在喧哗烦乱中寻找生活的那一丝平静！

“让我们安静下来，也许可以听到上帝的低吟” -- 爱默生

这个早晨，我四点钟起床来倾听寂静之声。依然是在家里，不管家里的老婆和六个孩子。虽然我对我的家庭爱得要死，但这片刻的宁静绝对是我的幸福之一。

我喝着咖啡，读报，然后写点东西。

然后像在每个五点钟的早晨，我出发了，在纯粹的寂静中慢跑，不带 iPod，没有拥挤的交通，或者忙碌的人群来打扰我的安静。天空中挂着一颗圆满到要爆裂的橘黄色月亮，身旁沉默的大海，墨般的黑暗环绕、包围着我、我的脚步，我的思考。

这一片刻的寂静并不是我一天之中的唯一的最爱，但已经成为我的一天中的最重要的一部分。它抚慰着我的灵魂，平息内心的冲动，激发自我的纯善，让我能够倾听自己。

如果你从来没有类似的经历，生活中让自己沉静片刻，或许能带给你同样美妙的体悟。让我们来探讨一下寻找生活中的平静的几种方法，体会寂静之声让你浮现出来的思考。

现在，我应该提醒你一下，并不一定需要早早起床来寻找安静的时间。这不是唯一的方法，只是多个选项中的一个。

* 早起。如果你的生活如此忙碌以至于根本没有单独的时间来拥有平静，早一点起床对一些人来说是一个不错的解决方法。不是对所有的人--一些人视早起为罪恶。我以前也厌恶早起，但最近几年，让我发现了对早起几个小时的好处。如果你也想早起一会，看看这篇文章。

* 晚睡。如果你不想早起，那么晚睡一定管用，当所有的人都睡了之后，关掉电视，离开电脑。找一种方法来安静地体会这黄金时刻。

* 靠近自然。有时候家里和办公室里会有点嘈杂混乱。避开喧哗，尽可能的靠近自然。找一个公园，或者树林中的一条小径。去海滩，或者池塘，或者小湖，或者小溪 -- 借助水是我最喜欢的在自然中寻找平静的方法。仔细观察你周围的一切，而不是漠视一切。

* 冥想。我完全明白，许多人无法深入的冥想，--多年来我一直忽视了它，只是把它看成一种“新新人类的东西（new agey ）”，并不值得严肃对待。但是不要把它看成是多么复杂深奥难懂的东西。试试这种非常简单的冥想方法：闭上你的眼睛（在读完这一段之后），然后将注意力放在你的呼吸上，体会呼吸将空气吸入身体，然后呼出。你可能会迷惑--没什么啊，一切都很正常。注意到这些想法，让它们随意发散，不要加以引导。然后轻柔的将注意力重新放在呼吸上。持续这样几分钟。逐渐增加这样冥想的时间，可以轻松的获得比较舒服的状态，不过可别舒服过头，睡着了。

* 锻炼。就像开始的时候说的那样，运动是我在安静的时候最喜欢的做的事情之一。我喜欢多种运动：跑步、散步、骑自行车、游泳，力量训练、划船。这些精力的挥发可以帮助你释放压力，并且可以让血液流向大脑，帮助你其他时间更好的思考。

* 休息，散步。每隔一两个小时，从工作中解脱出来休息一会。离开电脑，伸个懒腰，然后出去散散步，有助于血液循环。在办公室或者办公楼周围散散步就好，但如果你能到外边接触下阳光（或者小雨也有可能），呼吸些清新的空气（或者不是那么清新），我觉着很有用。当然，在一个繁忙的街区不太可能那么的安静，但比困在一个大笼子里一整天要好得多。

* 瑜伽。我得承认，我对瑜伽不太感冒，但是我认识一些人对瑜伽极为推崇。我试过，也试着去享受，不过它就是不适合我。不过，我觉着它还是值得一试的，很可能是一种不错的安静时间的锻炼方式。

* 阅读。在安静的时刻，我喜欢一直做的活动之一就是阅读。我经常在万籁俱寂的时候卷一本不错的书，泡一杯咖啡。让自己沉入小说中虚幻神奇的世界。如果你没有时间去阅读，找些安静的时刻，在早晨或者晚上，让阅读成为你常规生活中的一部分。

* 日志。写些东西具很有疗效的一种方法，而如果你养成了写日记的习惯。写东西可能成为你一天之中最好的事情之一。它给出了一种回顾生活的方式，回顾一些你已经做过的事情，或者展望一下你想要做的事情。它记录了你的生活，你可以过后再去看看。而且，它以一种只有写作能带来的特殊方式给你清晰的思维。用博客就很好。

* 洗澡。我永远洗不够，我喜爱长时间的洗澡。好像不怎么男人，不过，管不了那么多。洗澡，让人轻松，身心愉悦。Calgon,take me away!（一个沐浴露的广告）

* 按摩。如果你负担的起的话，无论何时，做按摩永远是那么爽 -- 我和我老婆去泰国旅行的时候做了几百次的按摩，太爽了！安静，放松，令人愉悦。如果你没钱，也可以跟你老婆换着按，用按摩油、蜡烛、轻音乐这些东西营造出那种气氛。

* 博物馆，艺术展，图书馆，园林。如果你住在城市里，很难找到安静的地方。但是城里确实也有这样的地方。当我住在三藩市的时候，我的一些最爱的地方（除了公园和海滩）就是城市图书馆，博物馆，展览馆，和一些私人园林。在你所居住的城市里找到你的绿洲。

