Principles for Peace

photo by:  Material Boy

Over two years ago I read this story and it is something that I have remembered to this day.  Whether it is true or not, I have no way of knowing, but it certainly could be true.  It’s message is extremely powerful so I wanted to share it with you.

Bank Account

A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, with his hair fashionably coiffed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.

As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, Read More »

photo by:  Robert van der Steeg

“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least. “ ~ Goethe

The clock is ticking.  It still is.  Time doesn’t stop.  You only have a limited amount of time that you live on this earth.

As you close your eyes tonight - this very night - another day will have ended.  Will you look back at the day fulfilled - satisfied with how you spent your time?  If you were to write down all the things you did or all the ways you spent your time what would it reflect?

What/who is important to you?  Have you spent your time Read More »

photo by:  Todd Young

“Leave  everyone  better than you found them.”

Well, it has now been a week since I sent out the challenge - since I challenged myself and challenged you - to leave every place, every person better than we found them.

I don’t know about you, but this has been fun. I want to tell you of my results and then hear of yours.  I can’t wait to hear yours!

I have to start out being honest.  There were times I forgot, but it was something that I really tried to keep at the forefront of my mind and do actively and it DID make a difference.

The responses I got varied - seemed to vary much more than I thought they would.

Every place:

One thing I did was Read More »

photo by: listentoreason

“Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.” ~Anthony J. D’Angelo

This weeks post is not going to be a long one, but it has HUGE potential…

We’ve all been around those people….  The room brightens up when they leave.  Everything is negative.  Nothing is good.

We’ve all also been around those people who brighten a room every time they enter one.  When they leave you just feel good about yourself.  You feel good about life.

What if…. just what if…. we could brighten every place we go.  What if we could make a difference everywhere we go, every place we visit, with every person with whom we have contact….

What if Read More »

In the last two posts, we have discussed the four preparations of peace and the four purifications of peace taught by Peace Pilgrim.  We also discussed Peace Pilgrim’s message which is so very powerful.  These posts generated much thought and discussion as we all went within to examine our own lives.

Today, I wanted to share with you some “random” thoughts that were collected  from Peace Pilgrim’s teachings.  I find each one of them thought provoking and powerful.  See what you think….

* We can all spend our lives going about doing good. Every time you meet a person, think of some Read More »

photo by: James B. Burton

Peace Pilgrim…..Have you heard of her?  She spent her life sharing peace with others. She walked over 25,000 miles all over the U.S. and into Canada and Mexico on a personal pilgrimage to share peace with others.  Peace Pilgrim truly understood what peace is.

I would like to thank my friend, Stephen Hopson, for pointing me in the way of Peace Pilgrim.  I was not aware of her life or what she stood for until Stephen brought her to my attention.  Apparently, he noticed some kind of correlation between us.

Peace Pilgrim taught several steps to inner peace.  Today, I would like to share with you her message and four preparations of inner peace. Read More »

What if….

* People loved you and saw the good in you when you got mad at them - and they didn’t get mad back at you?

* People loved you and saw the good in you when you were rude to them – and they didn’t get rude back?

* People loved you and saw the good in you when looked your worst – and they saw your beauty?

* People loved you and saw the good in you when you rolled your eyes at them – and they smiled back at you? Read More »

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

- Leo F. Buscaglia

It’s great to be back!  Thanks for your patience with me over the last month as I have not been around very much.  It has been busy, but it was good.  I hope all of you have had a wonderful holiday season so far and that the New Year is absolutely fantastic for you.  I wish you all that brings you peace and joy in the year to come.

Change -  it’s what we are all thinking about now as the new year arrives.  “What New Years’ resolutions will I make this year?  What do I want to be different?  How do I want to improve my life?”  may be some questions you are asking of yourself.  I would like to pose one way that we can all improve our lives over the next year.

I think it’s safe to say that we all enjoy a sincere Read More »