7 Tips Inspired By Monasteries to De-Stress Your Home

What does a monastery have that your home doesn't? A lot less stress, for starters. Take a look at some basic monastic practices and see how easy it is to steal some serenity for yourself.

Not long ago, a tour bus stopped in front of my house and two dozen visitors disembarked. They'd come to view the 100-year-old Japanese garden in my backyard. Without a word of instruction, they spontaneously merged into a single file and advanced soundlessly along the suburban sidewalk like an order of monks, albeit monks in khaki shorts and ball caps with cameras strung from their necks.

It happened by itself, an autonomic response to the pervasive calm of the environment. When these guests leave, they might attribute their sudden state of reverence to some unseen spiritual power. Maybe the place is sacred, they might think. Mystically endowed, holy.

I thought about this recently when I was asked to come up with some simple tips for de-stressing a home. If I live on hallowed ground, I might have an unfair advantage in handling stress. Except I don't. I stress out just as easily as anyone, but by managing my environment, I de-stress easily too. (MORE)

Source: Huffington Post