This morning, snow falls for the first time this season in northern Illinois.
A slow falling snow, no wind, just thick, fluffy, bunched together flakes cascading to the ground, some deciding to melt, while others stick together on the bushes in the front yard begging to be noticed. It is quiet.
Birds and squirrels busy themselves around my feeder--there is still much work to do.
When I sat up and noticed how peaceful this scene looked, I realized peace means so much in my life and can mean very different things to all of us.
Follow me over the fold for more peace.
While I sit and enjoy this peace, an earthquake raged in Indonesia under the ocean within the past hour. Chaos and fear overshadow peace.
As the fires fuel themselves by way of the gustiest of winds near Los Angeles, fear overshadows peace.
When a parent cries themselves to sleep because next week the mortgage is due and the unemployment benefits from the job loss last year is running out, fear overshadows peace.
How do we find peace during the turmoil? How do we find peace when we are afraid? How do we find peace when we feel so alone?
In the past, I would think of my concept of peace as either a solitary event such as going off alone somewhere and sitting in silence and looking at nature and finding my "moment of peace" or a huge worldwide mission to rid the planet of war and atrocities, focusing on the idea of "world peace" as the goal. Protest. Protest. Protest.
Peace, for me, can be solitary and it can be standing up for what I want on a global scale. AND it can be this:
A little girl drawing a picture of what peace means to her
-Opening your home to a relative who has fallen on hard times
-Seeing the good in someone who has hurt you
-A huge kiss from your best doggy friend
Peace is all about hope. Hope can be elusive in an earthquake or fire and seemingly impossible to find if you are on the verge of homelessness and hunger. Yet, during these difficult moments, little heros arrive.
Firefighters dousing flames and everyday people facing their fears to rescue others from floods are met by those who sit with the sick when they are dying and those who just listen. Listen, without judgement or advice--they are just there. The hope they brings gives the momentary peace in an overwhelmingly difficult situation.
We need each other. We need those connections. Alone, although peaceful at times, is not how we are meant to live. We each need help at times and are sometime unwilling or afraid to seek it. Those are the moments we need each other the most.
Barack Obama shared his vision of his administration. It's not about him coming in to rescue us from the atrocities of the past eight years; it's about him leading the charge of hope and peace with our help. He knows he can't do it alone. No president is meant to.
Each of us seek peace in our lives; sharing what we do can inspire others to seek new ways of finding moments of calm and seeing the hope. What gives you peace? What gives you hope? What will you do to help where you are in the next four years of the Obama Administration? (It feels so wonderful to type "Obama Administration") Obama's plan for communication & hope
Have a great Sunday.
Peace.