The shouting and conflict that comes to us every day disrupts one thing we all seem to crave; peace in our lives. I am referring to the kind of peace that gives us clarity about who we are, what we are expected to do and how others will behave. Do you see the common thread here? Our expectations. Ironically, for some people a chaotic life can represent peace, for even in those chaotic times they know who they are, they have a definition, they too are at peace!
This leads us to the conclusion that there is not one definition of peace. It can also lead us to the understanding that what we think of as peace is not universal. With these two thoughts combined we are given the reminder that the most important understanding we can achieve is about ourselves; not what the media or our friends tell us, not what our parents told us, or our children, but what we feel about ourselves. There is a great old country song that tells us “You’ve got to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything.” This is where we learn to become the Involved Observer in our own lives. We are made more when we know ourselves and what is behind that happiness or sadness.
You might have not heard the term Involved Observer as yet, but it is the basis of my book It’s All About Me. Far from supporting being ego-centric, this book is about discovering why we are angry, why we reject certain things, why we have fears about this or that, and even why we are happy.
Once we begin to understand ourselves, we have more of ourselves to offer others.
