We all have our unique idea of mental peace. I think that we know about it subconsciously and move our way towards it, even if we don’t explicitly know what or where it is.
Now that the sun is out and the temperature is nice, I’ve been going on a walk through the neighborhood every day. Sometimes with my phone to take some quick photos, but usually just with a watch to track my steps. I’ve done just about every permutation of turns on the streets and seen every home multiple times.
What I didn’t realize until I really started to think about how I feel, is that this walk is my favorite part of the day. At an exact point 10 minutes into each walk at the top of a small hill, I find peace. There is no more road noise audible, and the only thing I hear is the habitat of birds living in the lush greenery of the area.
Conversely, this week I went to get groceries during a lunch rush and thought again about how I felt. My mind was racing. There was very little peace for me in that moment. I thought it was interesting that this situation is what a lot of people know as peace. I liked thinking about that. Listening to the extroverted cashier greet everyone and noticing how well they keep conversations flowing with unique people.
Thinking about the hypothetical peace that the extroverts were feeling in the moment helped me forget about my own struggle to find it there.
I’m not sure that we should just avoid thinking about how a situation makes us uncomfortable. But redirecting discomfort to appreciation seems to do the job for me. Focusing on nothing other than the relief after getting to the top of the hill and hearing the birds. I don’t think we can live 100% of life in this state of relief, but by focusing on the right thoughts, we can get a lot closer.
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