Peace of Choosing

Dear Friend in Peace,

Invitations to hate and fear are frequent these days which reminds me of some of the songs from the remarkable and inspiring musical, South Pacific by Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Oscar Hammerstein’s lyrics remind us that love is our natural state since we must be taught to hate:

“You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear,
You’ve got to be taught from year to year,
It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear—
You’ve got to be carefully taught...”

We are living that song now as the current Executive and Legislative branches of our government are desperately trying to teach us, to convince us to hate and fear one another. It is ours as people of peace to stand up and speak up for “Liberty and Justice for all,” for our Constitution and for all of the vital services we receive and count on as Americans for ourselves and others. We do not and shall not respond to calls to hate, discrimination, cruelty or fear in kind. We can and do choose peace. If sometimes we get caught in the energy of fear, we accept what we have done, feel compassion for ourselves, and move on to choosing peace. If we need to choose peace again and again, day after day, it is not cause for dismay, but for celebration since by continually choosing peace we strengthen and nurture peace within ourselves!
Invitations to hate and fear may continue. Rather than engage with them, we let them float right past our ears and they disappear as we create invitations to PEACE for ourselves. Some of my favorites are conscious deep breathing, meditation, being in nature, especially near water and/or old trees, being with others, laughter, music, playing my didge and gong, and watching clouds. What are your favorite invitations to peace?
Choices matter and so we ask ourselves, “What shall I choose to invite into my life?” Once again, the brilliant pair of Rogers and Hammerstein have the lyrics and music to guide us to peace:

“Happy talk,
Keep talkin’ happy talk,
Talk about things you’d like to do.
You gotta have a dream;
If you don’t have a dream,
How you gonna have a dream come true?”

Our dream is peace, and it comes true as we choose to think, speak, and breathe peace. It comes true as we are willing to accept the moments of our non-peace and refocus to choose again and choose peace.

Thank you for choosing peace in your thoughts, words, and actions.
Yours in peace and love always,
Donna

P.S.  Please pass on the peace by sharing this post with friends and family. They can join this mailing list, by writing to me at donnadday@gmail.com