contentment

i can not offer advice, but can only share the amazing experiences i have most recently had. what i have to share has changed my life into one of peace, contentment, reduced stress, and appreciation for moments that would have once passed unnoticed. while i have not written in very long, i have been thinking and wishing i could share all that has happened. while this will not be an entry exactly retelling each experience i have had, it will sum them up into one great experience that has again changed my life.

as i sit here on the deck, laying in the sun i can just see the horizon of the mountains in the distance above the line of the railing. i can hear the birds chirping and the slight buzz of the traffic below in sandvika. the music playing on my computer allows me to slip into the moment and realize what a blessed thing it is to be here, to find this, to validate the importance and joy in each and every moment.

my mind reaches back into an experience as recent as last night...when it was my turn to be there for a friend, a friend that has taught me how to love myself and have a greater appreciation for life. this friend is nearly 7 years younger than me, but has taught me more in 6 months about life, and so inadvertantly, than i have learned in the nearly 23 years ive been alive. as i sat there and listened, i realized how much the simple love for a friend can change how you feel about many things in life...and it can truly be seen when one opens up and reveals their true feelings and emotions. its deeper than the surface and its the true soul of another human being showing through. while people say life shouldnt be about other people and pleasing others, there is no greater feeling in life than the love for a friend or another human, which is displayed through simple acts that prove trust, honesty, and reality.

so this leads to a realization of how amazing each moment is and how to appreciate the small things. but what can you do when you dont have people like that in your life? what do you do, how do you appreciate things and understand yourself. it all begins to fall into place when you learn to be honest with how you yourself feel. when you are frustrated, happy, sad..whatever it be, you have to be conscious of the emotions you feel, and if they are negative, then it needs to be released. to be put in perspective, and entirely let go, as to not affect the optimism of your life.

things wont always go your way, but with the realization that its just a passing moment, the stress of it can be obliterated. a few deeps breaths and thoughts of the things that really matter, can change everything.

it took coming to norway for me to find this. an internal peace so surreal that something as simple as walking home at 3 in the morning, freezing cold and breathing heaving from carrying a bike up a path in the woods can be an event that makes you smile and feel a warm joy through your heart--just happy to be able to live the life you do. it cant be explained, only experienced...but in order to experience it you have to be open to it. you have to be willing to look, to fail, to be wrong.

and as for norway...there is just something here, something that allows one to find this. perhaps its that this quality is ingrained in the way children are raised, perhaps its the simplicity of life or the cultural stress on the importance of family and always putting others first. perhaps its the tradition of taking more vacation time than any country in the world, or the national pride exhuberantly celebrated every day. its not easy to determine why this civilzation seems to be a entirely different world than the one i was brought up in--its so familiar and comfortable, while still entirely opposite of everything i once thought i knew.

and i feel it is possible for every human being to find this peace..it all begins with an awareness. an awareness of emotions, reactions, appreciations and others. a consciousness of remembering to put others first, an open mind, and listening to more than just the words a person says. life is more precious than we understand, and we will only begin to realize it once we take a minute to slow down and see all the positive things.

everyone of you that reads this, or doesn't...come to norway if you want and experience it for yourself. or stay right where you are and try to find it there. its not impossible, just hidden...but it will make the difference of a lifetime.