Inner Peace

Of all the tenets of all the varied philosophies, I find the idea of achieving inner peace, through whatever means, to be the most applicable and important to my personal life.

Two summers ago I was backpacking through the Sierra Nevada’s, in northern California, and during the trip I spent twenty-four hours alone in the mountains, on the shore of a tiny lake for the purpose of meditation and reflection. The calm waters were hidden amongst soaring pine trees below two large rocky cliffs. I sat, crossed-legged, at the waters edge for several hours—eyes closed and ears wide open. I listened to the successive beats of the water lapping gently against the shore and soon my heart seemed to thud gently along with it. A cool breeze blew pine needles through my bare toes, and the sun warmed my skin with a temperate touch. For a while, my thoughts seemed to slip away and I felt a peace unlike I had ever felt before. My usually furrowed eyebrows relaxed, my muscles—tense from carrying a sixty-pound pack for two weeks—calmed and ceased their straining. Eventually, my body appeared rather secondary, and the clutter in my mind dispersed itself into the deafening silence of the woods. In those few hours, nothing was of importance other than my immediate existence.

When I opened my eyes, the colorful scenery burst into being and my utter calm was shattered by the inescapable beauty of my surroundings. I stared off at the not-so-distant shore and a sudden urge to experience myself upon the shore welled up inside me. I stripped down to my boxers and waded into the snowmelt-chilled water, energizing the little pool of placidity. I swam hard until I reached the opposite shore, where I sat shivering. The sun was still strong and I soon warmed. I then stared at the shore upon which I had just been sitting until I eventually ended up closing my eyes again. The wind blew gently through my meager hair and my heart beat along with the lapping lake. My thoughts slipped away again, and I was at peace. When I opened my eyes this time I laughed inwardly at my foolishness. The scenery burst into my field of vision exactly the same as it had before and I realized the mistake in my thinking. I had thought that the opposite shore would somehow be different, but the inner peace I felt was no different than the peace I experienced upon the original shore. Nothing had changed.

Today I was walking home from school with the sun at my back and a tiny breeze in the air. It was a beautiful day and I could not help but be happy in spite of the college applications, homework, and job interview that lay ahead of me. I could hear my heart beat thud gently in my ears, and for the few minutes in between W-L and my house I had a recurrence of the peace I felt alone in the mountains of California. I realized, then, that this peace was not in any way created, nor facilitated by any specific occurrence outside of ones self; it seems to be borne out of happiness. Later that day I finished all of my college applications, did my homework, and got a new job, all the while feeling decidedly peaceful and happy. I think that if I can manage to feel like that every day, then I can be successful in all my endeavors, and during a time when I am trying to get into college, I find that concept very encouraging.

The picture above is the lake to which I was referring.