2020 was the start of an anticipated decade, one that has been spoken about for many years and projected as the epicentre for many awesome inventions. The hopes we had for this decade seem to have all gone south with the announcement of the Global Virus- COVID-19 or maybe not. Maybe 2020 was the year to learn many great lessons.
The ramification of this announcement shook us to our very core and life as we knew it ceased to exist. With several lockdowns, we as humans have quickly adjusted and found ways to cope with the high levels of worry and anxiety.
One of the methods many have imbibed is finding peaceful places. A space to rest one’s eyes, settle the mind, think, feel, meditate and bask in the moment. A place one can find freedom from negativity and welcome positive energy that flood one’s mind with lofty thoughts.
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During the pandemic, we were good at sanitising our social media and only following accounts that “spark joy”. Cleansing this online space of any triggering pages that may evoke comparison or destination photo envy.
The Global Virus put everyone on a level playing field and in a poignant way reminded us of one fact- we are the same humans, having very similar human experiences and feeling the same myriad human emotions. This situation in a sense was a unique Global Equalizer.
As the days of lockdown turned into months and a scenario once thought impossible started to materialise as possible, we began to foster positive habits, ones which we should be keen to keep and progress with positively- days, weeks, months and indeed years after the lockdown eases up.
During the lockdown, we enjoyed slow living, be it just enjoying the garden and breathing in that good prana or smelling the coffee now we don’t have to rush to finish our cuppa before hopping on the Jubilee Line heading to Baker Street in Central London for work.
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We also fostered meaningful relationships that served a positive purpose in our lives, one where we could quantify the value-added. We were able to tell the wood from the trees a bit more vividly and centred our daily activities around the age-old adage “it is the little things that matter”.
Over a year in and we found it necessary to unplug from the digital world to give our minds a break from endless scrolling and watching movies for the sake of it, engaging in content that makes us feel off and quite frankly app hopping with no real purpose in mind. You are not alone, we are all quite guilty of these. Unplugging has done wonders to our psyche and this is one of the positive habits we want to see beyond lockdown.
With lockdown all over England easing up and life now resembling something quite familiar, we must be reminded to keep peaceful places at the forefront of our daily routine. The habit of prioritising self-care is important to continue with, where we check in with ourselves to better understand our emotions and carry on learning what affects our moods and why.
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Peaceful Places in the Mind
These days peace is the new Rich. Modern society is sometimes noisy with so much going on visually, so filtering even more noise from the mind can feel like a chore.
Mind, they say is the Master, so we must protect our mind’s influences and energy. To guard it passionately from any potential negative content and flood it with a healthy dose of positive information, actively working with more focus and purpose.
To ensure we are keeping with Mossonyi’s post lockdown mantra “peaceful places in the mind, online and at home” with ‘balance’ as our new lifestyle watchword, we have detailed 3 tools to help us along our journey of adopting a more peaceful mind(set).
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Mindfulness, Meditation and Trigger Protection
These are three methods of dwelling within peaceful spaces, basking in the here and now and living mindfully.
Mindfulness
Paying attention to the thoughts and feelings we experience in the present moment helps improve mental wellbeing and an appreciation for the lives we live. We gain more enjoyment and relish the little details. Portal is a Mindfulness app that uses nature’s relaxing sounds and promises to transport us to a log fire burning slowly in Switzerland or the waves of the deep blue Hawaii waters crashing on the beach. One of the amazing mindful features the Portal app offers is the ability to mix the audio sounds, to create an extra special ambience to play in the background while listening to podcasts or audiobooks.
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Meditation
The Meditation and sleep app Calm is a fantastic tool in centring one’s mind and quieting the noise. The sound of soft raindrops can be so soothing enough to allow one to zone out and relax. Another sound that is surprisingly very calming on the app, is the soothing crackling sound of fire burning. The Calm app also offers bedtime stories and a wide range of calming resources.
Trigger Protection
This soothing piece of music with healing powers by Jhené Aiko titled ‘Trigger Protection Mantra’ is powerful. This Trigger Protection mantra is effective for situations where immediate calm is required. The mantra centres around calming down and protecting one’s energy. This Youtube one hour loop uploaded by a YT influencer is also very popular.
