That Time When Silence Was Golden.

Yesterday morning, I awoke to silence. Glorious, beautiful silence. I made my way to the coffee maker, brewed an extra large cup of joe, grabbed my journal, and headed to the front porch.

For the last 6 months, we’ve awakened to grumbling trucks, buzzing saws and pounding hammers as brick by brick three homes were constructed across the street from us, stealing my beautiful sunrise in the process.

But yesterday morning–silence.

So I took to the front porch for my morning quiet time. After a big sip of caffeine, I settled into my rocker for my meditation.

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

Whirrrrrr. Bzzzzzz. Whirrrr. Bzzzzzz.

The sounds of a concrete saw cutting into the curb nearby disturbed my silence. My eyes popped open.

“I am safe,” I repeated silently to myself as my eyes shut once more.

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

I can do this.

Whirrrrrr. Bzzzzzz.

Inhale. Exhale. Relax.

Whirrrrrr. Bzzzzz.

Just breathe.

Whirrrrrrr. Bzzzzzz.

Irritation. 🤦‍♀️

I can do this.

I can do this.

I can do this.

Yes, I can. And also, who says I have to?

So often we find ourselves facing a scenario that isn’t ideal. Maybe it was something we wanted at one time, like me desiring a morning meditation on the porch. For whatever reason, your situation is no longer ideal.

Maybe you have a construction crew across the street.

Maybe you no longer have the bandwidth.

Maybe your tastes have changed.

When this happens, you have a few options:

1. Force yourself to endure.

2. Voice your frustration or irritation to the other parties involved.

3. Remove yourself from the situation.

This morning, I started with the first option. I tried to breathe through it. The longer I made myself sit there, the more irritated I became, which immediately had me considering option two.

I wanted to walk across the street, coffee in hand, and give those workers a piece of my mind. How dare they start working at 7am when the rest of the world is still waking up.

As I pondered my choice of words to say to the man running the concrete saw, I asked myself the hard question, “Who is stealing your peace right now?”

My stomach churned as I knew the answer wasn’t what I wanted to hear.

Me. I was stealing my peace by forcing myself to stay put and endure.

Once I acknowledged that, restoring my peaceful frame of mind was easy.

I picked up my journal, drank my last sip of coffee and retreated to a quiet spot inside my home. As the front door closed behind me, I felt the tension drain from my neck and shoulders. I’d made the right choice.

The next time you find your thoughts spiraling and irritation rising, ask yourself that same hard question, “Who is stealing your peace right now?”

Certainly there will be times when we need to endure. And, there will most definitely be times when standing up for ourselves or using our voice is necessary. Also remember, you have the option to simply remove yourself from the situation to find the peace you seek.

You get to choose, friend. You get to choose.