* 对那些有孩子的人。当你有了孩子，许多事情将变得十分艰难，相信我，我有六个孩子，我知道那种感受。这里有些建议：利用早起或者晚睡的时间；和你的另一半交替，一个看孩子，一个放松或运动；让亲戚或者朋友帮着看孩子；找一个临时保姆；或者当你要享受自己的安静时刻时，找一个孩子感兴趣的事情让他们去做。

寂静是力量之源 -- 老子

Sound of Silence: How to Find Some Quietude in Your Life

“Let us be silent, that we may hear the whispers of the gods.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I woke up at 4 a.m. this morning to the sound of silence. An absolute still household, despite there being six kids and a wife all at home. And while I love my family to death, this time of tranquility is one of absolute bliss for me.
I enjoyed my coffee, read a bit, got some writing done.
Then I headed out for an early morning 5 a.m. run in pure silence, without an iPod, busy traffic, or the busy-ness of humanity to disturb my peace. There was a full-to-nearly-bursting orange moon lighting the sky, the hush of the nearby ocean, and an inky blackness surrounding me, my running, and my thoughts.
This time of quietude is not only one of my favorite parts of my day, but has become an essential part of the day. It soothes the soul, quiets my inner beast, brings out the goodness in me, allows me to hear myself.
Having a time of stillness in your life can be similarly wonderful, if you don’t have it already. Let’s take a look at some ways to find quietude in your life and see how the sound of silence can allow your thoughts to emerge.
Now, I should note that you don’t need to be an early riser to find a time of silence during your day. It’s one of the options (as I’ll talk about below), but it’s only one option among many.

Rise early. If your day is so busy that you just can’t find the time to be alone and to have stillness and silence, getting up a bit earlier can be a good solution for some people. It’s not for everyone — some people hate getting up early. I used to be one of those, but in recent years I’ve discovered a love for the early morning hours. Here’s how to wake earlier if you want to do that.
Late nights. If you’re not into early mornings, late nights can be just as peaceful, when everyone’s asleep. Turn off the TV and get away from the computer. Find other ways to spend this golden time, in quiet.
Get out into nature. Sometimes households and offices can be a bit noisy and chaotic. To escape the noise, get out into nature as much as possible. Find a park, or a trail in some woods. Go to the beach or a pond or a lake or a river — water is one of my favorite ways of finding peace in nature. Pay close attention to everything around you, instead of blocking it all out.
Meditation. Many of you aren’t into meditation, and I totally get that — for years I dismissed it as “new agey” and not worthy of serious attention. But it doesn’t have to be anything complicated or difficult to understand. Try this very simple meditation: close your eyes (after reading the rest of this paragraph) and pay attention to your breathing. Notice your breath as it enters your body, and again as it goes out. Your mind will probably stray — that’s OK. Just pay attention to these thoughts, let them go without forcing them out, and gently return your attention to your breathing. Keep doing this for a minute or so. Gradually increase the time you do this as you practice. It’s nice to get into a comfortable position, but not so comfortable you fall asleep!
Exercise. As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, exercise is one of my favorite things to do during my time of silence. It can be anything: running, walking, biking, swimming, strength training, rowing. This exertion of energy helps release stress and gets the blood flowing to your brain — giving you some of the best thinking you’ll do all day.
Take a break and take a walk. Every hour or two, take a break from working. Get away from the computer, and stretch. Then take a walk, to get the blood flowing. It’s fine to just walk around your office or building, but if you can get outside into the sunlight (or rain, as the case may be) and fresh air (or less-than-fresh air, as the case may also be), I find that to be helpful. Sure, it might not be all that quiet if you’re out in a busy street, but it’s better than being cooped up all day.
Yoga. I will admit that I’m not into yoga, but I know some people who swear by it. I’ve tried it and enjoyed it, but it’s just not my thing. That said, I think it’s worth a try and it can be a great quiet-time exercise.
Reading. One of my all-time favorite quiet-time activities! I love curling up with a good book and a cup of coffee when all is quiet, and losing myself inside the magical world of fiction. If you haven’t been reading as much as you’d like, finding some quiet time in the morning (or evening) can be a great way to work reading into your routine.
Journaling. There’s something therapeutic about writing in a journal, and if you make it a daily habit, it can be one of the best things you do all day. It gives you a way to reflect on your life, on the things you’ve been doing and the things you want to do. It records your life so you can look back on it later. And it brings clarity to your thoughts in a way you might not find without writing. Blogging can be a great form of journaling.
Bathing. I don’t get a chance to do this enough, but I love to take a nice long bath. That might not seem very manly, but I don’t care. It’s relaxing and enjoyable. Calgon, take me away!
Massage. If you can afford it, it’s nice to go and get a paid massage now and then — Eva and I had numerous massages during our trip to Thailand, and they were wonderful. Quiet, relaxing, oh so pleasurable. Of course, you can do this the cheap (more positive term: frugal) way by exchanging massages with your significant other on, say, alternating days. Use massage oil and candles and relaxing music to create a great atmosphere.
Museums, art galleries, libraries, gardens. If you live in a city, it can be hard to find zones of quietude. But they do exist. When I lived in San Francisco, for example, some of my favorite quiet places (besides parks and the beach) were the city’s libraries, museums, galleries, and private gardens. Find those places in your city and use them as oases.
For those with kids. Many of these things can be difficult if you have kids to take care of — trust me, with six kids, I know the feeling. Some suggestions: take advantage of the early mornings or late evenings when they’re sleeping; exchange quiet times with your significant other so that one watches the kids while the other relaxes or exercises; trade kid-watching duty with a friend or relative; pay a babysitter for a short time each day; or find activities for your kids to do while you get your quiet time.