Peaceful Places Online
The online space can sometimes overwhelm our senses with myriad pictures, colours, shades and shapes. There is an urgent need to follow influencers whose craft make us feel peaceful and calm. This way we find peaceful places on the internet, somewhere we can relax our eyes, soothe our minds and calm our souls.
We have featured three creatives whose soft craft showcases “pockets of peace”, soothing words and calming art.
Nabela
Nabela is an Entrepreneur, Artist and Social Media Influencer, who is the founder and CEO of @zeba and @noorhouse. Her social media emphasises her aim to “redefine beauty one post at a time”. Nabela’s soothing creation “pockets of peace” started as “a therapeutic method of coping – but it quickly transformed into something deeper and more meaningful than I could have ever imagined.”
She can be seen in her many videos on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube cooking the most aesthetically pleasing food, tending to her home which features mother-nature hues and arranging multicoloured flowers in beautiful vases. In the background, soothing music playing to calm the mind and for a moment giving the grace to allow worry and anxiety to wash away while enjoying the elements in her videos harmoniously create a calming story.
Morgan Harper Nichols
Morgan Harper Nichols is an Artist and Poet who is the brain behind the luminous Instagram squares that bring hope, refreshes the soul and is one of the most peaceful places on Instagram to rest one’s eyes. Her work is inspired by “stories, conversations and everyday”.
Morgan’s art infuses inspiring words with radiant colour-blended images that soothe and invigorate the on-looker with positive energy.
Hannah Matcha
Hannah Matcha is an Artist and Freelance Social Media Manager, whose message centres around slow travel, green spaces and highlights nature in all its green glory.
Hannah’s space on Instagram is a peaceful place to experience art that focuses on nature’s fine intricate detail. Green is a soothing, peaceful colour and there is an abundance of this on her squares. She showcases the power plants have to heal, soften and bring peace.
Peaceful Places at Home
Home ideally should resemble a serene sanctuary that “sparks joy” and evokes peace and serenity. A cocoon-like space to retreat to after leaving the chaotic, noisy and sometimes negative world behind. An intentional well-curated space is imperative to find peace and be happy at home. This tranquil space goes beyond purchasing pricey furniture, however, starting with simple and mindful choices to create a stress-free zone that allows peace to thrive.
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KonMarie Method
The KonMari Method™ by Marie Kondo “encourages tidying by category – not by location – beginning with clothes, then moving on to books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items), and, finally, sentimental items. Keep only those things that speak to the heart, and discard items that no longer spark joy. Thank them for their service – then let them go.”
This method has been adopted by many around the world and generated positive testaments about how this method centres on mindful living, introspective choices, and places value only on items that yield positive emotions.
To allow for a more peaceful space, clutter has to be a thing of the past and each item to have a purposeful home.
Feng-Shui
The ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui translates to “water and wind.” This practice helps people align their energies with their surroundings. The key to successful Feng Shui is in placing all furniture within one’s abode strategically to allow for the seamless flow of positive energy in a streamlined never-breaking-the-flow manner. So, it is important to make space for energy to flow under sofas, around bookcases, through doors and windows to create synergy.
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Plant Power
When looking for a peaceful space, one often goes in search of a botanical garden that features many plants, flowers and trees. So, the logic is the same when looking to bring peace into a home, as plant power has the potential to do the magic. Evergreen indoor plants are all the rave and can bring a certain radiant vibe when arranged in pairs or trios. They also serve as toxin eliminators, as well as re-oxygenating your space. Many evergreen plants are low maintenance, so weekly watering will do the trick.
Peace is underrated and the Global pandemic has taught us we can’t have too much of it. From focussing on ourselves mindfully to unplugging from tech and staying home to meditate, we have learned that the little details do matter a lot.
As we carry on on our quest to introduce more peaceful places into our lives, may we keep our eyes firmly on the end goal which is flooding our minds, online spaces and homes with positive thoughts, positive influences and positive energy to promote peace within our tranquil spaces.
Chichi is a Writer, Lifestyle Creative and Mum, who uses word artistry to paint pictures of life’s simple luxuries, whilst in the same breath harnessing the power of storytelling to encourage positivity.
She is the Founder and Creative Director of @mumsnation, a platform where she shares celebratory stories of fiercely fabulous mums.
Her work can be found on chichimorris.com and her social media @thechichimorris @mumsnation
