Dear Friend in Peace,
Watching the dismantling of our democracy, our social safety net, vital institutions, and people’s lives is not what any of us ever wished to happen, but it is.
As people of peace, is not ours to despair, but rather to rise to the occasion and stand up at this crucial time in our nation’s history, to speak out for government workers, for democracy, and for all our brothers and sisters.
To have the strength and fortitude to do so, it is time for us to breathe deeply and focus on nurturing inner peace. One powerful way of doing so is through inspiration. The reason this message is labelled “Part 1” is because inspiration is essential to our hope, our vision, and our peaceful power.
It feels right to begin with inspiration from a country which my dear friend Ali and I visited in 2012: Bhutan. This peaceful nation measures their success through Gross National Happiness rather than Gross National Product and it shows in every aspect of their lives, including the lack of billboards. Rather than focus on selling something, as is prevalent in the US, in Bhutan we saw Prayer flags and Prayer wheels everywhere. Why are they there? To remind everyone to send loving kindness and peace to everyone else!
We can hold fast to the vision of Bhutan knowing that what they have done can be done elsewhere, it can be done here. We can allow their inspiring example to bring us hope, peace, and power. We can literally turn ourselves into living, breathing Prayer Wheels which speak and spread truth, peace, and loving kindness to all.
