This time last year, there was a lot of uncertainty.  We won’t go into details, but if you don’t remember, good for you! And here we are at Thanksgiving again.  Decades ago, G. K. Chesterton wrote,  “You say grace before meals. All right. But I say grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.” We say grace – or thank you -- to you who read our blogs, attend our webinars, share our posts and tweets and support us financially.  We relish the comments on Facebook or by email and love the ideas and suggestions you send our way.   Alive ‘n Well is thrive ‘n weller with you and we thank you! And we couldn’t be more grateful to the many who have purchased our new book, “Class is (Always) In Session.”  If you haven’t already, the link to do so is included in this post. Our sincere desire for you is that when you sit down this Thanksgiving—whether alone or with many—at a sumptuous feast or merely leftovers—you are filled with a gratitude that transcends food, football or any feelings, really.  We hope you are mindful of the gift of your unique presence in this world; that you matter. As we began with a quote, so we end.  This from Thornton Wilder:  “We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.” Have a graceful Thanksgiving and may your hearts and minds be full of the many treasures of life!

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My brother Jim used to travel by plane for his work a lot more than he does now.  And for a while, so did I.  In an amazing coincidence, once he called me while we were both inside the Twin Cities airport in Minnesota- he was leaving and I was arriving.  No time to meet, but we laughed at the irony -closer than a mile and yet connected only by phone. The other night, my niece gave us a concert via Zoom.  Probably 1400 miles away and connected by smiles and sounds.  Two people can live in the same house or sit in the same pew in Church and the distance can be felt more than a mechanical kiss or perfunctory sign of peace. Alice and I recently watched a documentary of a woman who was raised in the Arctic, went back again in her 20s and then again in her 50s.  She told lessons of survival, simplicity, gratitude and strength.  And then I read an article in the Times about a 37-year-old woman diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer rejecting the idea of a bucket list.  She just wanted to enjoy living and loving and experiencing life as she could. What do airports have to do with the Arctic and technology with terminal illness?  It’s about being awake, aware, alive and in touch with what is going on now- certainly outside of me (what I can change) but most acutely that truth that is deep within.  Nothing is as close to us as the true self that so wonderfully bugs us to live in freedom and joy.

I heard it said that failure is simply early attempts at success. It’s important to realize that what we learn from our failures can be important stepping stones. Listen to some of the experts: "No pressure, no diamonds." -Mary Case "I have not failed; I have just found 10,000 ways that don't work."  -Thomas Edison "Failure is just the opportunity to begin again; this time more intelligently." -Henry Ford "It's not that I'm so smart; I just stay with the problems longer." -Albert Einstein "When you are going through hell... keep going!" -Winston Churchill ' When we train ourselves to look at "failures" as learning experiences and course corrections, obstacles become teachers and setbacks are part of the curriculum.  Einstein said, "If I only have an hour to solve a problem, I will spend 55 minutes asking the right question and then 5 minutes solving the problem." So what's the question you need to ask at this moment?  What can get you from the life you are living now to the life you know you want to live?  Do the "gremlins" taunt you that you can't or do you allow the mind monkeys to rattle your mental cage with negativity? What's the best version of your life?  Are you living it now?  Why not? This last Wednesday of August is a golden opportunity for us to take inventory of what’s going on in our life and where we’re headed (perhaps you've heard that "if you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there"). Last year I read A Year to Live by Stephen Levine (Bell Tower, 1997). Having been a hospice worker for many years, he accompanied the dying and knows the territory surrounding the last days of people's lives.  And so he embarked on a year-long experiment to "practice dying as the highest form of wisdom" (Socrates) and shared how such conscious living forces us to examine our priorities. Regarding the subject of near-death occurrences, he writes: Most who returned from such an experience came back with three very precious insights: an increased appreciation of life, a diminished fear of death, and a new sense of purpose (p. 123). So as we end August, imagine how you want this month to end and perhaps a new version of your life to begin.

