“Inner peace begins the moment you choose not to allow another person or event to control your emotions.” — Pema Chodron
Easier said than done, sure. But perhaps this could become your current spiritual goal.
I think about the story of the two men whose houses burn down. One man, looking from across the street, wails in despair and believes his life to be over. Everything—all the things—that he loves are now in a pile of ash. He is, understandably, devastated.
Then there is the other man, looking from across the street after his house burned down. Of course he harbors the feelings of someone whose lifetime of accumulations is gone. The tangible memories are in ruins, although the memories in his heart will remain forever. He says, simply, “Well, at least we can save the nails and begin again.”
Imagine walking through this life with the hurricanes swirling around us, causing all sorts of drama and trauma, yet remain in the center, in the eye, in the peace.