Pensive: Peace, Peace Where Art Thou?

by Sarah Mahmood

With technology growing at speeds hitherto unknown and man trying to compete with time itself, a fundamental asset of our mind has gone missing, something that our forefathers had in abundant quantities -- a relic of ancient times called 'peace'. 

The day of any commoner, any ruler is simply devoid of it. There remain a lucky few who have been able to keep it safe and well, tucked up somewhere in their cerebellums and cerebrums (though, these I guess would have nothing to do with it. Alas! I'm no biologist). One might ask, what do these few do to keep themselves at ease? 

Well, there could be a number of factors. First and foremost comes a positive outlook. The way you tend to look at things has a lot to do with your 'peacekeeping mission'. Your attitude towards life, your reactions to different circumstances, your inner paradigms -- all these affect your emotions and feelings to an extent that can either be very satisfying or very disturbing.

The next I guess would be a disciplined life style. Well-routined daily chores, healthy eating habits and a well-timed sleeping cycle help a lot. Getting up early, going out for a walk, taking in the fresh morning air, having a healthy breakfast, getting proper sleep at the proper time, in short all those fantasies of yore, help to keep the mind fresh and active at the right times. The result in turn, is that you don't fight unnecessarily, don't have a frown on your face and remain active throughout the day. Doing the right thing at the right time needs effort! 

And of course, giving value to things the 'capitalists' now weigh in monetary terms -- your relationships. Prioritizing them and then giving each one its due, is but natural. But science here seems to be rivaling nature. When we give our laptop what we ought to give a sibling, things most certainly get out of hand! What results is an ocean-wide interpersonal communication gap.

Thus, for those of you who moan of 'all work and no play', and then do nothing about it (when you can. It's YOU who drives the circumstances or at least your reactions!), I have a piece of advice: next time you feel  like there's an emptiness about you that you can't place, try getting a little closer to the natural ways. They might just help!