Day 7: February 5
The thought for today is EDUCATION.
As I sat in meditation on today’s word, my first thoughts naturally were about our educational system and how Peace relates to that. I came across some great quotes:
Establishing lasting peace is the work of education; all politics can do is keep us out of war. ~ Maria Montessori
The aim of education is the knowledge not of fact, but of values. ~ John Dewey
We must remember that intelligence is not enough; intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
The teaching of values and character formally is, of course, important. However, nothing speaks with more authority than the way you live your everyday life. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.” I keep thinking back to a conversation I had a while ago with my minister and mentor, Rev. Linda Pye, who told me that we are often drawn to teach that which we need to learn ourselves. Perhaps that’s why I keep coming back to the themes of Peace and nonviolence.
Nothing speaks so loudly as the way in which you live your life. My parents are two of the kindest, thoughtful, caring people I have the privilege of knowing. They didn’t have to speak much to us about being kind; they showed it. They lived it every day by reaching out to others in need. How better to teach than by demonstrating that it’s actually possible to live it? Our words are empty and ring hollow without the action to back them up.
I encourage you to learn more about Peace and nonviolence. Make it part of your consciousness. Learn about human rights, forgiveness, peace studies, biographies of peacemakers, and more. Read books about the lives of M. K. Gandhi, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cesar Chavez. Read the book Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life by Marshall Rosenberg. There are a multitude of books and audio out there that deal with the topic of meditation; works by Jack Kornfield and Thich Nhat Hanh are good places to start. Explore the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Teaching Tolerance project website and sign up for their newsletter. Google nonviolence or peace.
And most importantly, live Peace.
I will take time to learn about creating Peace and nonviolence within myself, my family, and my community. As I make Peace part of my consciousness, I will live it every day. Through my actions, I educate others around me that Peace is not only a possibility, but a Reality.
breathe Peace ~
Rev. Rebecca
As a special gift from the Association for Global New Thought in celebration of the Season for Nonviolence, please accept this Living Peace Mandala as another way of participating in the Season. Instructions for its use are located below the mandala. Create a shortcut for your desktop so you can access it easily. And please don’t forget to come back every day to http://revrebecca.com/wordpress for more inspiration and daily action that you can take to move you and your world in the direction of Peace.
