Advent II: Peace

Peace sure seems to be in short supply these days. The world has not stopped waging war at any point in recorded history, but in recent years its drumbeats strike louder, closer to my heart.

My learnings tell me it is my choice to seek Peace anyways.

No, I can't affect the outcome of the struggle in Ukraine or the many official actions in my country which trouble my heart. I do not have the money or the contacts or the standing in this world.

But maybe. If I can work to create even a small puddle of Peace in my world, it'll water a bit of ground and some Beauty will sprout. If you'll allow me to change metaphors, perhaps it'll work like the light of the candle, and snuff out a small area of darkness.

I can Hope.

What is Peace anyways?

To me, it is embodied in those moments when, despite the turmoil and challenges of my days, I stop and breathe long enough to listen to the quiet voice. It often quotes Julian of Norwich:

All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.

Turmoil, anxiety, stress. Oh, my! (Sorry, Wizard of Oz moment there.) 

Let me start again. Turmoil, anxiety and stress aren't going anywhere - but as large as they loom in my days, they are not the whole of my days unless I permit them to be so.

I can choose to accept their existence AND to know Peace also exists somewhere within.

Peace lives in my memories of quiet moments in beautiful places.

Peace lives in my memories of arguments resolved and relationships transformed.

Peace lives in my memories of working in the living soil, connected to the life within its depths.

Peace lives in those moments when I am too tired to continue on, but hear a voice of reassurance, encouraging me to pause and rest for a moment - and to then take one more step.

Peace.