Greetings! Welcome to Journey of Peace. I am glad you are here. I feel like 2019 has been an extreme wild ride, and ending the year with PEACE will be like stepping into a cool, clear pool on a hot, humid day.

For those of you who are new here, welcome. This is a site where contemplative journaling lifts your consciousness into higher states of being through daily reading/writing based on statements of Truth of who you are. More information can be found through links on the homepage.

We have three journeyers who will be leading the contemplations/reflections: Steve, Mary, and Lita. They will be taking turns writing here, while the others (and me) will be sharing their reflections in the comments. Below, you will find all of our reflections on why we are choosing to take this Journey of Peace.

This is new, exciting, and inclusive. It’s a good time for you to jump right in and join us, we are here, to support each other, and to support you. Are you ready to commit to 40 days? If so, tomorrow is the day for you to add your commitment and dedication to the comments section. If you would like to add your Why below, fantastic! Do it!

Let’s go!

Steve

Why? Why embark on a journey of Peace? What can be gained? Can it make a difference? What is peace? How does it manifest in the world, how does it manifest in me?

Why? In my heart, I know it is a journey worth taking. I do not know where it will lead, I am not sure of the destination. The journey is the path. It is a path of discovery.

Peace for all. It certainly does not belong to me, and yet, I sense I must have some measure of internal peace in order to help others on the journey. Or, perhaps I must help others in order to find my own peace.

Peace is universal.  Ultimately we all want the same things, peace, harmony, happiness. And yet, it seems so elusive in the world around us.

I don’t know if this journey will provide answers, but I am sure the questions are worth asking. My sense is that peace comes deeply from within, from an inner source of faith, in experiencing the connectedness of all life.

My intention is to be open to, and explore, the question of what is peace.

 

Mary

What is Peace to you? What does it feel like? What would you like to learn about or from the concept of Peace? How do you perceive peace? How would you like to perceive peace? How does peace relate to you, to your self-perception, and/or how you interact with the world?

When I think about Peace, what it is, I recall one of my favorite lines from a meditation I experienced many years ago:  “Peace, such a calm, relaxed feeling, such a quietness of spirit.”

 Quietness of spirit, that’s what peace is to me.  How does it feel? We live near the Puget Sound, a shipping waterway. On certain mornings, with the bedroom window open, I hear the distant sound of foghorns. I know it’s damp and foggy out there while I’m curled up snug and warm in bed.  Before I move a single muscle into my day, I appreciate that THIS is how Peace feels.

I’d like to perceive Peace, that quietness of spirit, carried with me throughout my day, everyday. I’m rarely successful at that. I’m on this Journey of Peace to practice Being better at taking peace with me wherever I go and without being shaken from inner peace by the happenings in my immediate world and beyond.

Lita

PEACE: Stillness.  Rest. The Middle Way.  Mutual Cooperation. Ease.

These are a number of ways to describe Peace, and I suppose I could wax greatly upon each word and its entry point for this upcoming Journey of Peace. More important, however, is the calling for more Peace in my life. I want to be less reactive to what shows up on my plate.

I experience distinct moments of space and ease when I am at Peace, and alternately compression when I am in fear, self-righteousness, judgement, etc.  A sculpture of a kanji (a Japanese symbol) sits on a shelf in my massage studio. It is the symbol for Peace and is a visual reminder of the work which takes place there. I am acutely aware that when I walk out of that studio to attend to the remaining duties and obligations of my life, I don’t always have that touchstone to bring my intention back to Peace.

My resources of Big Mind pound out the requirement that we need meditate more and practice heart/brain coherency if we are to make it through this wave of evolutionary consciousness we are reportedly in the midst of. The amount of stress on this planet (environmentally, geopolitically, financially, system wide, etc.) is wreaking havoc on our nervous systems and thereby limits our ability to respond co-creatively.

The bottom line for me is that I want the Peace which is part of this human journey of co-creation. It is as simple as that.

This is my second public round of the Journey (I participated in the Journey of Beauty), so I know there is good work ahead.  The touchstone of daily writing is a great place for anchoring Peace which is not only good and right for my being, but will reverberate to my relationships, my community, and the world. No one wants a miserable me, most of all me. And my commitment to write holds me accountable to myself and my community.

 

Susan

Why Peace? because 2019 has been a bear. seriously.

You know the saying “the only constant is change”? Well, that has been my hourly/daily/monthly existence for the past 10 months. Almost nothing is the same today as it was 10 months ago. My love o’ my life, my cat, my devotion to God (in all names and forms) and my family are about the only things that are the same.

A Course in Miracles says, “rest in peace” is a blessing for the living, not the dead because when we live in the holy spirit, we are at peace. Amen to that.

My goal for Journey of Peace is to continue, as I do… finding/seeking/being the peace of God, the peace of the Holy Spirit, and living that peace, that others may find their open door to it as well.