Exploring Ways To Make Peace Within
Ourselves & the World

Women In Black Denver, Colorado

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Why Do I Write This Blog???

The easiest (and probably the most honest) answer to that question is: I don't know. It all started in the summer of 2005, when I went to Crawford, Texas ( a.k.a. the home of the prez's ranch, a.k.a. the home of Camp Casey) to support Cindy Sheehan. I wanted the world to know that, contrary to what one could read in the mainstream media, the peace movement was alive and well and large numbers of Americans did not support the war in Iraq. I wanted people to know that thousands of Americans were willing to travel to Texas and tolerate the heat, humidity, and bugs in order to support a grieving mother whose new purpose was to shine a light on the lies that led to the war and to bring home our troops so that no other mother would have to know the pain that she felt.

Over time, this blog has become more of an exploration of who I am, my spirituality, and how life works. I love life's complexities, exploring the shades of gray. I want to, as Rainier Maria Rilke said,

"Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books that are now written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer."

Maybe my blog is just one big question about what is needed in order for people to take the time to love and cherish each other and our earth. Maybe someday, I will "live along some distant day into the answer."

In the meantime, thank you for joining me on my journey. I welcome you to share yours with me

 

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Create Peace


When I was the chair of a peace & justice group, I took on the job of cleaning out the group's storage cabinet. Underneath piles of out-dated booklets, I found a PLETHORA (that word feels so good rolling off my tongue) of peace bumper stickers just waiting to be adopted by someone (me).

So now, on my day-timer, there lives a beautiful "Create Peace" sticker.

I often hear that the Inuit have a gazillion words for "snow". The Greeks have many words for "love". I think that we need a lot more words for "peace". Kinda like all the many types of Bubba Gump Shrimp in Forrest Gump ("You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried...")

We could have words for:

  • the kind of peace that comes with an absence of war
  • the kind of peace that comes with clear and kind thoughts
  • the kind of peace that comes with a beautiful sunset
  • the kind of peace that comes with negotiation
  • the kind of peace that comes from beating others into submission, a.k.a. war (I don't find that to be peaceful at all, but some people would need a word for that)
  • the kind of peace that comes when everyone just leaves you alone
  • the kind of peace that people feel on Christmas eve - as long as they live in a country without war (see #1)
  • the kind of peace that comes with some religious experiences
  • the kind of peace that comes when the war stops right here, right now, with me


I'm not sure that there really is more than one kind of true peace, but using different words to communicate what we really mean might make the world, um, more peaceful.

Labels: ,

posted by Carol at 8:21 AM

4 Comments:

Blogger otowi said...

I love your list!

3:48 PM  
Blogger Carol said...

Hey Otowi!

There are probably many more things I didn't think of that people experience and label as "peace".

4:25 PM  
Blogger The Future Was Yesterday said...

I understand what you're saying, and it is truly admirable. But shouldn't we first try to get something that is really "Peace", and then find new names for it? Like "Holy S***! Look what happened when I laid my gun down!!"

9:43 PM  
Blogger Carol said...

Hey TUA,

:-)

I think that laying down our guns is one component of peace, for sure. Not sure it will happen unless we lay down a few other things, though.

Thanks for chiming in. Please help keep me honest!

11:59 AM  

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