Peace - Plus

I actually wrote this some time ago...but it still fits. Hope you like it.

Peace…Plus….

I’ve gotten the impression recently that if I talk about peace some people assume I’m not in support of our troops. That surprises me. Of course I, too, make my own assumptions; that no one wants more loss of life and that to come to a peaceful and meaningful resolution is always preferable to armed battle. And just to clarify, I do support our each of our troops—my son-in-law is one of them, and I do hope for their safe and quick return.

My belief is that we must all gather our energies together during this time of conflict, not to ADD to the conflict, but rather to SEE in our mind’s eye that outcome that we desire. We can contribute to world peace by finding our own peace. And as I do that, or work in that direction, I see that it takes me more deeply into my life, rather than going through the motions of daily activity, as though nothing serious were happening in the world. I found a quote from Ghandi that says, “You must become the change you wish to see in the world.” That’s what I mean when I say, let’s become the peace we want to see.

Another way to talk about this would be to say that we need to focus more on our inner peace whether we are actually in a war or not. There are different kinds of wars going on all the time, from domestic violence to armed robbery to gang shootings—as well as famine, disease, and worldwide poverty. Even without Iraq we would all benefit from focusing on more peace.
As I write this morning I realize that perhaps this war has been good for me. My awareness of all warfare is heightened, and I see that we all have a responsibility to help bring more health, more peace, and more awareness of struggle to our lives. As we start within ourselves, spreading then to our community, we can impact more people and create more in the way of peace, than we ever would have believed.

At a conference recently I heard a speaker ask the audience, “Why do you think you were born into the richest, most powerful country in the world?” That’s a good question and a great topic for journaling. What are the responsibilities that come from wealth and power? How can YOU honor that which you have been given? Or do you already? Do you feel as though you are part of that power? How do you own your power? I hope you’ll add your own questions here, and use one as a prompt for your journal writing.

Let us decide to not just sit back watching this war on TV but rather to reach out and create more peace inside, with our families and within our communities. Then, we can ALL be contributing to peace—and may just mysteriously impact all conflict. It’s a way to take our power and use it in support of ourselves, our troops, our country and the world.

Peace--Sue