When my wife and I began to make our home together, we went through the collective stuff we brought along. Alice's mother had passed away not long before and we had her stuff in a closet-  old cookbooks, quilter's magazines, postcards and meticulously detailed financial records.  Then we saw a box that was labeled "old negatives."  I knew what they were- those strips of celluloid that accompanied photos the store developed for you (remember that we actually had to wait a week to have our Kodak moments processed?). But I got to thinking- how many "old negatives" do we carry around? Moments in time that stand still:  being bullied in 4th grade, overlooked by family when we did something extraordinary, decades-old disagreements... so many snarled snapshots of the past when an argument, break-up or accusation was transferred onto our mind's canvas... and whenever a thought, memory, smell or emotion brings it up, the curtains open and the drama is re-played. THERE'S A DIFFERENT WAY TO LIVE.  What if we learned to cultivate "new positives"?  Imagine if we had a mantra for tough days that went something like, "This is only how my life looks like now..."  Is it possible for you to think forward, have a future memory and just know that your life is beginning to look like you want it?  Wouldn't it be much more life-giving to have new positives beckon you onward rather than define yourself by the crippled story of old negatives? The late Anthony DeMello writes: Imagine that you're unwell and in a foul mood, and they're taking you through some lovely countryside. The landscape is beautiful but you're not in the mood to see anything. A few days later you pass the same place and you say, "Good heavens, where was I that I didn't notice all of this"? Everything becomes beautiful when you change. Or you look at the trees and the mountains through windows that are wet with rain from a storm, and everything looks blurred and shapeless. You want to go right out there and change those trees, change those mountains. Wait a minute, let's examine your window. When the storm ceases and the rain stops, and you look out the window, you say, "Well, how different everything looks". We see people and things not as they are, but as we are. That is why when two people look at something or someone, you get two different reactions. Put this program into action, a thousand times: (a) identify the negative feelings in you; (b) understand that they are in you, not in the world, not in external reality; (c) do not see them as an essential part of "I"; these things come and go; (d) understand that when you change, everything changes.

"Will you get your steps in today?" "Did you get a badge?" "What was your average HR during your walk?" If you don't understand these questions, you probably don't have a smartwatch or fitness tracker.  To call our business Alive 'n Well means that literally we are "walking the walk."  Except for the occasional all-day rain, daily we get outside and get our exercise- either walking, running or biking:  usually around 3 miles.  Saturdays we try to go for more than 6.  I promise that I’m not saying this to impress you but to encourage you.  Back to steps… Did you know that the now sacred bar of "getting in your 10,000 steps" has its origins in a Japenese company that invented a device in 1965 called Manpo-kei, which translates to “10,000 steps meter" (there are crazy stories of competition among fitness fakes who have put their Apple watchers or Fitbits on fast dogs or fan blades to inflate their numbers). But whether you're doing your 10K steps for bragging rights or bolstering your immune system, what I like about walking is that it gets us outside into unconditioned air:  time to admire lawns and gardens; wave to neighbors and other walkers; look for hawks; listen for the great-horned owl; smell gardenias and jasmine; identify planets and stars.   It's so good to stretch our legs after time at our desks; it is said that too much sitting is the new smoking. Do you remember the walkman (I still have one) that played a cassette tape (I do not have any😜)?  How about the fact that the name of the product was telling us to get moving!  Love it. So I say to you:  walkwoman, walkman!  If you can and are able, get outside and move your legs.  It's not only good for your body but also refreshing for your mind.  Nietzsche once said, “It is only ideas gained from walking that have any worth.” Thoreau, another avid walker, claimed, “The moment my legs begin to move my thoughts begin to flow.” So, if you don't like the outdoors (heat, skeeters, the virus, sidewalk cracks and other obstacles), walk indoors:  plug in the treadmill; go up and down the stairs or just one step; walk around the couch or kitchen.  If you don’t feel alive and well, get up and Walkman!

