Do your part for Peace One Day
The United Nations – even in these troubled times – is once again asking the citizens of the world to imagine peace, and participate in a worldwide celebration of Peace One Day.
This is an international day of peace adopted by the U.N. in 2001 and observed on Sept. 21 every year. The Spokane chapter of the United Nations Association is making plans to draw local attention to this worldwide observation.
Skeptics may scoff that peace in the world would ever be possible. And when we look at humanity’s history of violence and war, it appears the skeptics have a lot of evidence on their side. Even peacemakers will say that war is sometimes necessary.
But if war is a necessary evil, it is all the more important to express peace as a necessary good. We do have a choice of which to focus on, as told in this famous Native American “Wolf Story”:
A grandfather is talking to his young grandson. He tells the boy he has two wolves inside of him struggling with each other.
The first is the wolf of peace, love and kindness. The other wolf is fear, greed and hatred.
“Which wolf will win, grandfather?” asks the boy.
“Whichever one you feed,” is the reply.
Every day – every moment – we have the choice to feed the wolf of peace or the wolf of fear. Even if we cannot achieve peace perfectly, we must continue to work for peace, or conflict is guaranteed to continue.
And we must remind ourselves of ideas that have brought peace and justice to the world – ideas like the abolition of slavery and indentured servitude; the acceptance of civil rights and female rights; and religious tolerance, to name a few.
Notions of peace and justice have been promoted for centuries on the global and national level through laws, constitutions, declarations and amendments. Personally, peace and justice are experienced daily through innumerable acts of human kindness.
Peace One Day asks each of us to imagine how we could personally extend acceptance, kindness, generosity and forgiveness to those around us in practical acts of peace.
In Spokane, the impact of Peace One Day will depend on individuals and groups who take the opportunity to spend at least this one day reflecting on how to create peace in our lives and in our communities – wherever conflict may occur and peacemaking would be preferred.
Here are some ideas of how to participate in Peace One Day on Tuesday:
• Write down your own personal commitment for that day.
• Ask an organization you belong to to create a presentation or activity on the topic of peace.
• Have your place of worship ring its bells for peace at noon.
• At your workplace, let your co-workers know that you will ring a “peace bell” at noon on Tuesday, and ask them to think for a minute on how they can bring peace to a conflict.
• Have a neighborhood potluck party and have the topic be peace.
• Ask some neighbors to come together with you to plant a tree in your neighborhood that would remind us all of our common desire for peace.
• Write letters to newspapers asking them to acknowledge and support Peace One Day.
• Host a music program. Call it “Imagine Peace.” Sing peace songs like “Imagine” by John Lennon or “Let there be peace on Earth, and let it begin with me.”
• Ask your kids to draw what peace would look like.
• Pray for a person you are in conflict with.
What are YOUR thoughts about promoting peace over conflict?