These days, it seems as if I, along with everyone else I know, am in a prolonged state of insomnia. I toss and turn each night, worried about the financial prospects for myself and my country. In the morning I get up and face the new day with a strong cup of coffee before tackling the headlines of The New York Times. This only serves the purpose of reinforcing my anxieties.

How can I break the cycle of fear? Personally, I’m trying even harder to fill my life with the things that really matter to me: good food shared with family and friends, music and art that lifts my spirit, long walks by the lake near my home.

It is so important, in these turbulent times, to stop and think about what makes life worthwhile: houses of worship, great universities, poetry and great books, singing and dancing of all types, long marriages, and a healthy earth. Using the commercial metrics of Wall Street, these may show a poor financial return. But, using the metrics of the soul, these are our very best investments – and the ones that are most important.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 9th, 2008 at 12:11 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can also leave a response.