She taught us Shelly, Byron, Milton and Keats at college; and the passion with which she recited the verses and described their meanings at length, would often leave me breathless. Her eyes would shine behind her glasses and her gaunt face would turn pink while reciting Shelley’s I Arise From Dreams Of Thee.

Our mouths agape we used to watch her sway on her feet while the words just poured through her lips. "O, lift me from the grass, I die, I faint, I fall…"   Read more...

I had a rough thing happen in my life this week. A friend I’ve had for 28 years radically, and unexpectedly, severed our relationship. It’s been a couple of days since it went down, and I’ve had some terrific insights since then which I want to share with you.

First, I felt the severance in my solar plexus. I felt like I’d been stabbed. And I knew what I wanted to create in the situation was peace.

Second, my own anger at the unfairness of the action arose. And I knew what I wanted to create in the situation was peace.

Third, the sadness hit me broadside. Sadness about my friend. Sadness about the loss of him. And I knew what I wanted to create in the situation was peace.   Read more...

Lynne and I met many years ago. We taught in the same language school in Indonesia. Our desks were next to each other’s in the teachers’ room, so it was easy for us to become good friends. In fact, it was a joy going to work and having long yarns with her between lessons.

Living overseas is always challenging. And the ins and outs and complexity of Southeast Asia were tough for many of us middle class westerners. Plus soon after Lynne arrived in Indonesia, there was a huge devaluation of the rupia. So after only one year, Lynne and her then spouse, Ed, returned to Japan, where they had previously worked. I, on the other hand, stayed on for quite a while longer. However, Lynne and I remained friends and always kept in touch.   Read more...

I don’t remember how I came across The Peace Arch, but I do remember wondering at the time what Peace Architecture might look like. Sentient beings are notoriously sensitive to the spaces they inhabit whether they know it or not.

The thing about the Peace Arch that touched me is that it’s all about space, empty, open space. Peace needs space in order to be itself. One of the reasons we don’t have a consistent peace on our planet is that there isn’t enough space for it.   Read more...

Bloggers Unite called for posts on refugees. I thought about Darfur and Bali and Pakistan and Iraq and Afghanistan and the Sudan and then I realized that I’m really not qualified to write heartfully about any of these places or events. All I could write about is my own feelings of helplessness.

Then I realized why.   Read more...

It’s true that eating healthy can be more expensive than buying junk, but there are things you can do to lighten the impact on your wallet. Keep in mind that food is much more expensive in restaurants, take-out/delivery, and fast food chains than it is in a grocery store, so don’t use money as an excuse for not buying healthy groceries if you’re eating out multiple times a week.   Read more...

I’m halfway through This Week in [Peace] History and, to be honest, I’m shocked, genuinely shocked, at how little this valuable resource is about peace and how much it is about violence. I’m no stranger to violence. In fact, it was in the midst of a horribly violent domestic abuse situation that I learned that my mission was peace!

At a particularly drastic and dangerous moment, a soft whisper filtered through my mind, “You can have peace in the face of this.” I was struck dumb at the realization. One of the things that I allowed to create great suffering in me during this experience of violence was the silence I kept about it. I thought of it as our dirty little secret.   Read more...

One aspect of everyday Japanese culture that has always fascinated me is how the folks here seem to have a built in sense of trust that life will take care of them. I first noticed this by observing how people cross the street. When the green walk sign lights up, without even looking to either side, people step off the curb and head confidently into the road. Pedestrians know that drivers have a responsibility to keep them safe, so they proceed without a care in the world.

When I think of the many experiences I have had in other parts of the world, where cars fly around corners at top speed, the drivers only concerned with getting to their destinations and having no concern whatsoever for anyone else, I am doubly amazed by the utter trust of pedestrians here and by the caution and courtesy of Japanese drivers.   Read more...