As we enter the fall season in the northern hemisphere, the southern hemisphere is about to flow into spring. Like yin and yang, our planet offers everything, everywhere, all at once.

However, no matter which hemisphere we reside in, during turbulent times of raging wars, inequality, environmental destruction, and climate change, calmness isn’t always a choice. Or is it?

Find calmness amidst the noise.

Complexities can seem scary, overwhelming, and anxiety or depression-inducing. Sometimes, we might ask ourselves: Are we going insane, or is the world around us going nuts?

This state of powerlessness can lead to escapism, like spiritual bypassing. In this state, we avoid looking deeply and default to confirmation biases. We numb our negative emotions or reactions to the unfairness we encounter or look the other way, telling ourselves, “I do me” and “you do you.”

This month, I invite you to reflect on the choice of calmness. What makes us still, and how can we find balance within to better deal with the outside? Take a look around and observe the calmness in the world. Does calmness come with perspective? How does knowing influence our ability to be still, and is ignorance really bliss?

Even though we can't change everything, everywhere, all at once, we can co-create fairness through awareness by thinking things through.

The Choice of Calmness
Live Composition on 5-string Electric Violin, Voice, and Percussion
55:32 Minutes
Recorded at Bodhi Tree Dharma, Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, 2024
℗ & © 2024 Markus Mars