People find solace in different places. Sitting down anywhere by water instantly lowers my blood pressure by 10 points.  Moving to the lake is probably the healthiest thing I’ve done in the past six years.  My friend Deb prefers the mountains. Large bodies of water make her nervous. I think it all started when she saw Jaws as a child.

Retreat and solace involve calm and quiet which seem to be rare commodities these days.  Activity gives energy to some people, but the constant bombardment of noise wears me down.   Maybe my life has been so loud for so many years, I need a break.

Whenever possible, I watch peaceful people to see if I can learn how they stay that way.  By their smiles, I’m sure many of them are on strong prescriptions.   Personality has to play into the mix in some way and surely those who live in the city are more jazzed up than rural dwellers.

I read something once that said peace is not the absence of confusion, it’s finding the calm in the middle of all the confusion.  That kind of bites since it puts the responsibility on me instead of my circumstances.  

Maybe I need to take more walks.  Every time it got too noisy for Jesus, he took a walk.  And come to think of it, many of those walks were by large bodies of water.

I got a phone call not long ago that started out pleasant enough, but out of nowhere, it turned really ugly. The caller was so angry, not at me, just flat out angry, I think at the whole world and some things were said that stung like blowing sand. Nothing bad enough to injure, but enough to aggravate and burn. It kept coming and nothing was calming down so when I got a chance I said, “Oh, look at the time. Have to run. Bye for now.”

I flopped back in the chair and realized this was one of those pivotal moments when a choice has to be made. Do I let this obviously bitter, enraged person mess with my mind or am Teflon? I let it mess with me for a little while, then I realized I’m better off Teflon.

Teflon is one of my favorite inventions, right up there with caller ID. Nothing sticks to good Teflon, it just slides right off. Even the worst burned mess will come off with just a little water.

When hurtful things are said and done we all have a choice, we can be Teflon or Velcro. When we allow things to stick instead of slide the temptation is to rehash and replay over and over. I’d like to be to the point when anything potentially damaging is said I’d think, “Oh, whatever”, and let it roll.

You don’t have to be a beauty pageant contestant to want world peace, or just some personal peace. We’re all calm when everything around us is calm, which is rare. The challenge is this: if you want your world under control and peaceful, you have to be under control and peaceful. The people around us can’t give us peace. It has to come from inside us. If the rest of the world can’t give us peace, then they shouldn’t be able to take it away either. Teflon is the way to go.

“A heart at peace gives life to the body...”
-Proverbs 14:30