We all feel it. The noise. The weight. The endless scroll of things we can’t fix. Somewhere underneath all of it, there’s a quiet craving. A word we don’t say out loud enough.

Peace.

That’s the word that came to me while I was doing a 40-minute Breathing With Sandy session, which I shared about last week in my letter. And now you might understand why I decided to give myself the time to reflect on it.

I decided that peace will be my word for this year. Not because it’s the opposite of something, but because it’s a place I feel called to.

And maybe you know this feeling too. That after a certain age, you start looking to embrace it with the cells of your body and soul.

The one within. The one that allows you to put down the hard inner voice, the comparison, the judgment, the unfriendly voice that asks you to push and do more…

But also, the outside voice that is louder and amplified with social media. Or the voice of your aunty who always has something to say about your life’s choices. The passive aggressive remarks from your coworkers on how you dressed up today…

All the outside voices that your brain slowly made yours and allowed to live rent free in your head.

Maybe peace has been on your mind too. Showing up in small signs you could see or hear everywhere around you. Something we all crave and don’t know how to reach, as if it’s a far away destination.

I was born in Switzerland, a country that doesn’t have a professional army. A country that is neutral and independent.

I grew up seeing young men in army outfits often in train stations going to do their mandatory service one month per year for ten years. They all have a rifle (SIG SG 550) that they keep at home until they are done with their service. No accident has been widely reported or notable accident involved since my birth year—1983—for reference.

That’s the culture I grew up in.

The contrast is pretty intense when I see now where I live and how some countries seem to only be interested in investing in wars.

To be honest, I don’t have a clear answer. I have empathy and pain for all of it. Each time I check a trusted source for the news, the hopelessness creeps in. Add the stress of being an immigrant or any soul in the US, some days I just feel claustrophobic.

But after a nine-hour night of sleep, I come back to myself. I return to the ground of my belief that investing in personal peace might help others find it too.

So, I wonder how to get peace within when the world seems to be in a tornado of violence, climate change, economic crashes, sexual misconduct, no justice…? What do you do to face that wave of overwhelming negativity? Can people be content with what they have, without wanting to get someone else’s inner power or life?

I feel powerless facing all the political issues. I know why it’s happening and I just can’t deal with it. Not because I’m avoiding it. Because I genuinely don’t know how to change the situation.

But here’s what I do have: my voice. My words. The ability to close accounts of companies that invest in horrible crimes. The choice to keep sharing my heart here. Helping other souls to empower themselves to build a life they’re proud of and, most importantly, find peace within themselves.

Peace leads to self-acceptance and love. The more we look into who we are, find a way to understand ourselves better, the more we are able to give peace to others too. We become more present and see others’ flows as similar to ours. We are no longer looking at differences as a separation, a boundary, between us and others. We can look as a way to understand ourselves better and have empathy for the world.

I want to look within and remember what I am made of: peace.

And you are too. No matter the ancestral traumas, the challenges you faced until now, the people you surround yourself with, the job that you do just to pay the bill...

You can be and own peace through all the cells of your body. But for that you have to be willing to look within and find what is shaking, troubling, covering your peace.

Be gentle. Be curious. Ask questions. Receive with care what comes up. No place for judgment, or for blame.

You are enough. You are loved. And you deserve to feel peace.

That’s how we heal the world. Starting by you. me. them...

My personal way to practice inner peace is about getting back into my body. If you ever feel overwhelmed or have spinning thoughts, try to find a way to return to the present moment. Doing the things that remind you who you are, what makes you feel alive and happy, is really key.

It doesn’t mean that you are avoiding the reality of the world. It’s being a part of it.

I think technology empowered too many voices and got us totally disconnected. That’s why we talk so much about “touching grass” these days. To ground ourselves. Meditating to learn to free our mind from our thoughts, to get used to being in the present moment.

That’s why I practice more and more breathing exercises.

When I say the word “peace” out loud I feel my nervous system sync and grow calm. I feel a craving for more. Like when my body is calling for a bath in the ocean, soft sounds of nature, smelling the flowers around, the wind on my skin with all the smells and sounds that it carries…

The simplicity of life and what we have access to that doesn’t cost.

So now I’m asking you to do the same. Not to have the answers. Just to come back. To notice where you are. To let your body remember what peace feels like.

I want to add a question for you today’s New Moon in Aries. If you are into astrology you know that this week is a special one. If you want to know more read the article of Venus - April 17 Is Not a Fresh Start. It's a Point of No Return..

Here’s what she suggested to look into today:

What do you actually want, and what are you willing to do about it?

I will be happy to read your thoughts on peace.
I read every response.

With gratitude,
Nina

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