Serenity...

Unique Perspectives: Serenity...

By Kim Stevens

Serenity And Skydiving?

I was with a group of deeply spiritual souls the other evening, and one of my friends was speaking about serenity—where she finds it, how she holds it, and what it truly means to her. We each shared our own version of what serenity is.

She offered a definition that landed so beautifully: “An untroubled mind.”

Yes. That.

It reminded me of something from my weekly guided meditation class. One evening, our instructor wished us: “Peace of mind. Ease of heart.” I remember thinking—what more could we possibly want than that?

That conversation led me to reflect on my own journey with serenity. What it looks like for me. Where I feel it most. And suddenly, I was brought back to a day that caught even me by surprise…

The day I jumped out of a plane.

I was visiting my son Max in Montana, and I casually mentioned that I was thinking about looking into skydiving. It wasn’t even a fully formed idea. More like a whisper of something symbolic. A ceremonial act. A letting go. A literal leap of faith.

At the time, I was undergoing a transformation. Shifting how I live my life, how I trust, how I release. And the idea of skydiving felt like a perfect metaphor.

I barely got the words out when Max (and if you know him, this won’t surprise you) looked at me and said, “Cool. We’re booked for 10:00 a.m. Friday.”

Wait. What?? I wasn’t saying let’s book it. I was saying let’s talk about booking it! But it was done. We were jumping.

That Friday morning, I felt a mix of nervous excitement and a deep knowing. It wasn’t the kind of fear that says “don’t do this.” It was the kind that says, You’re doing this—even if your heart is pounding.

When we arrived at the hangar, I met Willy, the instructor I’d be strapped to. He looked at me with a playful smile and said, “We just need to throw a little more duct tape on the plane and we’ll be good to go.”

I laughed. He was clearly joking… right?

Except… he wasn’t. There was actual duct tape all over the plane.

As I was being fitted for my jumpsuit, Willy leaned in and said, “Don’t worry—I’ve got stuff to do this afternoon. I’m not trying to go out today.”

That’s when I fell in love with Willy. This man had the best energy. Lighthearted and present with a twinkle in his eye.

And heres the thing… As the plane began to climb, something came over me. We were rising to 10,000 feet, and instead of panic… I felt peace. A wave of calm washed through me. A stillness. A knowing. Complete serenity.

It was God. I could feel it. That unmistakable presence. That rightness. I wasn’t afraid. I wasn’t anywhere but there. This was what it meant to Let Go and Let God.

No past. No future. Just one perfect, infinite now.

On the way up and before it was time to jump, Willy walked me through what to do. What it would feel like when the door opened. Where to step. How to hold my head. How to arch my back.

Let me tell you this… sitting in a plane and looking out the window is one thing, butstanding in the open doorway with nothing between your feet and the sky but air, is quite another.

My heart leapt… And then so did I.

We soared over the Tobacco Root Mountains. I could actually see the curve of the earth. It was breathtaking. It was exhilarating. I screamed with joy.

And Willy—Willy was the best. A skydiving sage with a duct-taped plane and a light spirit who unknowingly taught me something profound: Serenity doesn’t come from stillness alone. It comes from surrender. It comes from presence. It comes from trust.

That day lives in my cells now. It’s part of me. It’s why I am ALWAYS in favor of experiences rather than just intellectual pursuits. Experiences like that don’t fade… they shape us. They remind us that when we let go of control, we meet the Divine. In the free fall. In the unknown.

In the air between “what if” and “here we go.”

I’ll never forget that day. Max and me jumping out of a plane. And Willy, the duct tape mystic, who reminded me that peace isn’t passive… It’s powerful. And it lives in the forever now of the present moment and letting go.

Peace of mind. Ease of heart and an untroubled mind.

Yes. That.