I’m sitting on our porch, in my PJ’s, drinking a hot cup of tea and listening to the birds sing. It is peaceful. It is beautiful. I feel calm.

It feels like a holy moment. When everything is right in the world. I can sit and hear nothing but the sounds of nature and my own voice. And in this moment, everything feels as it should.

I want to carry it with me throughout the day. When the daily stresses start to take over, and I’m doing everything for everyone. I want to come back to this place. This moment.

The sound of peace.

But it won’t be easy.

Because soon, I’ll need to get up and wake my children, and hurry them along to get them where they need to be. There will be teenage morning grumpiness, raised voices, and maybe even an exchange of unpleasantries.

There will be fighting, barking dogs, and rushing. There will be a lot of time spent in my car today, driving people from one place to another. I’ll run errands, return phone calls, pay bills, and meet deadlines. There will be dinner to cook, dishes to do, and emails to return.

But maybe, just maybe, if I close my eyes, I’ll get back to this moment. Where I can hear the birds sing, instead of the person on the phone who isn’t very happy with me. Maybe, if I close my eyes while waiting in the long line at the grocery store, I’ll come back to this place.

Everyone and everything around me will try to take it from me, but I know it’s still there, somewhere inside of me. All I have to do is remind myself to go back to it. The birds are still singing, I just have to remember to listen.

Dealing with daily stresses is part of life. The key is, to figure out how you can start your day, everyday, in a manner that will help get you centered and maintain calmness. Try to create and remember those “holy” moments, especially when things around you are starting to feel a little crazy. Close you eyes, and take yourself back to that place.

You will travel through your day happier and more relaxed, and who wouldn’t want to do that?

Find meaning each day,

Dara