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Peace. Freedom from disturbance. Tranquility. What gives me peace? I feel at peace when I hang out with my friends and talk about meaningful things. I feel at peace when I am caught up on work. I feel at peace when I am reading a new chapter of one of my favorite mangas. I feel at peace when I am reading a good book. I feel at peace when I am watching a good movie. I feel at peace when I am with my family. I feel at peace when I am doing something that I love. Feeling at peace right now as I write this, even amidst all the chaos that is taking over the United States, even amidst the riots and the protests, even amidst the media inciting people to violence, even amidst what would cause turmoil in my own heart. I find peace because I choose to look for it. I choose not to let things tear me down, but rather to observe and adapt to what happens so that I can keep doing what I love without intervention. When the world is caught up in flames, I will walk around smiling because I have a bucket of water in my hands wherever I go. The enemy of peace is worry, stress, and anxiety. I keep those at bay with a simple fix.

My previous boss was a fix-it kind of guy. When there was a problem, he would call me into the office and ask for advice, then give a single direction to get rid of it as fast as possible. He would never wait for something to sit and fester, but would rather n** it at it's core and be done with it. However, there were some problems that could never be fixed, in which case a new approach had to be taken. In my daily life, there are things that can be fixed, in which case I will fix them to the best of my ability as fast as I can. However, there will always be a problem that is outside of my immediate control. I cannot fix the coronavirus and I cannot fix the riots. I can't stop someone from aging and dying. I cannot cure cancer. However, I can do something else. Whenever a problem came up that my previous boss couldn't handle, he would give it to his boss and let him handle it, at which point my old boss would stop worrying. There is no reason to worry about something that is out of our control because all that would come about it would be stress, worry, and anxiety. Rather than dealing with such an event with worry, prepare for the worst and live for the best. If the world is on fire, bring a bucket of water and smile.

I think we all need to be a fix-it kind of person, where we have immediate solutions or give it up to someone who is more capable and stop worrying about it. If things are too hard, we simply come up with a way to cope and move on. For me, I give all my problems up to God, anything that causes me stress or worry, anything that I know I can't do alone and that is out of my control. This helps me to love life. I also do my best to have simple solutions to complex ethical problems that I face and do my best to stand up for what is morally right just to keep my conscious clear regardless of consequences. When faced with something that is unavoidable, adapting to the problem and giving it to God keeps me sane and at peace. I encourage you to give your troubles and worries away. Stressing over things that are beyond your control will cause you more pain and that is a poor way to live your life. Whether you believe in God or not, the principle here is to stop worrying over things beyond your control and to come up with quick, simple solutions to problems in your life, as worry, anxiety, and stress are enemies of peace.