When is the last time you can remember feeling totally at peace?

[smallwolf]

I put the above question into the Cafe this week and to use a fishing analogy, got a couple of bites. 🙂 A little birdie suggested a thread be created on this topic. Finding, identifying, writing about moments in our lives when we can remember feeling totally at peace. You can reply more than once if you like, after all, we would each hope that feeling of being at peace will be repeated more than once in our lives?

Here is a space where you can tell a story about the last time you were at peace. It may become a suggestion to someone else and inspire them into action?

For me... my story relates to a walk in the gardens a while back. A time with no negative thoughts. But you will have to wait until I get back from shopping to hear my story.

So the question to reflect upon and answer is this...

When is the last time you can remember feeling totally at peace?

[Ggrand]

Hello Tim..

just tagging..So I don’t loose..

Grandy..

[smallwolf]

Back from shopping...

My psych and were going through my week to the work out when I could do fun activities etc. I would spend my Fridays with parents, leaving not much of the weekend. So we re-arranged when I would things. One of those things was walking between 5-6pm. Additionally it was suggested I go to the botanical gardens near my place, and then a place called Slaughter falls.

So here is the story...

Determined to follow the instructions of my psych, about 3 weeks ago now, I put on my shoes at left home to go for a walk in the gardens. I arrived there about 5:30. The sign at the gate said the place shuts at 4:30. But I saw people inside and then checked online and it actually shuts at 6pm.

Once inside I walked down the various pathways and over the bridges, taking photos of things that interested me... ducks, lillies, a cactus, of water trickling down a stream. The ducks swimming in the pond, or resting on the edge of the water. I would be about a 1 foot from duck taking a photo, and they did not care. The green grass was cool. If it were not for the shutting time, I could have laid on the grass for ever or at least along time. There was a calmness about the place. Nature and I were at peace together.

There was no phone calls, no email, no computer, no Internet, no pain, frustration, anger.

Well, it was after 6 when I left, and to get out I had to find the "emergency" exit. Either that or I was stuck there for the night. I made it home to cook dinner for the wife and kids.

It is a pity that pictures cannot be posted, so you will have to use your imaginations about how picturesque the gardens are.

I am at peace now, reliving the event in my mind now. Not the same as the real thing, but it will do until I return to the place (next time). Probably a guided meditation, but this time it was real life.

Tim

[PamelaR]

Hi Tim

What an awesome thread to start! Great to see. Loved your adventure (and peace) at the Botanic Gardens. Yes, I find a lot of peace there and I too take a lot of photos of the gorgeous ducks, lilies, frogs - very meditative. Have you found the Japanese Garden and the Frog Garden yet?

So what is my story about when I was last peaceful?

Mine was yesterday at a weir close to the coast. At this special place you can get very close to water birds, e.g. egrets, night herons as they feed and if your lucky see an osprey come in for food. Yesterday there was this gorgeous egret fishing about 2 metres away. I was able to get photos of it with fish in its mouth. Not the best photos, something I can work on. But it really brings life back into perspective. There was a young boy there fishing. Such a nice lad who wanted to chat to us about how good it was.

To top off this peaceful day, we went further into the mountains for lunch and took photos of the magnificent ranges. The day was not but I didn't really notice it. The calm was wonderful.

I'd love to hear others stories about when they found peace.

Thanks Tim.

Kind regards

PamelaR

[smallwolf]

That sounded really special Pamela!

Before I went to my latest psych session I went to one of those tiny buddha sites to get idea re gratitudes and things like I and you mentioned were listed there, animals for their diversity of live, beauty of mother earth. You are right about putting life into perspective. I will have to find the frog gardens next time I go there. Thinking this Monday since it is a public holiday!

[Ggrand]

Hello Tim, Pamela and all,

When I was in the hospital, One of the Mental health workers took us to a river...There was only me and another..it was the first time I went out after being there for 4 weeks..

We reached the river and the mh worker took us to a peaceful and quiet spot, the other person and the mh worker sat down and talked the whole time...

