Itis Saturday, September 13th as I writethis. Those of you who watch the news are aware of the senselessmurders that took place all this week. In this world of constantbickering, noise and hurry, fear and distrust, we need a way to findpeace in our hearts and souls. I could talk religion here, but faithis something different to each individual. I just hope all of you DOhave some kind of faith in a higher power, a Being to whom you canturn in prayer in these times of grief and worry. Lately I findmyself wondering if I am safe anymore, even in this very small townwhere I live. I never dreamed that in this wonderful country whereour ancestors fought for law and order that I would be afraid to walkinto my favorite little restaurant because someone might walk in andshoot everybody for absolutely no reason whatsoever.

       Itis time to find ways in addition to God and prayer to find peace inour hearts and souls. I find that peace through the five God-givensenses most of us enjoy. Even those who cannot hear can enjoy lifethrough their remaining senses. It’s the same if you cannot see.Each sense can be magnified and trained to make up for the one aperson might have lost. The point is, we all have favorite pictures,food, music, touchable items or a certain scent that makes us sighand think of things that make us happy and bring us peace.

       Whodoesn’t love the feel of a dog’s thick fur, a cat’s vibratingpurring, even the cluck of a chicken or the crow of a rooster? Close your eyes and picture a meadow where chickens strut, cows moo softly,the sound carried in a gentle wind. Once in a while a horse whinnies,birds chirp and fly about. Maybe a little yellow bird perches atop afence pole. Wildflowers bloom in a rainbow of colors. Numerous shadesof green abound from grass to tall trees, and in autumn, a few colorsof red and orange mix with the green to create so much color you canhardly take it all in. The sky is a deep blue with white, puffyclouds that sometimes shade a brilliant sun. At times the soft breezebrings the small of a distant campfire or someone grilling a steak.Imagine all of this in the country, where there is no sound oftraffic. You have left your phone and computer somewhere in the houseand you don’t care. Your car sits silent because today you aregoing to stay home, sit outside, and just let all your senses bringyou peace. Maybe you have a cup of coffee with you, along with amuffin or a cookie, either one still warm. You bite into that muffinor cookie and relish the taste of sugar and berries or chocolatechips, then sip your hot coffee, maybe black, maybe with cream.

       Perhapsyour preferred sights, sounds and smells are mountains (oh, I lovethe Rockies!), or a small pond, a lake, the ocean with its rhythmicpattern of in-coming waves. And, of course, we can’t leave out ourfavorite music. I call it mood music. Music can bring immediate calmto the soul, and we all have our favorites.

Whateveryour favorites are as far as using all your senses, I hope you areable to close your eyes and take yourself into that scene, thatplace, that taste or smell, hear that music, and … more than all ofthat … bathe in a memory that makes you sigh with happiness.Memories are a part of all the senses that can bring us peace. Fightthe bad ones. Concentrate on the good ones.

       Personally,one of my favorite ways to find peace is to listen to Christmas musicand picture an old-fashioned Christmas with the smell of a turkey andpies in the oven, children laughing amid their new presents, theChristmas tree glowing with decorations. Grandma is in the kitchenmashing potatoes the old-fashioned way rather than with an electricmixer, or maybe she is making home-made gravy from the turkeydrippings. Maybe YOU are that grandma. Everyone sits down to a bigtable and eats off of real china. No one has a phone with them. TheTV is off. And Christmas music from a speaker in the kitchen or adistant room accompanies all the talk and movement. I see snowfalling, people who are actually dressed nice and are friendly nomatter what the religion or beliefs of their loved ones or evenstrangers they meet. I see smiles, grace, love … and peace.

       Anotherrelease I enjoy (and feel blessed to have the gift) is my writing. Ican leave my world and walk into someone else’s. I can leave myhouse and walk in the mountains or ride a horse through a grassyvalley. I have the power to create whatever characters I want tocreate. For a while I can leave my troubles and today’s news andcraziness and go back in history and write stories that help readersunderstand and appreciate what it took to settle this wonderfulcountry called the United States of America.

       Ihope all of you will turn to your senses and memories when indistress. I hope all of you appreciate the freedoms we have here inAmerica. I hope all of you have a faith to sustain you. I hope all ofyou realize that there are times when we need to put down the cellphone and turn off the TV and take some “my time” in whateverfashion you need to use to find peace in your hearts and souls. Andbe sure to share that peace with friends, loved ones, and especiallywith your children. Today our children are hit from all sides withevery belief imaginable, with hate speech and neglect, and worst ofall, they are listening to chatter and rhetoric on TV, the internetand their cell phones. Please, please find a way to limit yourchild’s time on today’s methods of breaking into your children’sminds. Please, pleaseteach them that the higher power they should turn to is NOT AI. AI isfake. AI bots is NOT REAL and is NOT THEIR FRIEND! AI has its gooduses, but befriending your child is not one of them! Children needlove, advice and hugs from REAL PEOPLE.

       Icould go on and on about all the things that are thrown at us intoday’s world. Instead, I hope you find ways to escape from it allby taking the time to use your own senses. And I can’t end thisblog without one of the best escapes of all … READING A GOOD BOOKthat takes you into a world of history and romance, a good book thatis truthful and about real life and love, a book that always leavesyou feeling good at the end.