lama

“Nobody can bring you peace but yourself.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

​I wish I had a better focus on the ingredients for inner peace when I was younger, but I can't change that. But I can appreciate the way my life is today, and my definition of success hasn't changed over the last ten years - it's about waking up with a smile on your face every morning.

“Don't search for anything except peace. Try to calm the mind.
​Everything else will come on its own."
Baba Hari Das

​Here's my point...we're all victims of our own stress. Whether it's dealing with the past, worrying about the future, or just missing the present - like the quote above - everything else will come on its own. So, stay focused on your smile muscles, whatever your heart tells you, and love your life. And if you don't love your life now, what will it take to change it?

Wishing you a day filled with peace, plenty of love, and time with the people (and critters) you love the most. Eleven-second therapeutic hugs should always be applied, and remember to appreciate how unique you are. 

Happy Sunday...or Monday on the other side of the world.