In school I learned geography and algebra, but no one ever told me how to manage challenging emotions or how to calm myself when being swept with anger or a fear. Some say, that calm is a ‘superpower’. It may not be the same as flying or becoming an invisible, but based on how difficult it was for me at times to pull myself out of anxiety or reactivity, I have to agree. The capacity to keep the sense of calm when swept away by cyclone of emotions feels like a superpower to me.
This practice of finding your inner calm is like finding a refuge when life feels uncertain. Rather than allowing all these strong emotions to overwhelm us, rather than let the groundlessness of life to shake us, we can come home to ourselves in any moment to find peace of mind.
We could travel the world hundred times turning over every stone on earth to find this, but the only place we can find it is in us! It is always there, waiting for us.
But this skill takes practice. We first have to have an awareness and we need to find the way to find some calm when anxiety takes a hold. With that awareness we can pause, stop, breathe and find some clarity. And as we practice this over and over, our ability to calm ourselves deepens, so that in those times that its the most difficult, we can soften our anger or fear. We can relax the body and mind. We can nurture ourselves by diving in the ocean of calm. We become our own best friend.
“Peace, it does not mean to be in the place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart.”
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