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Archive for June, 2022

Juneteenth Begun

Posted in inspiration, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 26, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Let’s stop believing that our differences make us superior or inferior to one another. (Don Miguel Ruiz)

Juneteenth. I was in my seventies when I heard about the event. And the real-person images of human beings sold like cattle, fill my mind.

Have you seen my husband, brother, and child? an old letter reads. The question remains from the day when slavery ended. Legally. An end to the practice came later in name only. Loss remains. Law could not outlaw bigotry and hate. 

I think about how blessed I am to live in a multi-cultured neighborhood where I see color. The way I see the beauty inside a rose garden or a watercolor pallet.

Centuries-old black and white pictures appeared before the day approached. Without moving text. History. In words. Inside the eyes of a captured individual is a fear that must stay hidden. A numbness that was mistaken for ignorance. Stay inside the master’s rules, young man. Consequences can be fatal.

Now. Freedom has come. Listen. Juneteenth. I hope for a time when equality will move with the in-and-out breath of all living creatures. Taken for granted.

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Peace Recipe, a Poem

Posted in inspiration, tagged , , , , , , , on June 18, 2022| Leave a Comment » 











Peace comes from being able to contribute the best that we have, and all that we are, toward creating a world that supports everyone. But it is also securing the space for others to contribute the best that they have and all that they are. (Hafsat Abiola)

Peace Recipe
Set spirit temperature at warm.

Forgive. Inside and outside
the home receptacle. Sprinkle awareness.
Listen for minor changes and slow cook.

Watch the product, not the clock.
Peace can be both served and recreated
as ingredients intermix. 

Add truth and blend it with patience,
an uneven, unpredictable process.

The mixture is as necessary 
for an effective final product
as oxygen for breathing.
Water for life.

Allow contents to simmer, open-lidded. 
Take care. Hate enters and boils 
when placed in a closed pot on high flames. 

When the recipe is
denied by someone or something, 
begin again. Vent excess heat
in a safe environment.

Practice the recipe and serve daily 
without expecting instant satisfaction.

Peace development can take many forms.
It can be the yeast in bread dough
in another family’s house. 

Let it rise where it can.
And know you are part of the core
of world change. 
 

published in For A Better World 2022

					
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Listening, With More Than Ears

					

					Posted in inspiration, tagged , , , , ,  on June 10, 2022|
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from one hand to another


If you feel pain, you are alive. If you feel other people’s pain, you are a human being. (Leo Tolstoy)


Emotions. Tricky. And universal. I had an experience lately where I was attacked on public media for disappointing the cause. Anger exploded. I pretended to process the experience prematurely. Something like jumping from an airplane without training. My reply was sweet but vastly inadequate. After all, the cause was against violence.




Fortunately, an understanding friend intervened. Privately. Why begin a war over a misunderstanding? 


No. I am not relaying details. No point to it. I prefer to focus on what I decided. The beauty of listening, recognizing the heart of the other. In my own life. It is not possible during a shouting match.  Sometimes genuine evil is formidable enough.


I think about how difficult it is to live personal life inside the polar political realm. To look deeper at who gains and who loses. To look from the inside of those most likely to be hurt.




Peace. Eventually.


 

					
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Young Man Apprehended: This Is Not a News Story  

					

					Posted in inspiration, tagged , , , , , , , ,  on June 2, 2022|
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Peace is


Be the peace you wish to be. (Martin Luther King)


“There’s a police car in the parking lot. With its lights on,” someone in our spiritual group calls.


No sirens. Nevertheless, I’m jolted from the sweetness of our gathering.


I see a young man with dark skin and long hair. He hides beside a parked car. He runs next to the beige walls of a church and squats down, then runs again. I don’t know what happened, or why he hides. 


With no chaos, no noise, and no gunfire, the police drive away. With the young man inside the car. I hear nothing of a forced encounter. I don’t see the capture at all. The beginning or end of a story. I see part of a scene from a silent play in progress. No ticket to follow its progress.


Later, the moment replays in my mind. And heart. May peace and justice meet without bias. May no violence be a sign of a reasonable outcome. 


I recall simpler situations. The lady in front of me in the checkout line at the grocery. She’s uptight over the way a young man bags. I have her pegged. Yet, this could be just a sideways reaction on a difficult day. Even if my assessment is accurate, does it need to alter who I am?


Be the peace you wish to be. Okay, Dr. King. If you can do it, anyone can.


 







					
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