Tranquility .....

        As in, how to find some peace or tranquility in today's hectic life. I can't help but feel I have the advantage on you all at the moment, or on many of you perhaps. As I am able to sit in a tranquil space, surrounded on three sides by a small part of Brazils jungle. I hear the wind through the leaves, I see the brightly coloured butterflies flitting through the trees and sunshine, as well as hear the strange array of birdsong. Many of which I have never before experienced...it's truly a paradise. Especially to an English woman like myself. Even through I have lived in Australia, and New Zealand, both tropical and semi tropical places, they are nothing remotely like this place.

 Part of the jungle  

                         As sun is setting over another part, banana trees abound.

          Of course this is Brasil, South America. I know that not so far away, there will be dogs barking, or loud music playing. They are an exhuberant race, who like noise, music, dancing. Indeed. I was once told, it seems strange to many of them that the foreigners (such as I) don't play loud music all the time, or like be on the brink of a fiesta. There are dogs everywhere, who obviously feel they must compete to be just as noisy. Speaker vans drive around with music and dialog blaring, advertising all sorts of things, from politicians to night clubs. Sometimes you see a man on a bycycle, massive speaker fixed front or rear, doing the same thing.  He must surely be deaf by the time he goes home. Their sound levels break all decibel rules for most countries, but no one bats an eye. Dozens of small motor bikes zip around the roads, competing with lorries, cars and happy pedestrians. It is true I seldom see an unhappy face. Perhaps it's something to do with the sunshine. Oh yes, I see the odd crazy, but they are seen in every country, whether sunshine or rain.

      People sit at every sort of eating establishment you can imagine. Most of them spilling out onto the pavements, or the streets. Evn the places that sell alcohol are friendly and open. No skulking inside dark, low ceilinged pubs for Brasil. People calling out to friends, or aquaintances, or kissing cheeks in greeting. There is a lot of kissing goes on in Brasil, which I like a lot. Puts one in a good mood, beats a scowl anyday. Another reason for there to be less unhappy faces here perhaps.

                These large leaves make some of the more pleasant sounds, and beautiful too.

         So, you get my point that much of this place is noisy and hectic. So, perhaps tranquility is sometimes harder to find. That if why I choose the place I live, with regard to it being next to the jungle. Although it is still near the centre, you wouldn't know it. This is only a small place after all. When I was shown around the house, it was the outside space that sold it to me. Ahh, space, I thought, tranquility, uninterrupted  solitude if I choose. After a few years of living away from New Zealand and into England. Where the inside was squashed for space, the outside non existent, yes, it looked like heaven.

        Thus it has been...a retreat in the true sense of the word. What wakes me, is a raucous bird or two, or birdsong in general. I rise from my bed, throw open the double doors and there it all is...my jungle, my birds, my butterflies. As well as, somewhere in there, my monkeys, although so far I have missed seeing them. They like the bananas I leave them though. A treat for me, still to come. Yes, I know, they are not truly belonging to me, but for now they are. Wandering outside in my night clothes, for who is there to see me? I sit, close my eyes and listen. Then I open my eyes, listen and watch. Watching the leaves sway in the breeze, listening to the gentle sounds, birds calling, undergrowth rustling. Blessed silence, free from aggravation, or modern bustle.

        I know when I first built my meditation vista inside my head, as you do, it was a peaceful place. Nothing as exotic as this I have now, it was a grass bank, a lake, some trees for shade in the sun. Now, without having to build the picture, it is all there before my eyes. How lucky am I! All I can wish you all, is some of my luck. A place of your own to sit in tranquility, just to BE. Use one of these posted photographs, or design your own haven. Using somewhere you remember, or wish you did. Just ensure you find that small place, that precious time for a least five minutes, to half an hour a day for just enjoying the peace and the beauty. Nothing else.

       I wish you peace and tranquility. As a dear friend said to me, listen to your breath, be aware of your breathing, and of the sounds of nature around you. Connect one to the other, for maximum enjoyment.

                    Happy days......and seek beauty, always.