Finding Peace in Our Frantic Lives

In the past few days, maybe even weeks, scraps of paper have landed on every level surface in my home. They're my tasks, things that need to be done as I work on setting up this blog with a new host (Let me know how your like it.) and on getting word out about the just-published book, Even You Can Be Healthy! Frankly I wasn't paying attention to my own health.

I tried to eat a balanced diet with mostly vegetables and fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds, beans, low-fat dairy, and lean meats. No sodas. (I've never kept sodas in my house. Too much sugar.) And I go to the gym three mornings a week for about an hour of not-too-vigorous exercise. 

Sounds like a healthy life, doesn't it?

Wrong. I was allowing myself to get frantic with so many unfinished tasks. Finally, I reminded myself of the remedy that was there all the time. Meditation. Quiet time. Silence. I just had to take the time and do it!

I began to sit for 10 to 20 minutes in a quiet place, sometimes inside, sometimes outside. When I was quiet, I could listen to the sounds all around: the air conditioner humming, the birds chattering, lawn mowers roaring, the refrigerator cycling on and off. And when I heard those sounds, I didn't hear the nagging in my head, the urge to add to the lists on the scraps of paper. 

And since I was calm, my dear cat Elizabeth, climbed in my lap and went to sleep. Now that's calm.