If you’re finding yourself feeling anxious or agitated more often than you’d like and you’d love a little more peace in your life, hold on to hope.  No matter what’s going on around you, you can cultivate peace and even ripple it out to the world.  I’ve learned this over the past many years of my life, during the 14 years my son struggled with substance use and all the chaos that brought into our family, and even in the past year and a half since his passing.  In this post I’ll share some tried and true practices that continue to carry me through the hardest of times.  I hope you’ll find them supportive. 

Even when our political climate is blowing up with division and aggression.  Even when weather crises are coming fast and furious. Even when there's chaos in your family.  Even through all of that, moments of peace are available.  Not every moment, of course.  You’re human and human is messy.  Life is messy.  Things happen.  Reactions come, and the best thing we can do is be real with them and honest about them.  True peace doesn’t come by denying the truth of what’s here or trying to jump over sadness, anger, frustration, or fear to get to peace.  No.  None of that…

What can we do to generate some peace within when the world and its people are spinning in a frenzy around us?  Here are a dozen things that have worked for me (when I remember!).  It’s a practice.  Always.  Something to remember and come back to when we forget:

1. Pause – stop whatever you’re doing and whatever you’re thinking.  Take a breath or ten and step back from the intensity of the moment in order to regain your ground and to consider a fresh perspective.  It’s easy to get caught up and pulled into drama and become one more reactive person in the works, even if we really value peace.   So, give yourself a chance to intentionally interrupt the spin.  

How to do this?  Just taking a moment to feel your feet on the ground and to you’re your breath can help. Or maybe give yourself a timeout in the most positive of ways – this isn’t a punishment, but truly best for everyone involved.  Send yourself to your room or to the woods for even 30 minutes.  If you’re at work or in a public space, lock yourself in a bathroom stall for a few minutes.    Pauses come in all shapes and sizes, and they’re almost never a bad idea. 
 
2. Curiosity – Notice when you’re feeling judgmental about something or someone and catch yourself in that moment.  It can be helpful to shift to a state of curiosity.  Say to yourself, “Isn’t that interesting?”  Or, “that person or that thought doesn’t resonate with me” instead of “I hate them!”  Suzanne Giesemann shared these ideas in a workshop I was in recently, and I was able to put them to use immediately as I came across people behaving badly.  When I took this approach, I found that I got less worked up and agitated.  I could silently send love to a situation and then move on with my day without needing to tell the story over and over or dwell on what an asshole that guy was.  

3. Listen – just listen, without jumping in with your own ideas or opinions.  This can settle a heated moment quickly and keeps you from making things worse.  Take that pause, take a breath, and really listen to what someone else is saying.  I tried this with a man I had just met who shared his opinions about a topic I’m passionate about, and though I didn’t agree with his thoughts on it, I could hear him.  In my doing so, he commented, “Given your response, I’m guessing you don’t agree?”  I simply said, “I don’t know.  Here are my thoughts, but I don’t have the answer, and I don’t want to argue.”  My not jumping in to talk over him or shove my ideas onto him opened up space for us both to think about the topic a little more and maybe even consider the validity of the other person’s thoughts.  
I am also aware that there are many times when I’m quick to speak even though my input hasn’t been requested.  Pausing and just listening helps build more peaceful interactions.
 
Listen to yourself too – listen to your body and heart for what they need in any moment.  Learning to pay attention and honor this internal wisdom is step one in creating a self-care plan that you will stick to.  The better you care for yourself the more peaceful you will feel.
 
4. Slow down.  Maybe this should have been first because it’s integral to the other three ideas I’ve shared so far.  Too often we rush – our meals, our rest, our conversations.  We’re a distracted and busy people.  When we take a little more time to be with ourselves, with each other, we reduce the frenzy.  

5. Notice what you’re taking in – you have to digest everything that you take in.  That’s true of food and drink, and also of things you’re listening to, watching, and reading.  Is what you’re taking in filling you up or draining you?  Does it inspire you and give you hope or send you to a place of despair?  You are the sacred gatekeeper for your energy, so get curious about what you’re letting in to your being and how it affects you.  Make changes accordingly, even if it’s only a slight reduction – say, checking headlines or scrolling social media 4 times/day instead of 400.  There’s an awful lot of input available these days and a lot of it is designed to stir you up, hook you in, or both.  Take good care of you.  

