Estimated reading time: 4 min.

Dear reader, 

Welcome back to Guiding Words.

In the previous lesson we reminded ourselves that the senses through which we experience life are rooted in the body and that the body lives in the present. We conclude that, in order to fully experience life, after reflecting on the past, to learn from it and thinking about the future, to plan for it, we should also bring our minds back into the present because life is in the moment.

Life is excessively fragile, and we are reminded of that from time to time when we are faced with the unexpected. In those moments when we might not be able to rely on ourselves, it's best to have a contingency plan that can take over. In this lesson, we will focus on finding serenity in the face of entropy.

Without getting into the technical details of the second law of thermodynamics, a simple and acceptable definition of the concept of entropy from the Oxford dictionary is: lack of order or predictability and gradual decline into disorder. 

In other words:

The worst will come. 

We just don’t know when.

And it will hurt, but it will hurt even more if we meet it unprepared.

Because we wake up most days to a routine that is unsurprisingly different from that of yesterday, we tend to forget that life is inherently unpredictable and err towards chaos and destruction. Order is the exception, not the rule. Therefore, a lack of planning should be the exception, but is too often the rule.

Kylie Parker, an Australian author and Chartered Accountant with more than 25 years of experience in the field, has made a great contribution by writing a free eBook available on her website titled: Planning Plan B - Prepare for 10 of life’s unexpected stressful events.

The book covers, among other things, the subjects of death, divorce, financial losses etc. An excerpt of each chapter can be found here.

The task of preparing a Plan B can be long, tedious, and unpleasant, but is eminently necessary and, like many things, requesting advice from a professional is advisable. 

It is also crucial that we never forget the fragile nature of life and always cultivate a sense of gratitude, despite how bad we might think our situation is. And to help with that, we should make some time, at least once a year, to visit mortuaries, hospitals, psychiatric centers, prisons, homeless shelters, retirement homes and all of those places we wish we would never end up, but that are full of people who were just a little less fortunate than us.

It is important to keep in mind that deep, heartbreaking suffering exists and is never too far away. The end of our own world is looking at us from across every street, and we need to acknowledge it and make peace with it. Even before the worst comes knocking on our door, we need to find within us and be in tune with the best version of ourselves that can get up and open the door with a smile. 

Entropy pervades everything and the natural tendency of the physical world is toward disorder and decay. We should prepare ourselves as much as we can for the hardships of the journey, but the fact that something will eventually break should not bring fear and anxiety into our hearts, for such is the natural order of things. Because we know for a fact that something will eventually break, we should not be fearful. Rather, we should make sure that we are prepared, knowing that crossed words, lost words and periods are also part of what makes the book of life ever so entertaining. In the end, suffering is growth trying to understand itself and the challenge of life is how far we can push the boundaries of growth.

This concludes our lesson on finding serenity in the face of entropy. Because the best defense is a good offense, in the next lesson we will reflect on the relationship between money and fulfillment.  

See you in three days and until then, may Serenity be upon you.

Didi

Question: After reading this lesson, can you think of at least one unexpected stressful life event that you do not have a contingency plan in place for?

Reply with a yes or no and feel free to go beyond two or three characters.

P.S.: I am trying to find the right words to convey my thoughts in a language that is not mine, so please pardon my mistakes and feel free to reply with any suggestions and/or corrections that can make this reading experience more enjoyable. 

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