What do we ache for the most in our life? Is it money, fame, love, or respect? If you ask me, I would say I need all those mentioned now and more. But what is the one thing that, when you get it, equals all the others? What is the one thing that negates the fear of the future, clears the mirrors of the present, and deletes the horror of the past? The one feeling which absorbs all the positives of all other feelings is being at peace.
- Being at peace doesn’t mean forgetting the past and future, but being okay with what has happened and what will happen.
- Being peaceful reduces the stress about the future – it shows that you are not in control of anything.
- Being at peace teaches you to accept what is. It means to know that what has happened has happened and that you worrying about it is not going to change it.
- It takes the energy you use to worry and directs it to being more present.
- It gives you a feeling of no expectations. Often, it’s not the expectations of others that hurt us, it’s our own – the burden we put on ourselves to prove who and what we are.
Our mind is developed in such a way that we will always worry about the future. Initially, we used to worry about food. Where were we going to get food? Where would we sleep? And if we slept, would wild animals come and kill us? Our brains have developed a system where it keeps us constantly worried about the future so that we stay sharp and can spot dangers before they come. Unfortunately, even though our cognitive developments have come this far, we still have a caveman brain in some aspects, especially those that helped us survive in the hunter-gatherer days.
So, if we let our minds wander, it will take us back to the thoughts our caveman brain created because it just wants us to survive. Instead, we have to constantly tell those thoughts to go away and be more optimistic, seeing the hope that tomorrow brings. But more importantly, we need to learn that what we do, and however we do it, is not going to change the way we feel about tomorrow. We must be able to accept the fact that tomorrow will bring its own fights and challenges, and all we’ve got is today. If we can understand this and let go of the chains that hold the burden of knowing the future and changing the past, we might just be able to live in the present.
In this fast-paced world, where everyone is asking everyone, “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” let your thoughts acknowledge that even tomorrow is uncertain. Instead of planning and holding onto the imaginary power to change the future, we can just accept that all we have is today, and all we can do is live for today. Let tomorrow’s worries be tomorrow’s.
Being at peace—although easily said and not always done—is a self-challenge where you give up the imaginary power you hold so tightly, believing that it will change the future.
