Since I'm guest-blogging later this month on the topic of peace as experienced by the Red Cross Girl heroines of my novels, I decided to use this space for a more general and personal look at peace and how I find it through the incessant demands of everyday life.
I wear many hats -- Mom (though the time energy required by that role dwindles as my oldest is a settled college student and my youngest moves ever closer to adulthood), lawyer, author, and co-founder of a growing college consulting business. As a consequence, I cannot remember the last time I was bored or at loose ends! There is literally always something I could be doing, something I fear I'm not doing fast enough. Many days, it feels as though I'm working from dawn to late at night. I love my writing and my college consulting work, so neither of those pursuits feel like "work" per se. But those endeavors are also not always fully relaxing either. Any writer will tell you that writing is often a hard slog -- for as many days as the words fly out of my brain faster than my fingers can type, there are equally or more days where I stare at a blank screen or drum up one inconsequential task after another to avoid settling down into the hard work of that day's writing.
Other outlets that reliably bring me peace are two of my hobbies: scrapbooking and genealogy. Even a few hours of losing myself on Ancestry's newest databases or pulling out an old genealogical brick wall to see if I can make progress gives me a mental respite from everything else. Genealogy takes persistence and often involves many hours in front of a computer screen or microfilm reader or flipping through musty heavy volumes in a county courthouse -- the very opposite of scenic nature. But it brings its own peace all the same.
Wishing all of you much peace this month, wherever and however you find it best!
2 comments:
You are one busy person! Love the idea of the weekend retreat with friends who share a passion. And one of my favorite peaceful places is the Oregon Coast. I plan on spending some time there this fall to celebrate my birthday. It's a plan I've had for a couple of years but something has always gotten in the way.
I agree with Judith, you are a very busy person. I am someone who finds peace away from people for the most part. However, I do love going somewhere peaceful (like the coast or the mountains) with a few close friends--people who know me and accept me, warts and all. It is a different kind of peace. The kind that is filled with love and shared commitment and still allows for individual space as well. You are fortunate to have that group and a regular habit of getting together.
Thanks for sharing this bit of your life.
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