If we are going to continue enjoying this beautiful world together, it is paramount we find a way to co-exist peacefully. So many of us recognize this so strongly that the very idea of peace has become cliché, considered by so many to be a naïve and idealistic aspiration. World peace and harmony is seen as this far-off impossible dream, and so many of us (because of thinking like this) discourage the thought before even making an attempt to formulate a possible solution, let alone act on it. 

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       It's pretty easy to see that most of us do this because we feel it lets us off the hook from doing what we consider to be the grueling and thankless work of mediating all of the intense conflict that plagues so much of our world. We overexaggerate in our imagination exactly what it would take to achieve such peace, and so we neglect even the simple and practical solutions we could implement to impact our own little corners of the world in  a powerful way. 

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       Our failure or ability to exert the power of peace within our own lives may seem like a small thing. After all, each of us are just one person. But this all adds up collectively, and when the majority of us are neglecting our duty to maintain peace within ourselves and within our relationships, it ripples out exponentially. It ruins entire neighborhoods, towns, cities, and eventually causes break downs in communication, inspires murders, permits wars, and leads to the collapse of entire countries.

 

      The Chinese proverb, "The flap of a butterfly's wings can be felt on the other side of the world" inspired our current conception of the butterfly effect. Every little thing we do has far-reaching implications beyond what any of us can see.  We cannot downplay the impact and effect we have on this world, and when we do we do not lose our power, we merely squander it in the wrong direction, doing things  which cause suffering for ourselves and everyone around us. Yet, we have no problem blaming others we see as being more influential or in a better position to effect things for neglecting their duty to help the world.

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       Certainly the "rich" and the "powerful" could and should do better! But so can and so should each one of us. We cannot demand that they rise to the occasion if we ourselves will not. And definitely we should abandon this notion that making peace is some kind of deplorable chore which we cannot be bothered with. 

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     The Quest for Peace is a glorious and beautiful undertaking. It is challenging and can be quite uncomfortable, sure. It can take an emotional toll and requires us to humble ourselves and to listen deeply and to open our hearts and to find our courage, of course. And yet, these are the very things which make life exhilarating. The fruit their success produces is far better than the suffering inflicted when peace fails and humans resort to robbing, attacking, and killing each other.

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       The truth is almost all of us have the desire for and the intention of making peace in our lives. Where we seem to go wrong time and time again is we fail to understand the mechanics of peacemaking. We do not bother to learn the counterintuitive arts of de-escalation, of deep listening, of intercession and the sacrificing of pride that comes into play when working toward peace. Most of all, we make the fatal mistake of believing peace is something you can fight for. As if it is a final outcome that can be achieved through conflict, domination, or destruction.

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       As many sages and saints have pointed out in the past, peace is not an outcome to be arrived at. It is a  state of being. It is a way of behaving. The fruits of peace are a direct result of the cultivation of peace within ourselves and within our lives. Tending to the garden of peace is much more simple and straightforward than most of us know. As soon as we realize this, the quest for peace ceases to be this impossible feat that we must somehow bend the will of others to. Instead, it becomes as natural and as easy as breathing. Any one of us can do it. All of us can do it. The more of us that partake in the simple steps which I will outline clearly in following articles, the more unstoppable and compelling peace will become.

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       If I tell you that you can give peace to yourself and others and that it is easy, natural, and even fun to do so, what does that make you feel? Where is the resistance to that idea arising from within you? There alone is your challenge and your enemy. It is nowhere outside of that.

 

        In each of us, we hold a deep, unexamined resistance and doubt toward peace. This first must be dealt with and overcome. It is the most essential and most uncomfortable step, and it stands in the way of learning to apply the practical and foundational methods for peacemaking. 

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       Yet, if you will make a commitment here and now to dealing with it, to let yourself become restless and desperate to face this shadow which bars you from embarking on the Quest for Peace, what a powerful force you will become for tranquility in your life. 

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        I assure you it is my mission to challenge each and every one of you to step up and do this work, playfully and enthusiastically.  I myself will not rest until I have experimented with every avenue and noble attempt for awakening in you the waters of deep desire for peace.

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      Join me in this quest, and I will extend to you every tool, resource, and inspiration at my disposal to assure your success. Commit with me to spreading this flame of renewal and hope for harmony, and together we will send out a ripple of transformation so powerful that it cannot be ignored. The paths of peace will open themselves up to the most desperate aggressor, as anger and pride give way to our call for a better, brighter world in which we can all flourish.

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        There is no limit to what we can accomplish when we collectively set our hearts and minds to it. And what shall anyone truly gain from another war, from another massacre, from more dropped bombs and decimated cities? What will we achieve with another argument, with heated words and vile phrases, and harsh demands? We have seen the results of these paths of conflict repeated over and over, justifying that we have somehow halted the death of loved ones by exalting in the destruction of our enemies. 

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       I will show and prove to you that even in the midst of the most heated battle, the path of peace retains the power to make men drop their arms, fall to their knees, and weep for the shame of their wrongdoing. Here and now is your invitation to do a mighty work, and it will not be withdrawn. For peace is our ultimate and only restful destination.

 

        Let me show you where we are going and how we will arrive there. 

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