6. Who are you hanging around with?  Are they people who lift you up, inspire you, or make you laugh?  People you can be real with?  People you can cry with when you’re feeling sad?  Or are they people who exhaust you or suck the life out of you?  You might not have a choice all the time given your family or work environment.  If those places are very draining, please be sure to balance out your interactions with those that are nourishing, uplifting, and fulfilling.  Also be sure you’re getting enough “me time.”  You know… alone time with yourself… time to reflect, process, or just chill.  Such important recharge time!  

7. What energy are you spreading, perpetuating, or exacerbating?  Your presence makes a difference – to those around you and to yourself.  Pay attention to how you feel if you jump in on gossip or if you repeat a story or belief you’ve told many times already.  That spin of agony – “It shouldn’t be this way!  How could this be happening? He’s crazy!  Why is he doing this? I can’t take it!” doesn’t feel great.  And the truth is, you’re here.  You’re taking it, and you can choose how you want to be and what energy you want to bring to the world.  It matters.  Notice if something inside you likes to stir up drama or if you’d feel much better being a little more Zen.  Are your words and actions aligned with your values?  I find a deep inner ick when they’re not!  For your own peace, shift your energy.  

8. Where can you take down a barrier today?  In a world that seems determined to pit us against one another, that can be a hard ask, but look for opportunities to bridge a divide.  Extend a kindness to someone you’d normally look away from or down on.  Share a smile.  This doesn’t have to be hard or big, but small acts can generate big results.  It’s one of the things I love about the CompassioNate Care Bag movement – people are turning toward their neighbors in need and reaching a hand out instead of looking away. 

If you love someone who struggles with substance use, there are often a lot of barriers keeping us at war with one another.  Curiosity and listening at times when you might usually yell or lecture can open doors, mend hurts, and build trust and relationship.  It can be really hard to listen in a situation where you think you know what’s right or what has to be done.  When you open your heart to your loved one and listen to their ideas and perspectives, and have an actual conversation, new ideas and perspectives might emerge that you would never have come up with on your own.  When I was finally able to unplug my ears and open my eyes to have a real two-way conversation with Nate, he trusted me enough to share a little of what it was like to be him.  I think the question, spoken or intended, “What’s it like to be you?” can open a lot of doors and hearts and help build connection if we’re genuinely curious and willing to hear some hard things. 
 
​9. Notice The F’s – I don’t know about you, but when I’m feeling overwhelmed, terrified, and/or powerless, I don’t necessarily function at my best.  I jump into forcing, fighting, fixing, fleeing and frenzy.  When we feel out of control or powerless it’s easy to fall into these nasty F’s, often followed by a big loud exasperated “F IT!!”  It’s natural to try to force things to happen, to fix problems (or people), to lash out or flee to isolation, or to find yourself scrambling in a frenzy.  However, reacting these ways rarely work and often make things worse.  

Try these F’s instead – face it, flex, flow, and maybe even fun.  Flexing and flowing require a certain level of acceptance and surrender which come from facing the reality of what’s before you.  When you can, turn toward the challenge and find a way to be with it and move with it rather than frantically trying to make it change.  How might you even have fun with these moments?  I now try to spend more time clapping with joy at political signs that give me hope rather than flipping off the ones that make me cringe.  Why not?
 
Just last week I had a chance to work with this – a birthday gift I had ordered for my son was reported as “delivered” on Wednesday.  Except it had not been delivered to me.  Clearly it had been left somewhere, but it wasn’t in my box, in our parcel lockers or at my home.  So, I filed an online claim and waited for a response.  The next day I received an email to let me know they were looking into it and another later in the day that it had been found, misdelivered, but was now in my box.  Great!  Except… it wasn’t there.  So, I called the post office and left a message for the postmaster – later got a call that she had left for the day and wouldn’t be back till Tuesday, but someone else was going to talk to the carrier to try to figure out what was going on and where this package.  Frustrating…  but as I sat down on Saturday morning, I silently offered up the intention that the package find its way to us with ease, and I let it go.  I kid you not… within 10 minutes the postmaster was knocking on our door, handing my husband the package.  She had come out on her day off to find it and get it to us!  Amazing! 
 
Does it always work that way?  Of course not, especially when other people are involved.  BUT, sometimes it does.  I’m certain things went more smoothly and she was moved to help me out because I didn’t yell and scream at her.  We need to take the steps we need to take, and then let go and wait, allowing things to get worked out. 
 
