I am a big fan of the Buddhist teaching and writings of Thich Nhat Hanh, he is such a thoughtful and mindful person and it is reflected in all of his works. While Everyday Peace Cards was not written specifically by Hanh, the adaptation from his work, Your True Home: The Everyday WIsdom of Thich Nhat Hanh is beautifully done by the author in this compilation of mindful mediation cards.

The collection is holistic, from upon first waking these mediation cards will take you through breakfast, presence, the day, and into evening, rest and everything in between. There are cards to remind you to worry less, practice self care, reminders for joy of being present in the moment, staying true and returning to yourself, compassion, focus, awareness, and many more reminders and bits of wisdom to bring joy and peace to your day. Each is a reminder that we have something to be thankful for and he always finds a way to transform a negative thought into one that is bright and positive.

Without being too cheesy, I follow the mantra and mindset of “turn that frown upside down” as my approach to life. Each day I wake up that today is a new day and celebrate the gift of life and the joy of my family. I think this way to improve my mindset and share that positivity with those around me each day. Work is stressful and fast paced, rarely do people stop to chat in the halls and barely have time for a hello, but in my department I greet everyone with a big smile and a hello and I can see the effects. They smile when I come into view, greet me first, when normally they would walk on by. Everyone is fighting their own battles, if we can share a moment and brighten someone’s day that ripple effect can change a person’s outlook on their day, it can transform a department, change the world. I think we can all agree that it feels good to make someone else happy, and when someone is having a bad day, to be the one to make them forget their woes long enough to crack a smile or laugh. For these reasons, my favorite peace card is that of composting.

Composting: “Sorrow, fear, and depression are bits of garbage that are part of real life, and we must look deeply into their nature. You can practice in order to turn these bits of garbage into flowers. It is not only your love that is organic; your hate is, too. You don’t need to throw anything out. All you have to do is learn how to transform your garbage into flowers.”

We are all Gardeners in our own lives and those of others. We reap what we sow and to that same end, another card reaffirms we can change the world. If we, in our own mindful reflections, choose compassion and love over fear, depression or anger when they are the easiest to default we indeed bring more peace, love and compassion into the world. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. If life gives you garbage today, transform it into the flowers of tomorrow!

“Flowers and Garbage are both organic in nature. So looking deeply into the nature of a flower, you can see the presence of the compost and the garbage. The flower is also going to turn into garbage, but don’t be afraid! You are a gardener, and you have in your hands the power to transform garbage into flowers, into fruit, into vegetables. You don’t throw anything away, because you are not afraid of garbage. Your hands are capable of transforming it into flowers, or lettuce, or cucumbers.”

We Are Vast, and we can manifest our own miracles, the power of the mind is limitless and it serves us well to remind ourselves to slow down, breathe, and practice a few moments of peace and mindfulness in our day. Be positive, stay present, and peace to you on this day!