Bring PEACE not PainTM

 January 18, 2010

I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality... I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word. Martin Luther King, Jr. __________________________________________________________________

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December Prayer

by Mattie J.T. Stepanek

No matter who you are,

Say a prayer this season.

No matter what your faith,

 Say a prayer this season.

No matter how you celebrate,

Say a prayer this season.

There are so many ways To celebrate faiths,

There are so many faiths To celebrate life.

No matter who,

No matter what

No matter how... You pray.

Let's say a prayer This season,

Together, for peace.

December 1999

Excerpted from the book Journey Through Heartsongs,  Copyright © Sept. 2001, Mattie J.T. Stepanek. Published by VSP Books/Hyperion

 HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

In the spirit of Valentines Day, let today be all about LOVE...open your hearts and allow LOVE to freely flow …from others and to others. There is nothing that can alter our mood or our outlook quite like LOVE…both when we share it and when we receive it.

I wish you LOVE in abundance ..today and everyday.

Suzi

xox

That hope will nurture and guide us thru our challenges…but we must protect it ..like the last flame on a burning ember...for when that flame of hope goes out...so goes the warmth and light giving us the ability to see our way…leaving us again in the cold darkness of despair.

It is our duty to embrace hope, protect and cultivate hope… not just our personal hope but also to foster hope in all those who touch out lives. A better day, a better life, a better world are all with in our grasp…but the power to bring that to fruition will depend upon hope.

As we go through our day let us allow our hearts the freedom to envision peace in our hearts, a brighter tomorrow and a right and just world. Let us also be mindful of bringing hope to the lives of others…

If we are all one interconnected body of life…if we are responsible to each other and for each other, how can we stand back and watch cruel and injustices inflicted upon our brother the world over and feel little and do less? Or is it that we do feel the pain …a great pain, but when we believe that we can not alter the events the feeling of inadequacy and helplessness is so great that as self protection we detach and retreat? Do we foresee any actions that we personally may be capable of as totally insignificant…almost laughable, like a hungry person picking up a dirty penny left on the street thinking it will make a difference. Does that feeling cause us to abandoning our intention all together?

Or do we wait for the call…the call to service…the call to action, pointing the way we can make the world, our world a better place?

Could it be that that call does rings out …every day… softly, but the volumes down and it is easily drowned out by the din of our daily demands? Or perhaps its just not the call we want to hear… because secretly we are waiting for the day that we will be in position to truly help someone...to be a hero, a big screen moment when we will summons all our courage and jump in a frozen river to save a drowning child or step into traffic to pull someone out about to get hit by a car?

How do we shift our thoughts and realize that there is far greater value in the smallest of actions than in the greatest of intentions. When will we understand the power of an action…any action, regardless the size to cause a reaction which causes yet again a reaction and so on? When will we acknowledge that innately we are all Agents of Peace and the power is ours wield in any degree we choose?

Perhaps our first step would be to turn up the volume on our inner voice…listen to our hearts and trust that as minor as a proposed action may be …it will make a difference!

Here is a great story that a friend emailed me....it is true!

A Violinist  in the Metro

> A man sat at a metro  station in Washington DC and started to play the
> violin; it  was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45  
> minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated  that
> thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their  way to work.
>
> Three  minutes went by and a middle-aged man noticed there was a musician  
> playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then  hurried up
> to meet his schedule.
>
> A  minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw  
> the money in the till and without stopping continued to  walk.
> A  few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but  
> the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was  late
> for work.
>
> The one  who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged
> him  along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the  
> mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all  the
> time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the  parents,
> without exception, forced them to move  on.
>
> In the 45  minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for
> a  while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace.  He
> collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one  
> noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any  recognition.
>
> No one  knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best
> musicians  in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written  with
> a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.
>
> Two  days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater
>  in Boston and the seats averaged  $100.
>
> This  is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was
>  organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about  
> perception, taste, and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a  commonplace
> environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty?  Do we stop to
> appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected  context?
>
> One of  the possible conclusions from this experience could  be:
>
> If we do not have a  moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians
> in the world  playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we
>  missing?

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Peace…we long for it…in our hearts and our world… why does it allude us? Is our longing for it, that what keeps it at bay?

Is the absents of peace the multiplier that allows our experiences to be transformed into negative thoughts and feelings thus pushing us deeper and deeper into the dark abyss of our minds as we replay the events of such, on our inner screen...over and over again.

What if peace were in our grasps…this very moment? Would we commit to it? Or have we become so accustom to dancing on the rim of despair that the thought of achieving inner peace itself frightens us. The thought of change, transformation…commitment even when we have glimpsed the abundance of rewards can paralyze us.

So how do we shake off our self imposed shackles and succeed in filling our hearts and lives with peace? By conscious choice, with practice and by trusting ourselves that we are not only capable of obtaining and sustaining peace, but that we are worthy of that peace.

Daily Exercise: Starting with three (3) minutes…Sitting in quiet, acknowledge that you alone have control of your thoughts, your mind and your heart…then for the time allotted allow only thoughts of love and acceptance (for self and others) to circulate in your mind…when thoughts of fear or anger appear just redirect your mind. This takes practice but as we continue to practice it will become easier to transcend the negatives and access the bliss and peace in our hearts.