This year has been an exercise in turning the sound down. Ignoring the noise. This much-needed exercise for me has been at the personal, professional, and societal level. Earlier this year, a dear friend tried to calm me down by telling me to ignore a particular person who was a major thorn in my side and psyche. This person was bringing me down on all levels. But my friend calmly told me lower the volume. Turn the sound down on this person.

At first, I didn’t get that piece of advice. How can you turn the sound down when certain people’s voices are amplified by megaphones embedded deep in your eardrum? Or that is how it felt like to me. But if you can maintain mindfulness in the midst of chaos you can turn down the sound. It is about finding your gooey center of zen. It’s not easy. But slowly I have been learning to turn down the volume.

Turning the sound down is an acquired skill set that probably should be taught in grade school. Well, maybe. We do have to be exposed to noise to understand the world around us. You just can’t let it seep into your being. I think this is a big lesson for everyone this year. It used to bring in ‘da noise. Now, turn it down as needed.