How Much is Peace Worth

Aug 22, 2003

I heard a story about a child that had a rare ailment. The parents were totally dedicated to the welfare and the finding of a cure for the child. The parents left no stone unturned and depleted their personal wealth trying to find treatments for their child. When their little girl finally died from the disease the parents were broke and living on welfare. They gave everything for that part of them that was their child, the connection had never been broken, and love was unconditional and unmeasured.

   It is much easier to sacrifice when you feel the connection as in that of a loved one. It doesn’t seem like a sacrifice. It is the pain of separation, that we feel when we do not sacrifice "it all," for someone we feel no connection with or a country half way around the world.

   I felt uplifted when I witnessed the demonstrators, who took time off work or sacrificed time from their jobs and money to publicly demonstrate against war. It is interesting to note that the demonstrations were mostly about being against war, few demonstrations were about peace. The only way you can demonstrate peace is by being peaceful. Praying for peace does not give you peace. Seeking "peace" will not take you there. You can only be "peace."

   When the thought of war is so abhorrent to us all, then we will seek to be peaceful. We will sacrifice all that we have for peace, there will be no stone unturned or token gestures, no questions of how much time or money to give for peace. There "can not" be war in a world where people are being "at peace." Neither lip service nor great sacrifices will bring peace in the world, if the world community at large, is not already at peace in their hearts.

   No man nor nation can wage war on a peace loving world, for who would do the fighting? The truth is, we just are not there yet. We still use war to settle disputes. We have isolated ourselves from the people of Iraq and most of the middle east. We do not feel the connection between us. We do not yet understand our inheritance. A believe in all others outside of our immediate family to be strangers has insulated us from the connection that we all share and we can therefore put a lower value on how much we are willing to spend on peace. The truth is, we can not fight for peace, we can only be peaceful. Creation gave us intellect to accomplish great things and work around problems. The act of war is a failure of the intellectual process to come to a peaceful solution to a problem. It is the separation that we feel between peoples and nations that allow our reason to fail. We as a world community are not yet at the stage in our evolution, were we will go to the mat for another, where we will do anything or sacrifice everything to end a conflict with our other selves.

   The good news is, that peace doesn’t cost anything. We do not have to give up our personal treasures or fortune to demonstrate that we want peace. "Peace is priceless." Demonstrating against war does not bring peace, but a "demonstration" of demonstrating against war, and at best only brings an awareness. We as a world brotherhood can have peace right now at this second. It is not a great secret, there are those who already have an awareness and are demonstrating peace in their lives. At the time of a world on the brink of chaos, there are people who live peaceably. Each of us, every day demonstrates our position on the evolutionary ladder. Our thoughts, words and deeds are symbols of how we see ourselves in this life time at each moment of our existence. Demonstrate peace and you will have peace. If everyone really wanted peace, there would be peace, there just are not enough people who really want it yet. Peace is at hand but it simple is not are "reality" at this time. We simply are not peace loving people at this moment, globally.

   If you want peace now, then demonstrate peace. If you do not want war, let the rest of the world know it, by all means, get the message out! Don’t wait for peace to come, don’t pray for peace. Demonstrate that you are already peaceful and others will follow.