I have to tell you that this happens every time I watch the Olympic Games.  I see mostly young people, highly trained, incredibly motivated, disciplined and driven!  They have been working for this moment for a long time:  to go farther, faster, higher, longer- in water, on ice, in the air, on snow, in a court, on a field.  You see citizens of the world competing—or literally in hand-to-hand combat like judo or boxing—fighting to win.  And then there is the moment of congratulations and, even through disappointment, sportspersonship carries the day as the runner up or Bronze medalist congratulates the others. And every time I watch these citizens of nearly every country, I wonder why we can’t live this way:  in peace, mutual respect and international cooperation.  The Olympics motto is “We move forward when we move together.”  And the organizing committee for the Tokyo Olympics adds “United by Emotion.”  I remember in the Cold War of the 80s wanting America to win more medals than Russia.  Unfortunately, it’s also when the stockpiling of nuclear warheads was of Olympic proportions and the concept of MAD- mutually assured destruction- had people wondering if might was just not right. Even if you’re not a sports enthusiast, the opening and closing ceremonies can’t help but bring to mind our better angels- who we really are as a global village showcasing the best from our little block of the neighborhood.  During the sailing portion of the Seoul Olympics of 1998, Canadian sailor Lawrence Lemieux abandoned his race mid-competition to help Singaporeans, whose boat had capsized under 35-knot winds, leaving the pair in danger of being carried out to sea. Lemieux, who was on course to finish second in that day’s race, threw away his medal chances to help them out. He battled through harsh currents and forceful winds to ensure his competitors’ safety. With Covid, terrorism, hackers and corrupt organizations, we should offer medals to those who make this world safer, stronger, friendlier and sturdier.

Last week I spoke with a friend who retired from his 50-year practice as a doctor.  At first, it was a bit jarring, he admitted; but eventually, he is happier and lighter and freer.  I told him that he made his transition well.  Some folks don’t fare the same.  Speaking of transitions, In a podcast I heard a while ago, a professional sportsman told a familiar story:  early success, lots of money, a big house, supportive wife and two kids.  Then the story went to a place familiar only to some readers- he revealed that he had cancer.  When the doctor informed him of this fact, his response was not "Why me?" but rather "Why not me?"  As a life coach, I wonder how this person was able to be ready for this news, this new normal, this "sentence." By naming our website and initiative "Alive 'n Well", we know that many people are quite the opposite:  ailing and suffering...and we know there are those who are sick and tired of being sick and tired!  This is precisely why we felt compelled to begin something so positive-sounding and health-promoting.  We are also aware that there are people who are doing "okay" but could be consciously or unconsciously contributing to--or absorbing--the negativity that is rife during these strange times.  We want to do our part and lessen the impact of this kind of negativity.  Whether you are busy working or working to keep busy; tired or retired; have chronic pain or are one… we are here for you.

Ross Gay in his work called “A Book of Delights” has an essay entitled “Tomato on Board” which begins: “What you don’t know until you carry a tomato seedling through the airport and onto a plane is that carrying a tomato seedling through the airport and onto a plane will make people smile at you almost like you’re carrying a baby.” Gay goes on to talk about a flight attendant’s concern for the plant as well as fellow passengers.  I can understand this.  I think there is something in all of us that appreciates tenderness and care- whether we see a father stooping to give something to a baby in a carriage, a grandmother on the carpet with a playful puppy or teenager and a pony.  To give care is to bring up—let surface—the love and compassion from within.  You can’t manufacture nor fake that kind of love.  It’s solid when it emanates from the truest place in you. I remember in the 70s learning that some football players were given dance and tap lessons to better move on the field.  What if we treated each other like vulnerable tomato seedlings?  What’s better- imagine if doing so allowed us to nurture and grow what has already been planted inside us?

The other day, Alice and I were waiting our turn to speak with our health insurance provider.  It was our first time at their new office and it was brand new.  However, they forget to provide privacy rooms for the clients.  I promise you on the Stanley Cup that I was not trying to eaves drop.  But because of the man’s passion and volume (he was upset and large), I found out that besides issues with coverage of mounting bills and some doctors’ rejections, he told the associate (and everyone in the room) that he has cancer.  I’m old enough to remember when this word, like being pregnant, was whispered if avoided in polite company.  But he mentioned his condition as if it were athlete’s foot or arthritis.  Many years ago a friend told me that she had cancer but cancer didn’t have her.  Rose was a fighter and made the most of the few years she lived after the diagnosis.  All this makes me wonder, at the well here with you, what would you do if you knew you had a couple of months to live?  Where would you spend your time, your money, your energy, your focus? I ask this because I wish we could all feel both the tenuousness of life as well as its miracle.  To live each day as if it were our last… I know it feels impossible to live that kind of intensity, but why not try?  In meditation, if you get distracted, bring your mind back to your mantra or to the peace within.  What if we try to live this daily miracle and simply return when we get distracted by bills, bothers or bad news?  Meaning:  what if we lived life well until we died?

