As the year draws to a close and the world prays for peace on earth
even amidst the worst devastation in decades I look inward and wish for peace
in the family. Of course I hope for
peace in the world, among friends and colleagues, in neighbourhoods and so
forth but when all is said and done the influence on and in the family is the
strongest. As I went through the latest
meditation with Deepak and as I review the notes I took over the 21 days I feel
grateful to know these are both profound and simple steps to making our
everyday lives plain, simple and peaceful.
Christmas time can be both lovely, happy and connecting but it can
also create high expectations that could be dashed through simple
misunderstandings, carelessness or thoughtlessness for, by or to others. It takes true inner understanding and
strength to let go of disappointment and move forward into a new year with
solid resolutions for peace and goodwill toward all.
I am from a family with strong personalities, deep convictions and
loud voices. When we get together we can
be a little overpowering to non-family members, in-laws and friends alike. As we get older I sometimes think about an
article Ann Landers wrote wherein she excused herself for cutting off other
people because she got over-excited and needed to make her point. The fact of the matter was that she was
entering middle age and from personal experience I think we suddenly forget our
manners because we are so afraid of forgetting what we were going to say! I’ve had to give myself many a mental shake
to stop cutting other people off by saying to myself “Ann Landers moment”. I am not cured and my siblings are so not
cured but occasionally we will create rules for ourselves taken from “Lord of
the Flies”. Hey, I have the conch now;
or I am ringing the bell, or I have the feather. Sometimes it works but mostly we just raise
our voices an octave higher. It doesn’t
help that some of the siblings are getting a little deaf and others are
menopausal.
Oh to be on high as the eldest and the most evolved. And not one of my siblings can trump “I have
the most life experience”. Dad used to
kill me with that one but now I am the one holding that particular card.
Gotcha.
And may you have
Peace on Earth. J
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