At Peace

As I sit here on the pier, I feel the breeze on my face. I listen to hear the waves hitting the shore and the loons calling to each other on the far side of the lake.

I close my eyes and feel warmth on my face. Sunshine! I smell the coffee and feel the large, warm porcelain coffee mug—my grandparents’ old mug—in my hand.

As I swallow my drink, I notice the warm, pleasant sensations in my throat and watch a fluffy cloud sail across the sky.

When the sky turns to pink then purple, I’ll go inside the log cabin and sit by the fire and read.

I am rested and relaxed. I’m at peace. Happy.

Do you have a place where your heart and soul rests? A place where you let yourself go?

This is the place where I relax and let go, where I rest and dream. Often the main program of the day here is carrying water inside from the lake, heating the sauna and washing the dishes outside to let them dry in the sun.

My cabin in the woods beside a lake in southern Finland was built by my grandparents in the 1960’s. I can still picture and feel their presence in the cabin even though they are long gone. Each day that I spend here is a celebration of life—my life and the life in nature around me and the life of my grandparents who loved me as I am. The love and presence of my grandparents has been one of the greatest gifts in my life.