As I write this, Hurricane Elsa has been downgraded.  It has yet to cross Cuba and might yet gain speed as it makes its way north toward the US.  Where or when it will hit has meteorologists guessing.   It’s that time of year again, for sure.   We hope that most people heed warnings and evacuate if necessary or make precautions. Living in Florida, we see signs for hurricane preparedness all the time.  Companies that sell and install windows tout hurricane-proof rating strength; tree companies will trim "widow-makers" for a fee.  One mayor says that she consistently warns her people to be ready in an hour to leave home-  bags packed with important documents, water, medicine and food for Fido. When I was young, the code words issued by mom or dad that "company was coming" meant to get the home ready:  empty the overflowing kitchen trash bin, clean the bathroom, vacuum the foyer and gussy up a bit.   Years later I ask myself why it took visitors to force us to make the house nicer. The body and psyche cannot live in a "what if" mode all the time- the stress would eventually take its toll and possibly lead to worse problems later on.  And yet, there's something about the 20/20 vision of hindsight that seems to get lost on us.  I wonder if we sometimes redact yesterday's memories in order to avoid making the changes necessary for quality living today.  If this is you, what are you waiting for?  Do what you need to do to live the life you want today.  Why wait for a warning, a doctor’s words, the death of a loved one or some other omen.  You will be so happy you acted now in clear skies than when you did so because you were forced to.

From the toddler who doesn't want to hold Mommy's hand (for a moment) to the child who can ride a bike without training wheels to the teenager who leaves home for college or a career, there's something about independence that has its own origin and power.  That I-can-do-it-myself spirit is both a sign of natural growth as well as healthy individuation. When "these" United States of America decided that taxation without representation was not helping our young republic form itself, the training wheels came off and an amazing experiment in democracy was born. And yet... we still are growing and maturing.  As a nation, the teenage "acne" of racial discrimination persists, and we've still got some work to do about that glass ceiling and equal gender pay.  The good news is that our country can handle this continuing revolution.  The word itself can mean circling and rolling.  Perhaps this is the liminal dance that freedom requires; and the correctives, while scary for some, are contractions that signal a new birthing. As the character who plays the hotel proprietor in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel says:  “The only real failure is the failure to try, and the measure of success is how we cope with disappointment."

Alice and Daniel Francis, co-founders of Alivenwell.net, speak about what this past year has meant and what Alive 'n Well can provide future seekers of health, peace, wellness, wholeness and positivity!

My late father was in many ways a beautifully simple man.  Despite becoming Master Chief in the Navy while working as a cryptologist in amazing places like Turkey, Morocco and southern Spain, he kept his life uncomplicated- loved his wife and seven kids, embraced a strong faith and did not shirk domestic chores.   While my mom helped enormously to make ends meet by working full-time as a floral designer, Dad got us up in the morning for school with breakfast ready, made our bag lunches and then went off to Ft. Meade (NSA), MD Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm.  When he came home, no matter what Mom had on the stove or in the oven, he would often say, as he greeted her with a kiss, "Smells great!  I can't wait to eat." While Mom was an introverted Slovak-American, Dad was the extroverted one with Italian roots.  He would make friends with anyone.  Toward the end of his life, when Alzheimer's took much of his mind away, he would continue to display affection such as kissing the hand of the driver who took care to seatbelt him on the bus before taking him to what we affectionately called "Daddy Day Care." In his later years, when eating something he enjoyed or spotting something amazing or hearing a song in church, he would say, "I feel like I've died and gone to heaven." I remember an elderly couple whom I met years ago.  They loved each other so much and had such a soulful relationship that they told me going to heaven could only be a "lateral move" as they were experiencing it here on earth. So as we celebrate Father's Day, here's to our dads living and deceased.

