When someone says “inner peace”, what comes to mind?
For me is a cross between Gandhi, Mother Theresa and Lily Tomlin in Grace & Frankie. I see a meditation practice, kindness, a caring nature and lots of scarves and beads. That’s what my brain jumps to. But let’s take that a step further, what comes to your heart if I were to say “what does inner peace feel like?”
Now that’s different. Inner peace to me feels like acceptance, not from others, but from myself. Inner peace means kissing guilt goodbye. Inner peace means being able to be quiet; not scared of what I’ll experience if I’m alone with my thoughts. Inner peace means having a clear line to our Creator, to Mother Earth, and to the heart of someone else.
I am far from grasping full inner peace, but let met tell you, after a year on this journey, I am happy to report that I’ve certainly gotten glimpses of it - and it’s unlike anything else. Let me share an example. In the past, if someone had said something corrective about the way I had moments earlier decided to parent my child, I would have had steam coming from my ears. My heart would be pounding as I tried to calmly respond.
Recently, someone that is known for the ability to push my buttons, scoffed at my parenting, in front of a lot of people. And instead of feeling anything, I quickly responded with light joke, totally ignoring the previous comment, and carried on. About an hour later, the comment popped back into my head, and I stood in amazement realizing that I had never for one moment felt anything but calm through the whole exchange. My brain didn’t pop into “how dare she!” or “how rude” or “gosh, can’t I do anything right? She will never accept me!” Instead, I was able to recognize that I was secure in my parenting, secure in myself, and at peace with myself.
Now let me tell you how that felt. It felt incredible. If felt like finally breaking a minute in the 100yd Freestyle. It felt like being the first girl in gym class to finish the mile after weeks of coming in second. Not only did it feel like the work had paid off, but it felt freeing. In this work of calm, inner peace, and reducing my anxiety, sometimes, it’s really hard to see progress. Really hard. This was a “sweet reward” type of moment.
I share this because until I jumped into this journey, I didn’t realize how much work went into someone finding inner peace. I just assumed that at one point you were a grandma, had accomplished all you wanted to in life, had gained wisdom, got to wear stretchy pants and you just gained inner peace. And maybe that is how it goes for some people. I however, realized that I didn’t want to wait till my grandmother years to feel this. I want to feel it now.
I believe, deeply, that if we all focused on our own inner peace, worked to heal our past wounds and learned to listen with an empathetic ear, our world would drastically improve. We all have our own reasons for what we believe. We all have our own experiences that have shaped who we are and who we want to be. We all have insecurities, doubts, fears, and wonder at time what worth we really hold. We are all human after all, right?
What steps do you think you can take to find deeper inner peace? What can you do right now to create a life filled with peace? Can you take a deep breath and ground yourself to the present moment? Can you make a list of everything you are grateful for? Can you go for a walk and take in the beauty and lessons of the fall? Can you accept yourself as you are, in this moment? Because dear, you are worth it.
It’s a journey. Thanks for letting me share mine. If inner peace is the goal, let’s take a few steps forward today.
Peace friends.
Carrianne Nackers
Artist/Founder of The Happy Apricot
Pro tip! Sign up for The Happy Newsletter (in the footer on the left) and you'll be the first to hear about new products, new blog posts and receive free CalmLines wallpaper for your phones! Join me in finding inner peace, won't you?