My grandmother's village was the kind of peaceful haven we're all probably searching for right now.
I would spend hours on my own observing the grass, watching the ants live their lives, reading, sitting in a tree or simply wandering about.
Doing nothing was normal, although I was certainly hoping for more at times.
And it wasn't just me.
My grandmother would return from working in the fields, make lunch and then simply lie down — not to sleep, but to be.
People in the village practised this in different ways. Sometimes they would sit on a little chair in front of their house at the end of a long day of work and just be.
Have you noticed how unnatural it can feel to simply sit in silence?
Not to think, figure out a problem, daydream, replay a conversation or create a to-do list.
But simply to be.
As a natural end to the day. As a pause in the middle of a day that feels taxing.
Or just because.
This goes against so much of what our modern lives teach us.
Our bodies and minds have become accustomed to different habits, many of which exhaust and drain us over time.
Our brains need moments of silence during the day. Our nervous systems need to remember that it's okay to slow down.
And our souls need time to be heard.
The soul whispers more than it shouts.
We need time to simply be.
Not necessarily to sit down in meditation — yet another task on the to-do list that might feel burdensome to the mind — but to simply exist and rest.
It might feel strange now, in a world that rarely seems to stop.
After all, so much appears to be happening right there on our phones, or on the laptops sitting on our desks.
And yet, sometimes, nothing much is happening at all.
Nothing of true benefit or relevance to us beyond a few fleeting moments.
It's okay to pause.
Our minds need it. Our souls need it. Our bodies crave it, even when they don't know how to say it.
I hope you try it.
Just sit there, even for five minutes, without deliberately occupying your mind.
And if you suddenly feel restless, sad or deeply lonely, allow yourself to be there with all of it.
Perhaps this is what the noise was hiding.
And beyond it, you can find yourself.