We protect ourselves in many ways. We keep our homes warm to protect us from the cold. We dress light in the summer months to protect us from the heat. Children learn at an early age to cover their mouths when they cough to protect others from germs. And we avoid dark, isolated streets at night to protect our lives. All in all, most people do a pretty good job of protecting themselves from outside physical forces. However, we are not quite as good at protecting ourselves from personal negativity.

Recently, I heard a woman declare how much one political party is against the other. And no one can deny that is the case. But I realized how easy it would be in that moment to jump on the “against bandwagon” and be against how both parties are being against each other. So how can we protect ourselves from the negativity that is happening all around us?

As our world seems to be tumbling into more and more negativity, we might all have briefly considered fleeing to Canada. But in reality would that kind of move protect us? For, even if you could flee from the negativity that exists around you, there would still be negativity of your thoughts and feelings. For instance, if you move to Canada, you might locate next door to a very judgmental family that you would come to dislike greatly. So what is the answer to not living in a maelstrom of dark energy?

I have found that if I can focus on some aspect of love that I would like to see evident in a situation (like kindness during a nasty verbal attack), then I feel safe. Whereas, when I get caught up in the words, feelings, or actions that are directed against me, another person, or even a situation, I usually end up taking sides where one is against the other. And even though you may have been told there is safety in numbers, more negativity does not equal safety.

So the next time the negativity of others (or of yourself) threatens your mental and emotional safety, find a center point on which to focus. If you let that center point be the energy of the heart, then negativity will have no power. Positive heart energy provides a protective shield that no negativity can destroy.