10. Be aware of what you’re focusing on -  Shifting your focus from what’s wrong, what’s troubling you, or what scares you can truly change your experience of life, even if nothing outside of you changes.  One of the quickest ways to do this is to take a moment and reflect on what you’re grateful for, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant that may be.  Gratitude has been shown to rewire our brains and help take us out of the eternal loop of thinking about all that’s wrong and to open up to noticing what there is to appreciate. 

I also look for beauty every day – mostly outside, as nature is more than willing to accommodate me with her clouds, critters, plants, sunsets, and moon rises.  Oh, and last week, the Northern Lights!  Holy wow!  They were spectacular!  So cool to see so many people pulled together by this force of wonder and awe!  Even in our homes and work spaces, there’s beauty to be found if you’re willing to look.  Let yourself pause and take it in.  What does beauty feel like in your body?  Where do you notice it?  We need beauty to counter the ugliness that permeates too much of today’s airwaves. 
 
11. Meet yourself and this moment with self-compassion, kindness, and gentleness.  I noticed myself judging my lack of strength, mobility, and flexibility in yoga class the other day. In another lifetime, yoga was a regular part of my weeks and sustained me well.  The reality is in the past year and a half, what used to be a pretty regular activity has gone by the wayside.  So, I have a choice. I can feel sad about how much I’ve lost in myself and beat myself up for that, or I can feel sad about it and greet myself with compassion and acceptance that this is just the way it is right now.  I chose the latter, but not without a lot of internal chatter along the way.  It’s a process and a practice.  When we treat ourselves with compassion, we’re much more likely to offer it to others. 

12. Turn to Love, with a capital L, and ask for guidance – There are two questions I sometimes remember to ask of Love, this giant force of unconditional love that’s available to us all. 
1. What would Love do? Shockingly, the answer is often very different than what this cranky human would do!  And, 2. Love, what would you have me know? (taken from Liz Gilbert’s beautiful practice with this inquiry).  In either case, you can silently ask and quiet yourself enough to hear what response comes or you could write it out and do a little free-form journaling, allowing your hand to keep writing as you take in and capture whatever comes to you. 

I find Love to be a very gentle, compassionate, supportive force to lean into which often reminds me to take it easy on myself, to slow down… all the things we’ve talked about above!  Sometimes she shows me ways I can serve or help someone else that will feel good.  She’s a very positive influence  for me! 

Life is a series of moments never promised.  
As Joanna Macy said on her podcast, “We are the Great Turning,” (which I highly recommend you check out!), “This moment with you is a gift that was never promised.”  This is true of every moment, so cherish your moments with people you love. The more fragile their lives, the more numbered their days, the more worthy of cherishing.  We take too much for granted and get too easily swept away by stuff that isn’t worthy of our time or attention.  Let’s rein it in and build the lives we want to be living. 

Each of these suggestions is a process and a practice.  I hope something resonates that might support you in cultivating a little more peace in your days and ways.  Let me know!  What other things do you do to help create peace when times feel hard, hopeless, or scary?  Drop a note in the comments or send me a note. I love, love, love hearing from and learning from you! 

Here’s a little music 🎶to support you on this journey – enjoy!

• Common (“Cause we’ve got way too much in common…”)
• If not for Love (“And what are we here for, if not for love?”)
• Love Wins (“I believe we’re made to be here for each other”)

And a couple of meditations to choose from:

• Possibility of Peace Within
• Sitting with the Messiness
• In Painful Times
• Love, What Would You have Me Know?

If Love points you toward service, here are some ways to support local grassroots efforts that are near and dear to my heart and run by people I love.   

✨Brightstar Community’s Bright Night – Nov. 7th.  Their mission is to help women survivors of sexual exploitation and trafficking find healing, hope, and independence. By raising awareness and funds, we can provide safe housing, holistic care, and a supportive community to these courageous women as they rebuild their lives. By attending and purchasing tickets to this fundraising event, you are directly contributing to providing safe, long-term housing and trauma-informed care for survivors.

❤️The Emilee Connection’s fundraiser of Music, Compassion & Connection – Nov. 8th – their mission is to support adults who suffer from anorexia and other eating disorders by harnessing the power of peer support, social connection, activities, educational events, inspiring speakers, and provide education and peer support for those who love them and for our community.

