Working Together to Promote Calm and Peace!

As I mentioned we are all facing very difficult times. I have been contemplating how to promote calm and peace amongst all the uncertainty and fear that surrounds us all. I believe it is important to firstly acknowledge the real danger and the enormous loss and suffering evident everywhere and secondly to honour our associated feelings. It is important to work with our feelings with as much kindness, compassion and wisdom as we can muster.

When feelings of fear and anxiety come up I try to remember to accept and acknowledge them and not push them away or suppress them. I also try to remember not to indulge such feelings and go into panic, victim or blame mode either. Very tricky to do currently! Somewhere in the middle is to work with ourselves and our feelings of fear, sadness or overwhelm, kindly. What do I need? What has my friend stress popped up to remind me to do? I have written some blogs in the past regarding our friend stress and what it has to teach us. You may want to read  Meet my Friend Stress  or  'Another Gift Our Friend Stress Brings" . These blogs were written with regard to minor stresses in comparison to what we are facing now, but they may provide some ideas regarding dealing with stress. I am sure you can adapt with creativity the ideas presented regarding maintaining connection with others given the current advice on keeping safe distance. . 

I certainly don't have answers to the complexities of the current situation we all face. I am trying to do my best to deal with my feelings of fear and sadness. That said, I would like to share some things that have helped me. As our need for social isolation increases some ideas I have found useful to maintain my sense of calm, connection and peace of mind have included......

To Adapt, be Kind, Calm and Creative
Today I imposed a social safe distance restriction on myself so that I can remain healthy for my mum who has an upcoming cancer operation. So, I am looking at ways to adapt and be creative. I just did my first zoom yoga class which worked really well. We even had our regular post yoga coffee and chat via zoom. I am spending time at home studying, creating, and cooking.  With the need for social isolation I have been seeing lots of adaption and creativity around me  .......

• Around exercise. I have so enjoyed watching families and individuals run and walk by exercising and walking dogs. I have myself enjoyed gardening, walking and doing zoom yoga. 
• Around new ways to connect (online, by phone or letter)I have enjoyed ringing, texting and writing to family and friends to connect. I have also enjoyed watching my kids adapt to working at home, with online meetings and new ways to connect and support each other. I am not on social media but I understand there is much on offer here, as well as many great online resources. Remember to ask for support if needed. Reaching out to others not only helps you but helps them too. 
• Around Gratitude Make gratitude your superpower! I have been reminding myself how fortunate I am to have more than enough, to live in a country where we have a healthy health system, lots of food and resources. etc, etc......I am so grateful to the many people in essential services who are helping us all in so many ways.
• Breathe! Get out in our fresh air! It is so much better quality without all the aircraft and car pollution.  
• Be Inspired There are so many wonderful stories of kindness, care and generosity around, use them to feel inspired! 
• Remember 'This too shall pass".  That is the upside of change. It won't always be like this. 
• Get out in Nature - While we are practicing social distancing and isolation take time to get out in nature where you can - look out of the window at the trees the sky, stand on the balcony, go for a walk if you are able. 
• Rest and Relax and be Creative - we have lots of extra time for rest, relaxation and creativity. Enjoy the freedom of the extra time to replenish and to do something you enjoy. Maybe you would like to read, learn a new skill or be creative in any way that brings you joy. Try not to buy into fear, negativity and anxiety. This only makes things worse. Our body and mind are connected. So if we are able to rest and maintain a clam and relaxed attitude this will benefit both our physical and mental health and creativity.. 
• Kindness to self and others. Remember to be aware to be kind to all including yourself!  Judging and criticising ourselves and others is detrimental to all. We are all doing our best with what we know at the time. Fear and loss appear to be rampant and everyone we meet is suffering. Some things I have enjoyed doing to put some positivity back into the world include........
• Share a smile with anyone I pass. I went on a plod around the block this morning and decided to smile and say good morning to everyone I passed. I did not receive many smiles back but that is ok, I will keep putting them out there
•  Send love and compassion with the mind. Remember the power of the mind and our Tong Len practice to take away fear and suffering and give freedom from fear, love, joy and peace. We can even do this using our breath. We use our mind and breath to take away suffering on the in-breath and give happiness and freedom from fear on the out-breath. I plan to record a Tong Len Compassion meditation and if you would like to receive the recording of it please email me here.
• We have all heard about and seen people behaving in unhelpful ways, due to fear. One great idea I heard, a positive Psychologist speak of, on the radio yesterday was..... When you see someone behaving in a negative or unkind way instead of judging them and becoming angry do something kind yourself to put some positive energy in place of the negativity. 

I trust this global health crisis that has caused and continues to cause suffering will have some positive benefits. Actually I think it already has in some ways! Maybe it will be a wake up call for more kindness and generosity and to provide an opportunity for us to open our hearts to give and receive kindness, and to practice gratitude, generosity, empathy and compassion. It may also be an opportunity for us to be a  'better for others', kinder version of ourselves. Maybe it will have some positive effects on our environment too. And also maybe some positive influence on being content with what we have. It may also impact positively on the way we lead our lives and to prioritise what is meaningful and important. 

In gratitude, love and appreciation for you all 

Maree xx 
 
Please email me maree@pom-melbourne.com to order or to

• Buy POM products in support of community projects including the WDC (Women's Development Centre) Haragama Women's Shelter, Don Bosco Rehabilitation Centre in Sri Lanka and Guansahar school in Nepal. If you would like to read more about the specifics of our support there - please read more at  POM community connections here 
• Come to Crafternoon when we are no longer socially isolating   
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