Peace is Always Beautiful

“Peace is always beautiful,” is a quote from Walt Whitman. Whitman, like John Muir, Rumi, Gandhi, Tagore and Thoreau - were seekers, and graced humanity with wisdom of their findings not only about the external, but about the internal.

Internal seeking equates, for many, to the quest for Inner peace. An inner peace not just as a fleeting moment during Tuesday morning meditation, but as a way to be. I’ve received hints through the whisper of leaves, the giggle of a stream and fresh snow on outstretched branches of a birch, that this way to be can permeate each breath, even as it lands softly on pain and struggle. It’s true-letting go of the struggle… accepting change. Seeing solutions. Turning inward for answers instead of outward for approval…it’s peaceful.

Inner peace is also about selectivity and focus-of choosing a backpack that is just the right size and shape so it doesn’t hunch your heart into hiding and inhibit the freedom of your step as you hike your path. Not being weighed down by excess duties and staying true to your dharma, you’ll have space to look and perceive and respond to life as a mountain hiker adjusts to thinning air as he reaches the peak. Glad she didn’t pack a heavier bag. Grateful for each breath.

As life continues to present opportunities to witness unpeacefublness, I am reminded to step into the woods, where I have learned from a tree and a trillium. They grow where they are planted, into what they were meant to be, with no excuses or pleas. They reach only for what sustains them. And in their own way, they nurture the living breathing planet without struggle, just by their own truth in presence. Simply. They stretch to sunlight, drink in raindrops, bend in winds, and shine beauty their own way.

“Peace is always beautiful.”

Peace to you and within you. May you have a beautiful season.

Namaste,

Sheri

Comments

Sunrises

In early June I had my younger brother John up to a cabin. He had come a long way to be there with me. Where he traveled from, the sun rose over the ocean every day and set near the mountains. He could see them both from his porch. Here, in northern Wisconsin, was a small lake, not an ocean. There were no mountains-just a tree line that was sprouting furled leaves not long after the snow melted. And there wasn’t a porch with a view. You had to walk, with warm slippers and hot tea, out to the end of a weather-worn pier to catch the sunrise. Which I did, while he was there. I think it was the most beautiful sunrise I experienced in 2023. I’ve learned that life is funny that way; the seemingly unremarkable moments-can become exquisite when you know…they are fleeting. Or when you face the harsh reality, that they are gone. I never made it to his porch across the world, when he was alive, to share the views he wanted to share with me. But I’m realizi...

Grateful

I’m grateful for those… Who share sunrises with me, or send them-you renew in me a sense of hope Who hike the trail with me-you help connect me to what is true Who travel with me-to the store, on a trip, in a relationship, or on the journey of this lifetime-you help me experience the comfort of companionship Who have been hurt by me-and hopefully forgiven me, you’ve humbled and softened me to be better Who have been my teacher-you’ve expanded my perspective Who have left me-in a business, a relationship, from this life-you remind me what matters to me, and what I need to care for tenderly Who work with me-on houses, buildings, cabins, businesses and financial plans-you teach me teamwork and how to think wider Who have interacted from a distance-on social media with a comment, as a stranger handing me your child to hold for a photo in India, as a reader of my book somewhere I”ve never been-you’ve shown me how connections matter Who have left this life too early-you’ve shown me what...

Third Born

This girl was the third born. The one who stayed behind when her sisters were dropped off at school and she was yet too young. Who hung out with me in the woods having warm peanut butter sandwiches and apple slices on a log when her sisters were learning to read. She was the one who spent rainy weekends with me when her siblings went off to college. Who went away with me on spring breaks to warm beaches, and stayed home with me on snow days reading in front of the fireplace. She is the one who held my dad’s hand as he was dying. Who held me close and held me up when another recently left this world. Who went with me to pick up each of our pups. The one who was by my side as our house was built, the cabin picked out, the mill fixed up. She is steadfast. Gentle. Kind to her core. She’s lifetimes wiser than me. And she is the best friend anyone could ask for. Our life was blessed 22 years ago when she brightened the world with her birth. It has been glittering becau...

Sheri Mabry Inc

Search This Blog