💕 Our CompassioNate Care Bag Mission is fueled by donations from so many amazing people.  I couldn’t do it alone!  If you’d like to be part of this mission, please consider a donation via Venmo to @Barbara-Klein-25 or through a purchase directly from my Wish List.  I’ll be compiling the next big set of bags within the next month as we head into colder weather. Thank you!  

​Answering the call… what's it mean?  Not what it would have meant if I had written this several years ago.  Then it would have been about following your heart, your dreams, your passion.  Creating a life or work that calls to you.  Today, it's something much simpler. A gentle and fairly easy way to tend my heart.  (if you missed last week's post from guest blogger, Heather Ross, you can find Tending Your Heart here).   
 
For the third time this week, the birds, ocean, and sun called me to sunrise.  For the previous nine weeks, I often slept til 8 or 9, but now, with 3 days left in Hilton Head, I don't want to miss it.  I started my 60th birthday with a solo sunrise and lots of tears because there is grief about entering a new year without my son, Nate, physically here.  And because sunrise at the ocean breaks my heart open for some reason.  Even today it brought tears.  There's a primitive force that I feel in my heart.  
 
This morning, most people had already left or were leaving.  Some would say I'd missed it because I wasn't there for the breaking on the horizon moment.  I knew that would be the case and still I went.  Some would say it wasn't very dramatic because there weren't many clouds.  The breaking of a new day is always a miracle, and I rarely rise to greet it, to celebrate it - so with or without clouds, it's a powerful force, a tremendous beauty to me.  I'm glad I was there mostly alone, so I could take it in, feel, cry, let the sun and the wind caress my face while I closed my eyes and communed with, joined with them.  It's breathtaking, and I'm glad I answered the call and gave myself this time with nature rather than lying in bed trying to go back to sleep.  No, I didn’t want to miss these moments in my last days here.  I’m not a National Geographic photographer – it’s not about the perfect image – it’s about being there for it, feeling the rhythm of nature, the steadiness and impermanence in the sand as the ocean washes over the beach.
 
Today I wrote 4EVER LOVE in the sand at the shoreline, and while it stayed untouched for a few minutes, it wasn’t long before it was quickly, gently swooped away, yet still there.  Nothing can take it away.  For some reason I like offering it up to the sands and the ocean – to mingle with, become a part of these forces of beauty and nature. 
 
To breathe in the damp morning air, to bathe in the resonant sound of waves, the wind, the birdsong – it takes me away from the worries of the day, the troubles of our times, the political divide that’s already and ever escalating. Just for a few moments, I can truly feel peace, contentment, and I don’t need to do anything, produce anything, think about anything, worry about anything.  I can just breathe, listen, and take in the gift of another new day.  That, my friends, is a beautiful miracle that I will savor.
 
Even now, hours later as I sit at the kitchen table, typing up this reflection, it fills my heart, soothes, my soul, and takes me over with its magnificence.  Captivates me.  Entrances and enchants me.  Beauty.  Wonder. Awe.  These are a few of my favorite things. Happy to share them with you! 
 
What is it that brings you this sense of wonder and awe?  How can you give yourself more moments with gifts for your heart and soul?  What call is awaiting your response? Please share!!  

​There was a day when I didn't know about retreats and how powerful they are and what a critical piece of my well-being they would become  I imagine there are others out there who also wonder... who haven't yet discovered the magic of retreat.  So, I'd like to share with you just a few great reasons to give yourself the gift of retreat, for however long you may take or in whatever form!  What are some of the benefits and why would anyone make the investment of time and energy to retreat for a bit? 

1. Get out of routine - there's great value in simply breaking the pattern of everyday life - of taking yourself out of your usual habits and routines.  By changing things up, we tap into wonder and curiosity about life.  We begin to open to new ideas, insights, and creativity. We open our eyes to new perspectives. We see new possibility that we hadn't considered before.  We lighten up, let go, and even have fun!!  When you break away from the daily routine, there is nothing to fix or figure out.  Your mind can truly rest.  Aaahhhh...  to me, that alone is worth the price of admission!  

2. Slow down - We live in a world where go, go, go, is the norm.  Demands are coming fast and furious and we find ourselves pulled in so many directions with no relief in sight.  Our pace is unsustainable and our to-do list never-ending.  But, we don't know how to stop sometimes.  This pace is taking a toll on our health and well-being.  When we slow down, we calm our mind and soothe the nervous system. Then we notice the beauty of nature, our own body, people in our world.  We have to step off the hamster wheel to be with these sweeter things.  

