I've been turning Sith

I think the goal in life for anyone is happiness and something that saps happiness is negativity. With all of the news events going on I decided to peek my head up above my Meerkat layer to have a quick glimpse at what is going on.

It looked so bad that I did the same the next day and the next. I could physically feel the anxiety from all the goings on.

The issue with allowing your brain to wander into different points in time is that when your brain goes into the hypothetical future, logically it stands to reason that there are infinite possibilities. It makes no sense to try to spend time there as the probability of you picking the correct outcome of the infinite scenarios is 0.

The past is sealed and cannot be changed. This is another candidate for where not-to-spend-time.

The present is the only place you should focus your time. One should focus on being fully present, fully engaged and doing whatever you are doing to the absolute best of your abilities. Be it playing dollies with your daughter or producing your best work for your day to day job.

The manifestation of anxiety was so much that I had to go to the mountains for an evening walk. I find the mountains and nature very calming. The burbling sounds from the river, the leaves rustling as the wind hits them, the sweet fragrant smells of Pine, Juniper and wild flowers. All with no one around, there for me to enjoy, alone.

The evening walk cleared that anxiety. Being in nature is one of my most favorite forms of meditation.

The one thing I realized and reaffirmed as I was walking was that I don’t need news at all. I can probably check once or twice per year. I already knew this, but life is just like your weight and dieting. You diet, you are thin and feel great. Roll on a year and you have a few too many pounds round your waist. Time to diet. It is an ongoing course correction.

I’ve always been a fan of preparing for the worst and hoping for the best. The fact that I do this negates my need for readiness, awareness and being wired into a real time feed of live events. There is nothing more that one can do than to prepare everything and hope for the best.

What does preparing for the worst look like? It takes form in a number of ways, however the commonality is sovereignty amongst them. The ability to move wealth, the ability to move your family, the ability to provide water and food, the ability to defend yourself, to administer aid, to grow food. All without anyone’s permission or involvement. Self sovereignty.

To close - That evening, my daughter quietly gathered and made me this bouquet at the end of the day. Beautiful. The smiley face helped