Editor's Note: This month marks the last installment of Jan Lundy's "Pockets of Peace." We end this series with tremendous gratitude to Jan for sharing her wisdom and gentle spirit with us, and with a sense of excitement about what's coming next! Has Pockets of Peace touched you? Please let us know with a comment, or you can send a personal note to Jan. Whenever I think about inner peace, believe it or not, I think of Roseanne Rosanna Dana. She was a wild-haired, quirky character from the television series “Saturday Night Live, ” unforgettably portrayed by Gilda Radner. Her trademark line was this: “It’s always something!”
And she’s right. It is always something. There will always be something or someone that takes us away from our peace. Unless, that is, we have firmly rooted ourselves in a specific mindset and incorporated practices that promote inner calm and equanimity.
Over the last two years, I have enjoyed sharing “Pockets of Peace” with you each month. I’m hopeful that these gentle practices of soothing your tense body, clearing your busy mind, and opening your heart have helped you access greater peace in your day-to-day life. I’d like to think that they actually worked for you and that you are a more serene woman now than before we “met.” Yet, like Rosanne Rosanna Dana said, I know for a fact that any sense of inner peace we have achieved will be tested and challenged, over and over again. Is there a way through all this? Is there a lasting peace to be found?
I think there is.
First, we must believe beyond a doubt that peace is who we are. Peace is our true nature, our essence, and any other way of being is a false overlay. Our truest self, by birth and by destiny, is a “self” that is characterized by peace, love, happiness, confidence, courage, and more—all of which I call “virtues of the spirit.” Every woman who walks this earth is a woman of spirit, a woman of peace.
However, we often have difficulty embracing this notion for one of two reasons. Initially, it is because we have not been taught about our true nature. We have been guided to believe that peace somehow lies outside of ourselves and we must find it, claw our way toward it, or perfectly rearrange our life to have it. This is a faulty notion. Peace is here, within us, readily available whenever we wish to embrace it.
The second reason behind our difficulty is this: We are not taught how to access our innate peace. If peace is who we are, then experiencing it more often is simply a matter of desire, commitment, and practice.
Take today for example. The last few days I have been especially busy: dealing with family issues, trying to stay on top of my ever present “To-Do” list, plus hoping to feel creative enough to write. I’d started to experience slight anxiousness. I could feel the sensations starting (again) and I did not want them. I did not want to be kept from my peace, my happiness. So I made inner calm my priority. I did not rush off to the computer. Instead, I sat quietly with my coffee, connecting with the beauty of nature outside my window. I started my day more slowly, gently. I made sure that I took a mid-morning break where I went to the back porch, sat in my rocker, and did a short period of meditation with my mala beads.
As a result of my desire and making new choices for myself, I felt more calm, clear, and rather wise throughout the day. Any of us can do the same.
If you have gained anything from reading my words here the past few years, I hope this will be what you remember most: Inner peace is a choice. This is the “bottom line,” as they say.
Decision by decision we must choose to embody our essence (our basic goodness, virtues of the spirit). The alternative is dismal, fragmenting, and unhealthy for us—and for our planet. Just as I did this morning, any of us can take small steps toward reclaiming our equanimity when we have lost it. We can re-root ourselves in practices that bring us peace.
And for the record, never doubt that you being you, engaging in simple acts of self-care, of kindness, makes a difference. It does. You are one ripple in a vast sea of humanity and your rhythm can most certainly be felt. In fact, your rhythm can affect the rhythm of many others. They can alter their pace by following yours. You give them permission to flow. Together we can calm the stormy seas of life. May you trust that this is so.
It is also wise for us to remember that we have been conditioned by the culture to allow the voices of worry, stress, fear, or overwhelm (the voice of the ego) to predominate. We have become habituated to stress, angst, and drama. We must now choose differently for the greater good of all. We must let go of old ways that no longer work and create healthy, new habits for ourselves so peace is the norm; so peace is our “default system,” our primary way of operating in the world.
I continue to choose peace for myself. Each day I “practice,” and, as a result, I am embracing it more and more. I hope that you are too. If ever you are feeling disconnected from your innate serenity, read back over the “Pockets of Peace” I’ve shared here. They can be found in the Archives. Or, better yet, print them out, put them in a binder so you can access them easily, in a pinch, right when you need them the most. Peace can be yours. Choose it!
In closing, I’d like to thank Joni Hubred-Golden for allowing me to share my heart with you in this way for the last two years. She is a woman of wisdom and vision and I feel privileged to have her friendship. It has been a true joy for me to create “Pockets of Peace” for Michigan Women’s Forum and I look forward to this next leg of the journey. Onward we go, with peace ever in our hearts!
And so I end, circling back to where we began, with a blessing for your serenity.
Everyone needs an oasis in the desert of life.
Your personal oasis is waiting for you.
When you find it, drink deeply of its cooling waters.
Relax in the shade of its sheltering palms.
Be satisfied.
Be well.
With love and blessings,
Jan Lundy
August 2010
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A Post Script from the Author:
I am moving on, carrying the banner of inner peace in some exciting new ways. I hope you will join me.
Beginning with the September issue, I will be launching a new column here: “What Women Need.” The focus will be on the philosophies and practices that speak to a woman’s heart, those that will enable her to live as her truest self. Each month, I will feature a special guest, a notable woman who has embraced her essence, who can provide expert “advice” for us to do the same: authors, teachers, therapists, artists, visionaries, and more. I am very excited about this and about sharing these stellar women with you.
I will also be continuing the theme of “Pockets of Peace” in a new online course, “Buddha Chick,” dedicated to helping you get calm, clear, and wise—once and for all—and have fun while doing it! Launching the end of September, I will be companioning women through weekly lessons, tele-conferences, audio meditations, and more, with the added bonuses of personal mentoring with me via e-mail, and a supportive, international community of enlightened women. Stay tuned to my website for launch details: www.awakenedliving.com. I’d love to have you with us!
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