It's interesting what happens when we experience something in life that reminds us just how fortunate we are.  We promise ourselves that we will show gratitude and kindness everyday; honor our spouse or children; keep our patience even in the height of frustration or anger; we will be kind to strangers.  It's amazing how something can change inside of us but within a week after the experience, it takes effort to keep gratitude alive in a world that moves faster than we would like.

Does this sound familiar?  How do we remain true to our own aliveness and the things that spark our fire when we are seemingly bogged down by schedules and routine?

Commitment - dedication - cultivation - consciousness...all part of the process to awakening I suppose.  But most of the time, our instincts kick in and the movie we have been watching, called our life, takes over.  We go on auto pilot and begin moving through our days mechanically.  We all do it.  How do we stop it?  How do we TRULY live the life we experienced full of gratitude, bliss, inner peace and love?  We move slower. 

When our first instinct is to go to our computer in the morning or to begin breakfast or whatever we do - instead sit in meditation.  Personally, I imagine the faces of those children smiling at me.  I see myself peaceful and calm when my kids again, argue over a toy.  I visualize myself smiling when my younger daughter again says, "I'm full mommy - I can't eat all this."  Fighting the urge to make her finish everything on her plate because of the hunger I saw while in the Dominican Republic, I wrap her food for later.  I feel blessed that she is full.

What is your dream?  Where do you find peace?  When do you feel most alive?  Have you served somewhere abroad or even in your own community lately?  How did you feel?  Can you go back to that feeling of aliveness?  The only reason we are here is to serve - it fills each one of us - it's unexplainable because it just IS.

Inner peace is not about budgets, schedules and daily responsibilities I can tell you that.  But those things are a necessity in the life we lead aren't they?  How do we balance both?  We plan it.  We carve out time for stillness - time to be with what is - to listen to the birds in the morning or watch the snow fall.

We give ourselves the time we need to find the beating of our heart as we get prepared for a busy day.  We set the tone for our day before our day takes us over - and it only will if we allow it.  We imagine living on a rooftop - looking down on our lives...how important are the silly things we let bother us anyway?  Really.....

Be still - find your heart - you will know it when it speaks to you.  It's not in the messes we get caught up in, the arguments we engage in or the imaginary stresses we feel.  It's in the smiles we give, the breath we take and the aliveness we feel when we are still and quiet. 

Allow yourself to draw upon a time in your life when you felt connected to all that is and were peaceful.  Go back to that - take 5 minutes each morning to sit with it.