Calm

Calm.  Placid.  Peaceful.  I need to be these things.  It's funny how, every time something changes, something still stays the same.  Every time things are looking up, something creeps out and bites you in the butt, then runs away.  The trick is to remain peaceful, regardless.  It's right there in my list of things I'm attempting to achieve in this Journey, I think.  Peace is a beautiful place.

Notice the sheet-of-glass reservoir pictured above.  This is its natural state.  You can throw a stone in, and it will cause a ripple, and it will return to calm.  The storms can blow, stir up the waters, make them murky and cause waves to splash and lick the shoreline, and it will return to calm.  There is no ugly churning beneath the water that causes its own ripples or waves.  It simply is.  It is in this state that I want to exist.

Whether it's a feud between loved ones, a daunting new task, a taxing day at work, a financial struggle, a physical malady -- I want to be able to continually return to this peaceful, easy feeling as my default.  I know it's possible.  I've heard tell of others who have done so, and continue to do so on a regular basis.

I feel like, more and more, this is coming to fruition.  I've kept my eyes set higher, and that makes a big difference.  Max Lucado says, "As long as our eyes are on God's majesty, there is a bounce in our step.  But let our eyes focus on the dirt beneath us, and we will grumble about every rock and crevice we have to cross." --The Great House of God

I'm trying.  I'm praying -- not just for myself, but for many, MANY others.  Most often, I find it's the best I can do.

Stephanie Jean