...all the time in the world"

"Do everything as if you have all the time in the world." That's a quote from my cardiologist after my mini-stroke last April. And I have tried my very best to adhere to his advice, although at times I confess I get swept along with the pseudo-urgent demands of our world (but luckily not very often). 

At lunch with a group of my clergy colleagues many years ago, we were discussing stress versus being relaxed and at ease, and I said that I had just taken up a regular practice of meditation. They told me that if I got any more at ease than I already appeared to be, they would have to start carrying me into meetings.

It's true that in general I am a pretty lay-back person and my doctor's advice hasn't been that hard to follow. I suppose it has something to do with my metabolism, but also in a large part to do with my view of life. 

No one can help but notice the extremely tense people in the stress-laden world in which we live. Amount of wealth or poverty has nothing to do with it--although I suspect that those who have a lot of money are always on edge for fearing of losing it. And those, of course, who live in poverty fear not having enough to meet the day's needs.  Life is just as important on all levels of the socio-economic mix.

Stress often manifests itself as anger, irritability, impatience, loss of sleep, floor-pacing anxiety and even manic eating, among other things.

The thing is, I believe that we have some control over our emotional states (I say that, preaching to myself as much as to anyone). However I also believe that our control gets overshadowed by how we go about evaluating our lives. St. Paul said, "by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned."

I suppose that, in part at least, Paul was saying your life is in God's hands. Don't get carried away with all the details and circumstances that seem so very important in light of the world's standards..."each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned." Then he might quote Jesus from the 14th Chapter of John when he says, "My peace I give to you ; yet not as the world gives." 

By the way, this has come from just being in traffic with some very tense people, after being in a grocery store with some very tense people. 

Peace to you, my friends.