On Sunday mornings, as Mom was readying the gaggle of us for Church, there was on occasion a discordance.  If we were ahead of schedule (rarely for the nine of us in the Francis Family) and hair was disheveled or shirts untucked, she would admonish us to "look presentable for Mass."  If we were running late (which was normal even if it was the last Church service), Mom would say "Let's go! God doesn't mind how you look." Years later I know that there are very few absolutes in life, that things change and people do, too.  Sometimes we say things for certain times and then adapt them for others.  And I'm okay with that.  As a life coach, I observe incongruities and inconsistencies as part of the process of naming "our stuff" in order to point us toward places for growth.  Everyone has at least one truly deep story that has defined them (positively or not) and when life presents a new narrative, the possibilities can be transformative! Think of Moses at the bush, Saul on Damascus road, Nelson Mandela in prison. I said above that there are few absolutes.  One of these is that you are not finished with your story yet.  I have an amazing aunt who is ninety-three and very much "alive 'n  well"... just the other night she was smiling, laughing and appreciating that 25 of us in the family just Zoomed with her.  Or there's Sal who--at the same age of ninety-two--published his fourth book.... oh, and by the way, he also narrated it as an audiobook. This is not to say necessarily that you have to be productive or technologically savvy.  But the truth is that you, whoever you are listening right now, you are not done with your story.  As I wrote in my blog last week, why mull over regrets when you can relish in crazy wonderful!   My Mom had it correct both ways:  "Be presentable" and "God doesn't mind how you look." Get on with your story!

Often on one of our walking routes, Alice and I see a dog in the yard.  He's curious and sometimes barks while wagging his tail.  He'll move with us- we on the street and he along the grass.  But the dog never leaves the yard.  Is there an invisible/electric fence?  Is he well-trained?  Could he not be bothered? Did you ever hear of The Baby Elephant Principle? Basically, it’s the idea that an immature elephant--tied to a stake while growing up--will think that it can’t move even when there is no longer a stake or rope present. Similarly, there was an experiment done in the last century whereby pike fish living in a tank were separated from minnows by a glass plate.  After a while, the pike had bumped into the glass partition so often that they stopped going after the minnows, even after the partition was removed. Are you stuck in the "same ol' same ol'" thinking?  What are the (in)visible ropes or partitions that keep you from taking the next step?  Let me ask another question:  do you know what your "next step" is? An exercise regimenA (new) jobRetirementCleaning up that "oh my God!" roomTalking with your doctorBeginning--or finishing--that project If you hold back your true, next step it's like not dealing with what's going on inside.  As a friend of mine learned when going through recovery, "When you bury your feelings, they are buried alive."  They will, in a sense, haunt you until they find healthy expression in a constructive channel. So who or what is holding you back?   If you think you can or cannot... you are correct.

"Your eyes are too big for your stomach." Although she didn't coin it, my mom was the first one I heard this phrase from.  We were at the local 7-Eleven.  This didn't happen often.  With seven kids and a mortgage, snacks or meals outside of the house were a rare treat.  I saw my older brother order a Slurpee and wanted the same thing, same size.  Her warning only emboldened me to want it more.  Of course I didn't finish it... well, not right away.  Truthfully, by the time the brain freeze was over, so was my taste for the drink which had become a slurry mess of liquid sugar. Likewise, I wonder sometimes if our hearts are too small for our souls.  We want--oh how much we want-- but settle for what rarely satisfies.  The junk food of talking heads might temporarily appetize; tweets or posts that merely confirm my "position" might initially appease; pointing out what's wrong with this or that might-for a moment-appeal...but there arises a time when the deepest part of me just craves something better, higher or deeper; I need something more authentic, long-lasting and solid. Maybe it might help during these times to see the bigger picture.  For example, if you were only to see a dentist with a needle of Novocain, it would look barbaric unless you know it's going to help your child with her impacted tooth.  When I was given my Shingles shot, my body felt like I had done a 4-hour workout!  But I know what it will prevent, and that makes all the difference.  Being able to have a wider view enables us to filter out and filter in)... who doesn't want that lightness of being?  It makes it so much easier to travel when you have less encumbrance. I firmly believe that by spending time in the quiet and still places within we can tap the inner, natural harmony we are designed for. To do this we need to learn how to tune out the mindless chatter that takes up vital space in our mind and heart.  To be in harmony's way is like stopping your ears when a beautiful concert is playing. As T. S. Eliot writes in The Four Quartets”  "We must be still and still moving / Into another intensity / For a further union

