A Peaceful Thought

I woke up this morning with Peace on my mind.

Not because she had sent a message.

Not because there was some conversation waiting to be continued.

Not because I had spent the night replaying old chats.

She was simply there.

The first thought of the day.

It made me smile.

What surprised me, however, was not that she was on my mind. It was how I felt about it.

Peaceful.

No anxiety.

No urge to reach for my phone.

No need to interpret hidden meanings or search for signs.

Just peace.

I think younger versions of us experience affection differently. We want movement. We want certainty. We want answers.

A delayed reply becomes a puzzle.

A conversation becomes evidence.

A smile becomes a clue.

The heart turns into a newsroom, constantly waiting for breaking updates.

But somewhere along the journey, if God is kind and life is patient, something changes.

You begin to discover that affection does not always need to be accompanied by turbulence.

You can care deeply about someone and still be at rest.

You can hope without hurrying.

You can love what is beautiful without trying to possess it.

You can hold someone in your thoughts without feeling the need to hold them in your hands.

This morning reminded me of the words of the psalmist:

"I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother."

A weaned child no longer stays close because of what can be received. The child stays because the presence itself has become enough.

Perhaps that is one of the quiet works God does in us as we grow.

He teaches us to hold good gifts without clutching at them.

To appreciate people without demanding ownership.

To cherish possibilities without becoming consumed by them.

So I woke up this morning with Peace on my mind.

And then I got out of bed.

The sun was still shining.

Work was still waiting.

Life was still moving.

And somehow the thought remained what it was meant to be:

Not a message to decode.

Just a gift to receive.

Nugget: Sometimes maturity is not measured by how often someone crosses your mind.

Sometimes it is measured by how much peace accompanies them when they do.