Peace In Chaos Part II

What Brings You Peace When The Agents of Chaos Are At Work?

Do you know that the astrology for 2025 warns of dire situations of chaos, wars, and destruction before radical change happens?  The agents of chaos appear to be in charge.  Even if you don’t believe in astrology but you know history, you know that civilizations have their birth, their growing up, and their death.  It is a natural pattern in the world of humans.  The rise and fall of the Mesopotamian civilization, ancient Egyptian civilization, the Indus Valley civilization, the Minoans civilization, the Mycenaeans civilization, Mayan civilization, the Roman Empire civilization, the Han Dynasty civilization, the Aztecs civilization, the Inca Empire civilization provide cautionary tales that nothing lasts forever.  Wars, invasions, environmental disasters, political / social / cultural struggles, religions, disproportionate balance of individual wealth, xenophobia, control, runaway power - these have toppled once great civilizations that ruled their world and caused those cultures to vanish into historical recollection.  The USA is about to reach its semiquincentennial, 250 years, and it may appear to be spiraling into falling apart before the ‘phoenix rises from the ashes’ as something new emerges. Chaos mongering is a strategy employed to distract us from what really matters. How do you bring or maintain peace into your life when chaos proliferates?

For me, these elements bring or help me maintain inner peace during times like these:

• Meditation & other spiritual practices- mindfulness and reflection, a calm mind

• Surrounding myself with people who are optimistic about the final outcomes - and who are looking “…to see what opportunities disaster presents” (qtd. in The Overstay by Richard Powers)

• Reading from the Stoic philosophers - they considered applying wisdom, courage, justice, and self-restraint as the highest virtues in everything. Open the YouTube link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWgRQ4HW6PI&t=83s.

• Accept what I cannot control even though I don’t like it

• Emotional detachment from the external circumstances - no, it’s not always easy to do; still, it helps to keep me from being battered by the waves of chaos and emotional rollercoaster during times such as these

• Contributing positively to the community - Yes, participating in peaceful protests contributes in a positive manner.

• Stay away from the news!  No, I have never watched FOX Entertainment AKA News! I get my news from 1440 Digest for straightforward, unbiased news without the drama (https://join1440.com/).  I get just enough to stay informed and not so much that it interferes with my inner peace.

• Exercise and spending time in nature - helps me physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually

• Pet the dogs!  Spending time with my dogs calms me.

• Disengage from hateful debates / conversations - This is often difficult and I have to remind myself to STFU when engaging is counterintuitive and would disturb my peace.

• Reduce the amount of stuff - empty spaces can be peaceful and too much stuff can be stressful.

• Turn off or reduce social media - Is it real?  Is it AI?  Is it helpful?  Does it inform, entertain? Does it anger? Does it enhance or wreck my peace?

• Remind myself that patterns exist - Civilizations rise and fall; that’s an observable pattern.  Know history and pay attention.

• Accept change - We cannot go backward and we cannot sustain standing still; “All great changes are preceded by chaos” (Deepak Chopra - qtd. in https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/here-there-and-everywhere/201210/20-quotes-on-change).  It’s not healthy to wish for the ‘good old days’ because they are gone and they likely were not good for everyone.

Am I consistent with applying these tools to transmute chaos into peace in my life?  I try to be; still, when I give in to chaos, it reminds me that I always have choice in how I want to respond. Sometimes my response may be not to respond. If the endgame is a peaceful life, then I need to choose peace over chaos. How do you bring or maintain peace into your life when chaos is swirling about you? Please share your stories, thoughts, insights, and suggestions by either commenting below this post if you are reading this on social media, or, if you are reading this through your email subscription, please share, by emailing me, at reimaginelife22@gmail.com.

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