I took my shoes n socks of and walked down to the river, I stood in the cool water and just took in the many trees and listened to and watched the birds flying around and whistling, I just stood their, for easily ten minutes it was so peaceful, the sun warming my skin, the music of the birds, then I spotted a small branch floating down the river, I was watching it just bopping around on the top of the water, it was moving slow, I don’t know why but I felt so calm and relaxed watching it, occasionally a little bird would land on it and get a ride, I started following it further down the river, walking in the water at the edge, the water was clear and full of smooth river stones, I was that peaceful in my mind watching this tree branch that I hadn’t realised that I had continued walking for a few minutes, until I heard someone behind me say Grandy are you all right..The mh worker had been following me very quietly, I never heard him, I was so mesmerised by the little tree branch and felt so peaceful watching it...Then we had to go back to the hospital..

I wish I could like that more often.

Grandy..

[blondguy]

Hi Tim

This is a seriously helpful thread topic and thank-you as it lets me focus on peaceful memories instead of focusing on the pain of having a mental condition......which is major benefit where my recovery is concerned

My council's mental health worker (a psychiatric nurse) came out when I couldnt leave the house.In a nutshell:

• He came to my house and spent one hour with me......and diffused half of my anxiety
• He also said that he could help heal my chronic anxiety if I turned up every Tuesday at 8:30am
• I reluctantly promised that I would....even though I thought I could still self heal....(denial)
• 7 months later.....(and yes it was tough) I had peace of mind that I never had before 🙂

Of course there have many moments of peace since... yet this young career focused MHW helped me help myself in a chronic period of anxiety and yes it was very peaceful the day after the last appointment

It wasnt a cure...yet he saved my career and personal life at that time......not to mention the peace he provided

A very original thread that helps people help themselves Tim....Nice1 🙂

my kind (peaceful) thoughts

Paul

[geoff]

Hi Tim, great thread and anybody replying will have a different story to relate to, each day maybe different, good one.

A couple of things I can feel totally at peace with, one is, seeing my vet last Tuesday and again tomorrow, this might sound horrifying, but no, the opposite, I love going to see her, she is a kind and respectful young lady, who has had her 2nd child last year, but walks my puppie to the car and gives me a big cuddle, that makes my day.

My son loves to fish but hasn't had much luck, so I said why don't we go on a fishing trip, a daily trip, so the group has grown from 2 to 11, with 2 pending, out to catch not goldfish, but large fish, the only problem is the only fish I like to eat are shellfish, but there are all the others who will take my share.

We wanted a chartered trip and going for 5 hours, lunch is provided, that's where I can eat a sausage.

The concern is it's easy to plan something in advance but when the actual day comes, that's where the heart beats faster.

Kind regards.

Geoff.

[smallwolf]

Geoff,

Spending time with your children is special. Is the chartered trip along a river, in the ocean, lake? Many fish biting? Do you get to keep your catch or release? Was it warm day? windy? Whatever happened, I am sure you had fun.

Paul,

While some people might have, I do not necessarily think we totally get over a mental illness. And even if this is the case, persistence, and practice can bring about a feeling of peace. I also feel at peace after a session, but it is different, abeit temporary. But remembering these instances and help to take us back to that moment?

Grandy,

Your writing make it feel like I was there 🙂 While it is not quite the same thing, if you read it back to yourself, can you, in your mind's eye, see yourself in that place, walking down the river, watching that floating branch. And subsequent experiences may not be identical to the first, if we can just let our mind wander (without pressure) we could go back to a similar state of tranquility?

Tim

PS. Anyone and everyone can join in...

When is the last time you can remember feeling totally at peace?

You can also ask, chat about the experiences you read here. Positive thoughts and peace make for good distractions (from the real world).

[geoff]

Hey Tim, and thanks, the fishing is in the first week of March at Hasting, and the place who charter these trips are open 24/7.

It's been a long long time since I've done anything like this, and as I say, it's always easy to make plans in the future, but when the actual day comes along, it's a different situation to how you feel.

Geoff.