When Brent died, a fellow widower recommended I eliminate
from my life any TV shows and/or movies of a dark, emotional or intense subject
matter as well as certain music and the daily news. For some time I got used to
simply enjoying the silence, being quiet and focusing my thoughts on beauty,
friendships, poetry, joy and my beloved Lord - who is the author of LIFE.
This is not pie-in-the-sky, ignorance of the world around
me, but rather an intentional choice to soak myself in peace instead of angst,
getting to know who I am, rather than listening to the cacophony of competing
viewpoints, terror and tension of a world gone mad. For what else is reported
on the daily news than horrific acts and extraordinary evil?
I missed absolutely nothing.
I missed absolutely nothing.
How, really, do any of us benefit by being externally
stimulated to horror or anger or whipped up into a frenzy of activism? We can
spend all of our emotional energy trying to change the world, or shut down out
of despair that we cannot change the world, or numb ourselves by
over-consumption of mass-market entertainment, but in the process, no matter
the choice, we completely drain ourselves of any capacity to affect our own life
or the lives of those right beside us.
What do you need to say "No" to today so that you
can say "Yes" to your own responsibility and capacity to live in
peace?
Photo: Carburn Park, Calgary, personal collection
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