100 ways to be happy - Number 7. Find serenity

Being calm and relaxed does not come naturally to me.

Once upon a time it might have but now it is a talent that I have to work on and I get the opportunity to develop this talent every day in a house full of many children. Our home is noisy, active and busy.

With seven children under eleven years old things can sure get crazy. Often I find that I am talking to four or five different children at once trying to keep the conversation going and using eye contact to get each child to understand that the word I just said was meant for them and not the other four who are also talking to me! No wonder I feel exhausted at the end of each day!!!

Serenity is the state of being calm, peaceful and untroubled. On a daily basis finding serenity is difficult. There is so much that needs to be done, so much to worry about and I find to have serenity I have to create it for myself. It does not work every day that I can steal away and find a moment..but..when I do - it makes a real difference to my countenance, to my voice and to my attitude.

When the children were younger {I am talking about in the one's and two's age} and we did not have much money to decorate, create or provide opportunities for escaping - I would simply sit by a window and stare outside. I would take in all the surroundings and use that moment to relax me, to connect with nature and to be still.

Everyone should have a place they can go to when the going gets tough. An escape, a place of solitude and peace. A special place of serenity. Some mothers are blessed to have a holiday home, a family member near by or a good friends place to retreat to. If you have been like me at certain times of my life when I had none of those places I would simply go to my bedroom. I would try to keep in clean and neat so I had somewhere in the house to run to when I need to take a few deep breaths and to calm down. With nappies, tantrums and many tears {often from me!} I would run to my room several times a day to refresh. I went to gather thoughts, renew faith and restore happiness.

For me now having serenity is a must. Especially now that my children are getting a little older and conversations are becoming more emotionally draining and complex {I know....listen to me...I don't even have teenagers yet!} and I don't have family near by to run off to, so I have had to create and look for my own place to relax and restore my mind and heart.

For me as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I am blessed to attend a temple. We have one in just about every state in Australia. They are quiet reverent buildings of peace, joy and contemplation. When things get too hectic around our home I know I can attend the temple and leave feeling uplifted, renewed and full of serenity.

I also know that you can find serenity at home. With chaos surrounding you it is possible to grab a moment and change your thoughts. To clear your mind and to be cheerful.

Cheerfulness keeps up a kind of daylight in the mind, 

filling it with a steady and perpetual serenity 

~Joseph Addison~

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