The stress of today’s world can feel overwhelming.

Juggling daily affairs– kids, jobs, hectic schedules, relationships and the chaos of current events, can leave you feeling hopeless and helpless, exhausted.

Little by little you feel your life energy draining as if the ground beneath your feet is coming undone.

But there is a way you can create a magical bubble around yourself.

BE LIKE A TREE

With roots that dig deeply and branches that reach for the sky, you can find comfort in the Anchors of Truth and Integrity. Rooted in Love, Standing Still means you have the power to not only endure, but to calm the storm around you.

“When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world—‘No, you move.’” —J. Michael Straczynski, The Amazing Spider-Man

    There is a certain Calm that befalls us when we finally see the folly of the hurricane around us. We don’t have to be blown around like leaves in the wind.

    If you DO feel that way, allow me to show you Power you don’t know you have.

    A Power that will not only make you feel better but will contribute to calming the chaos around you.

    STANDING STILL IS STANDING UP

    A recent news story tugged heart strings. A family on vacation at a beach. Mom and Dad and three kids. A strong current grabbed the two older children. Dad didn’t think twice and dove in to save them. He does, he saves them, but he doesn’t make it himself.

    Stand Still means Standing Up, without hesitation.

    Have you ever wondered how you would react in an emergency? Would you run and save yourself, or stay to help others at your own risk? Perhaps we will never know the answer to that question unless and until that circumstance arises.

    Perhaps at some point in our childhoods, we were taught or given clear examples of the principle of Loving self-sacrifice. Perhaps not. The principle, however, is the “tree.”

    It’s that place deep in your soul where when you Stand grounded in Love, you simply do the “right thing,” not because you want to or choose to, but because it IS you.

    Love knows that life is about those moments when what is Good and Beautiful has the chance to Express Itself. That’s the Principle. That’s the ability to Stand rooted in Life-Giving Energy, that which is deeply rooted and grounded in Reality.

    That a father would of course— without hesitation– give his life for his kids is, indeed, a Beautiful thing. A God-like thing. It reveals the Truth of Integrity he was already grounded in.

    Standing Still means Standing Up in Love.

    “In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.” Thomas Jefferson

    STANDING STILL IS SITTING STILL

    On December 1,1955 Rosa Parks, parked herself on a city bus seat and refused to be moved by the racism of the day.

    A black woman refusing a white man required Courage, Courage not found in defiance or aggression but by being grounded in the Principle of Love, Equality and Fairness.

    The illusive shadowy forces of racism and entitlement may exert themselves; but they only succeed where there is fear, doubt and uncertainty.

    Standing Still draws forth a kind of Courage that is calm and unafraid. Because it simply STANDS STILL.

    Not pushing against. Not fighting. STANDING.

    “Be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” Abraham Lincoln

    STANDING STILL IS STANDING WITH

    Standing Still means Standing WITH your brothers and sisters.

    In the presence of blatant injustice and reckless persecution, Standing Still means Standing With– those being persecuted. Compassion is the “Connection” part of Love.

    Martin Luther King, Jr. said it perfectly, “injustice to some is injustice to all” meaning—what’s being done to you is the same as it being done to me.

    It’s Recognizing our innate Connection as human beings, as Divine Beings. Compassion is Love in action.

    Standing With your fellow mates, whether they are black, white, gay, straight, green, purple, or whatever they identify as, is simply a reflection of your own Connection, your roots grounded in the firm foundation of Love.

    Our modern-day protests, like all protests throughout history, could not exist without that deeply Connected foundation that ignites the kind of action and Courage that is fearless and unstoppable.

    It is an unmistakable experience to feel that surge of energy that springs forth from the Power of Love and Compassion deep within. That is Justice.

    Standing Still means Standing With anyone being unjustly persecuted.

    “A person with conviction doesn’t need a crowd – only a compass.”

    STANDING STILL IS STANDING BY

    Malala Yousafzai Stood By other girls in a country where girls are devalued. She Stood Still in the midst of the prevailing radical extremism of Pakistan in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, fearless in the face of death threats.

    On October 9, 2012, at just 15 years old, she was shot by the Taliban on her way home from school. When the young man came onto their bus and asked, “Who is Malala?” She responded, “I am Malala.”

    As the world became aware of her amazing bravery at such a young age, that term flooded the internet with everyone from Michelle Obama to Lady Gaga, posting the phrase, “I am Malala.”

    After surviving being shot in the head she went on to be the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.

    “One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher, can change the world.” Malala Yousefzai

    STANDING STILL IS STANDING IN POWER

    Mahatma Gandhi remains a clear example of what it means to Stand Still; Standing so firmly on a foundation of Love, he changed the entire course of history for a country and the world.

    Against the immense power of British rule, Gandhi chose the impossible path: nonviolent resistance. Truth—what he called satya—and nonviolence—ahimsa—were not passive ideas, but active forces. Standing Still meant Standing firm, so rooted in Love, no external pressure could budge it.

    In 1930, the Salt March demonstrated the Power of Standing, by walking. Rather than respond to unjust laws with aggression, Gandhi walked over 200 miles to the sea and made salt in defiance of British control.

    A simple act carried immense symbolic weight. Thousands followed, the world noticed.

    Gandhi was arrested. He was opposed. He endured hardship and criticism. But he did not waver.

    His strength was Standing in Principle, Standing in Power.

    What makes Gandhi’s story so powerful is not just that he stood firm, but how he stood. He did not become bitter. He did not become violent. He did not lose his sense of Compassion.

    Deep Alignment with Truth is Standing in Power, like a tree. Nothing can move you from a deeply rooted foundation in Love.

    “Whether humanity will consciously follow the law of love, I do not know. But that need not disturb me. The law will work just as the law of gravitation works whether we accept it or not.” Mahatma Ghandi

    STANDING STILL IS STAYING CALM

    So, whenever you find yourself on the verge, in the drama, stop, pause. Take a breath and Stand Still. Remember where you Power lies. It lies within you, grounded deeply in the unstoppable, indestructible Power of Love. Alignment is simply the choice to Stand Still and know.

    “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

    Recenter and come back to who you are, a wonderful Divine Being, Standing Still in the midst of illusion.

    When the winds of change blow your branches, tip your head back and laugh at the sky!

    Aloha!