Honesty seems to be in short supply these days- well, that depends on whom you ask. From different political spectrums, there is the big lie or the stolen election.  An ousted Republican conservative gets high approval from liberal democrats.  What is happening?  Who are these people?  A fact- that someone hacked into one oil company's software- that fact spun untruths throughout the nation, especially in the southeast where I live.  People protest and police protect and onlookers can post anything they think about nearly anyone not only without repercussions but with thinly veiled hopes that their views go viral and perhaps they might even make a name for themselves. Forgive me if I sound alive but snarky, but perhaps sometimes it's hard to be a loving, positive witness to what looks like a slow-mo crumbling.  Kinda like America's Funniest Videos when we can all see that the ladder is leaning and he's going to meet the ground soon! But he's okay, thank God, and there are safer ways to reach higher, sturdier ladders and stronger bridges.  We are better than the negative discourse which will never define us.  There's too much to love and far too many folks doing amazing things without the need for headlines that deserve headlines.   How we (you, listening to this podcast and I)... how we live this moment, this day of our lives is the gift of love we give ourselves and others.     I heard these lines the other day and are attributed to some obscure person only known as Victor Gray:   "....I love the look in people’s eyes when they realize they’re in love. I love the way people look when they first wake up and they’ve forgotten their surroundings. I love the gasp people take when their favorite character dies. I love when people close their eyes and drift to somewhere in the clouds. I fall in love with people and their honest moments all the time. I fall in love with their breakdowns and their smeared makeup and their daydreams. Honesty is just too beautiful to ever put into words."

I’m at the age now when my nieces and nephews are having babies.  Talk about feeling “oldish.”  Last September I received a text-picture of my brother’s grandson and his baby sister ready for their first day back to school; somehow I could pick up that new clothes smell through my phone. Do you remember the jitters or joy (or combination of both) the week before, the night before, your first day back to school?  Sometime in the late 90s, I was with another brother at his house when several of his kids were waiting for the bus at the bottom of the hill.  It was another first day back to school and parents had set up tables of bagels and juice, fruit and snacks.  What a wonderful way for families to celebrate this minor rite of passage. It seems that the longer I live the more I'm discovering new classrooms.  It is said that when the student is ready, the teacher arrives.  I'm not so sure, because there are times when a lesson has been thrust upon me uninvited or the test is not an open book; some answers are not erasable and others have no grading curve mercy. On the other side of the teacher's desk, I recall the summer of 1986 when I was tutoring adults in poor, rural Appalachia.  What pride in their eyes when these coal miners could finally pen their name and differentiate "V as in valley" from "W as in water."  Somehow they got convinced that it was never too late to go back to school.  I was honored to help them get there. The truth is that we stop learning and growing and widening our horizon only at our peril.  A Turkish proverb suggests that one should "fear an ignorant man more than a lion."  Perhaps we can all take a page from the eager kids online at home or masked in a classroom:   to be amazed by the lessons which abound all around is to know it's not too late... and teachers are everywhere!

On the exact day of the month we got married and for every month of that first year, no matter the weather or temperature, Alice and I had a ritual:  go to the grocery store to pick up a pre-ordered cake (identical to the one we had for our wedding) then head to the Gulf of Mexico, about 50 minutes from our home.  Twice we got there only to take a quick walk before sunset (due to the job I had at the time); another month it was so cold (yes, in Tampa!) that we ate our cake in the car; but it never rained and on many occasions, we were able to swim and sun and read and eat, enjoying the mostly isolated beach time. Due to COVID-19 we're still being careful and haven’t been to the beach and probably won't for several more weeks.  Last year, our friend Carole sent us a web link to an article whose author described beach activity as a metaphor for learning from life.  One lesson, in particular, caught my eye:  Seek Out Calm Waters.  Yes, you can boogie board or surf the waves or float on your back or sit and splash...but there is that place just beyond the breaking waves that is an oasis.  Sometimes it's even a sandbar you can stand on!  Like this pandemic, the onus (and opportunity) for us is to look for and find new places of peace- harbors in the storm, jetties for protection.  Perhaps for you that's a meditation app or a walk in a park, maintaining physical distancing.  Maybe you can try yoga for the first time or take it up again after many years, or click on a Youtube stretching video that connects you with your body and links you to your inner fulcrum.  You see, our primal posture is peace.  What the beach (or your favorite place) does is simply REMIND us of what is inside. Other resources are Alice's guided meditations here. Find your oasis today or this weekend.  Seek out your calm seas amidst these crazy times.  Your future self with thank you and it will provide memorable munchies for grateful grazing.