Once I had a spiritual awakening, everything suddenly shifted for me.

Before that, I was only aware of the world on the front side of my eyeballs. The Tao describes it as the Ten Thousand Things. I’ve also heard it described as the place of “sharp edges and twisted knots.” That’s the world on the front side of my eyeballs—the physical world, where all of the stuff and problems seem to exist.

I find those descriptions to be remarkably accurate. My life experience has certainly had its share of sharp edges and twisted knots.

When I became spiritually aware of myself, I also became aware of this internal universe, where all life is connected.

I learned that I can shift my internal perspective, and many of those knots either untie themselves… or disappeared completely.

The more I focused on my spiritual health and recovery, the more my physical world improved in every regard. It wasn’t that the world changed as much as my relationship with it changed. And because of that, many of those knots seemed to untie themselves.

The more I explore this spiritual universe, the more ways I find to connect with other people. As I became aware of how my own spirit both affects and is affected by others, my relationships began to improve.

And as my relationships improved, more peace and joy flowed into my life.

That’s why I meditate every morning. Unless I consciously practice becoming aware of my spirit, that awareness gradually fades.

All of the peace I’ve ever found comes from the universe inside. That’s why they call it inner peace. To me, it’s the most priceless thing there is. I know millionaires who don’t have it.

So I meditate every morning to remember this universe in here, where all the peace is. I don’t want to forget how to get here, so I practice every day.

When I’m done meditating, I go to work in the Land of Ten Thousand Things—the world of sharp edges and twisted knots. Out here, in the physical universe, life often becomes a series of problems to solve. The end of one problem is simply the beginning of the next.

It only appears that way because I’m human. Humans are, by nature, problem solvers. We’re the caretakers and custodians of this little planet. Solving problems is part of our role in the circle of life. So problems keep coming. That’s simply what this world does.

If I don’t meditate, I gradually lose awareness of this internal universe, where all the peace is. Eventually I find myself living almost entirely in the physical world, swimming in problems, sharp edges, twisted knots and forgetting that there’s another place from which to experience all of it.

Anyway, I love you all.

Thank you for reading.