Written by Dennis Harvell
The Sanctuary of the Pause – Be Calm, Be Quiet, Be Kind
Sitting in the quiet vulnerability of a dentist’s chair, a small green sphere was placed in my hand. It was meant as a simple distraction, a physical tool to anchor a racing mind and reassure me that everything would be okay.
But as my fingers closed around it, the weight of the words printed on the surface took root:
Be Calm.
Be Quiet.
Be Kind.
It is funny how the most profound reminders have a way of finding us in the most clinical, uncomfortable settings. In a world that constantly demands our attention, urges us to react, and rewards the loudest voice in the room, those three simple directives felt like a sudden sanctuary.
We often treat peace as something we have to actively chase or build. But holding that stress ball, I realized that peace isn’t loud. It isn’t a grand gesture. It breathes in the stillness of a deliberate reflection.
To be calm requires us to drop our armor.
To be quiet asks us to step away from the external noise and internal chatter.
And to be kind—both to ourselves and the world around us—is the natural result of that stillness.
Everything is going to be okay.
Sometimes, we just need to stop, pause, and reflect to remember it.
