Give Peace a Year posts are the notes from in person meetings aiming to transform the surprising levels of violence I found had crept into my everyday suburban life. I invited people to join me to Give Peace a Year. We started in February 2016 and ran for 3 years. Many surprising transformations to our stress levels, health and relationships were had. You can read the whole story of how it all began with my hair conditioner here.

Photo by Viktor Mindt on Unsplash

With the aim of peace, everywhere, starting here, now, transforming violence and conflict of needs  in life, one word, thought or deed at a time.

And because

it’s not the slog that will get us there, it’s the joy

for balance, things that warmed our hearts.

Starting where transformation is needed.

Examples from the group of peace lovers this week on Thursday 28th July

1. How to be in amongst all the recent violence and killing? 

Having read a book, written in the 60’s, suggesting that inequality would result in violence and seeing it here and now over 50 years on, is sad and painful to realise how little we seem to have evolved as a society.

We talked about what to do, and how to be… for each person to make the best contribution they can make, in amongst the violence and suffering, and how their best contribution would draw on their strengths and preferences and wouldn’t come from any attempt to work against their preferences.

We recognised the importance of inner spiritual and emotional work as well as the outer practical work.

Each person might have strengths in one or both, the practical being visible, is the easier to appreciate, but the contribution of both are vital for wellbeing and to peace.

Heartwarming

Seeing it as incumbent upon ourselves to attend to our inner health and happiness, and understanding that what we exude contributes to and creates the climate around us, then finding what fills us with joy and spending time doing that, shapes the quality of what we contribute to life.

Exquisite textiles

A tome of a book, in a London library, with colour images of Chinese embroidery, set on surrounds that made it look like the images of fabric were themselves set on fabric.

Reading that Chinese embroidery was considered a spiritual practice too… brought another dimension to the beauty.

Spending time in open mouthed appreciation of page after page of exquisite textiles … wonderful.

Heartwarming

Having a picnic with my son in Sherrards Wood.  I’d never been there before and was deeply moved and touched by the amazing presence of something divine there.

The air was full and rich with a palpable presence, like a healing wash of peace working through every cell …it was an extraordinary experience.

There was also wine and anchovies.