3. Quiet the outer noise -  Oh my goodness!  There is so much coming at us all the time - news, ads, social media, political banter... it's an endless onslaught of noise, opinions, and provocations.  You've noticed that, right?  Just taking a media break for a brief period of time is super healing and restorative.  Imagine room to breathe without your phone constantly pinging in your ear.  Step away and feel the sigh of relief and the sense of peace.  In this space we begin to listen to our hearts and souls and hear our own inner guidance.  

We don't need more intensity - the world brings plenty of that.  We don't need more things to do - we have more activities than we can keep up with already.  Retreat is designed to be restorative and nourishing.  

Why do you retreat? Please join the conversation in the comments and let us know!  Together we grow and learn!  

Does retreat sound good to you? If you like this sound of this and would love to join a circle of like-minded women who are ready for a little of this retreat sweetness, join us in the beautiful Poconos at the Himalayan Institute for Coming Home to Yourself: A Women's Renewal Retreat August 10-12. 

At my retreats, everything is an invitation.  You are free to rest as needed. Explore the 400 gorgeous acres as you commune with nature or give your body some movement among the trees and hills if that's your thing.  Gather in our circle around the campfire. Check out a yoga class or meditation session.  And, rest into a world of no expectation. 

I hold our retreat space as safe and sacred - in this space you need only show up for yourself.  You are free to participate in the way that's comfortable for you and you are free to share and listen knowing that this is a zone where these is no advising, no figuring out what anyone else "should" do, and no worry that anyone is going to tell you what you should do.  This is a place and space to deepen your connection with yourself and to learn to honor yourself more deeply than ever before.  

Questions?  Let me know!  Know someone who would love this?  Please share this with them!  And, if you're ready to jump onboard, you can register here! 

"A women's retreat springs from and is about stepping out of your ordinary existence to listen and attune to your truest, most authentic self...  It is setting apart time to tend the hearth of your inner life, feed your muse, reclaim your dreams."  ~ Jennifer Louden, The Women's Retreat Book

​Life happens.  And, let’s face it, life’s happenings aren’t always pleasant, fun, or even comfortable. Sometimes, life’s happenings are painful, unpleasant, or un-fun.  If we’re honest, they are always uncertain.  

I was asked recently, “How are things?” and I found myself pausing and answering another question.  My reply: “I’m doing really well.”  Because “things” right now are very uncertain, sad, scary, and bordering on crisis.  I didn’t want to focus there.  

Instead, I wanted to focus on the strength, calm, clarity, and courage I have cultivated and drawn on, even in the midst of such troubling times and “things.”  

How often do we find ourselves swept away by the story of the chaos, the confusion, the drama, and other people’s stuff, unable to find our own footing and ground in the middle of all of that?  It happens quickly and easily, often without any warning or time for us to notice. It happens to all of us, and it can take us down quickly and deeply.  

Or, we can catch our breath, take a look around and remember that we are not victims of our circumstances.  We can notice what’s real for us, feel what we feel, let that be OK, and still choose whether WE are OK or not.  And if we’re not ok right now, can we let that be OK for now?  If we’re not OK, how long will we stay in that space?  Maybe we have no idea, and we simply choose to take things one moment, one breath at a time.  

We will choose whether this instance will empower us, emboldening us to reclaim our stand, set boundaries to honor ourselves, or not.  We will choose whether to be caught up in someone else’s net or to find a way to stand beside them or far away from them so that we can stand our own ground. 

Sometimes it doesn’t seem possible or even right to be OK when someone we love is suffering or struggling.  We have a preconceived notion that a “good mother” or a “good friend” or “good partner, community member daughter, son”… (fill in the blank) should not feel OK if someone else does not. 

But, when you think about it, the best thing you can do for everyone is build up your own reserves, take really good care of yourself, find the truth and integrity that comes from knowing your own needs and honoring them the best way you can.  Only then can you possibly show up to love or support another.  Only by being there for yourself first, by finding a way to be “OK” (whatever that looks or feels like in that moment – for it will surely change) can you have anything available to give to another.  

As they say, “Put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others.”  And, choose to be OK, even when things aren’t.  They often aren’t and we often miss out on life we don’t need to miss out on wishing and hoping and waiting for “things” to change, rather than changing ourselves and how we show up.