FINDING
PEACE IN A TROUBLED WORLD
(WINTER 2001)
Dear Friends
Nearly two months have passed since the day our lives were irrevocably changed, September 11, and I continue to hear just how difficult it is to put the events of that day and the ensuing challenges and changes into 'order' - or perspective - within our hearts, minds, and bodies. With the collapse of the twin towers the collapse of an illusion of safety and economic power is ripped away, and a way of life is gone. Discovering how to cope with the loss of this illusion and of both the outer and inner structures that the towers symbolize takes many forms. For many, dealing with the fears that erupt in response to uncertainty and danger are primary, while for others, revenge, action, and reconstruction are at issue. time.
No matter what ones opinions, politics, position, or beliefs, each of us is working in his or her own way to find a way to live with the changes of our lives. There are as many strategies for living with change as there are people! I offer my reflections to you in the hopes that it helps you towards Finding Peace In A Troubled World.
In searching for my own response, I look deeply - toward my values, my heart, and my desire to be a person who is capable of growing, learning, and willing to compassionately face initiation and transformation. I ask myself how to find peace in this troubled world, and my answer, while not yet complete, is the same as it would be if I were working with an inner change, relationship change, or other personal growth change. Compassion. Patience. Faith. Sit in The Void.
When in the process of adapting to any change I often remind myself, "This, too, shall pass." and while the conditions of life may be irrevocably changed, my reactions to those changes will not remain static. My feelings, reactions, and responses are an area in which I have some choice, if not about what is happening outside of me, then about how I meet those externals...I have choice now, just as I have, all along.
Learning to be comfortable - or to be OK - with the uncertainty of these times is not unlike learning to be comfortable with what I am calling The Great Uncertainty (The Great Mystery, or The Void also works) that underlies all of Life.
I have sat with many people who, when facing deep transformative moments, are frightened of the metaphorical 'jump off the cliff' that is part of leaving one way of living in order to move forward into something new. Often, no matter how much the new state of being is desired, the fears that arise when leaving the 'old ways' behind are challenging to overcome. Learning to be comfortable, even to find comfort, with that period of unknowing, of freefall, and of stepping into the great space of the unknown is a major step in the process of transformation. It requires willingness to surrender, to let go, and to develop trust in something invisible that holds,comforts, and enfolds.
I had the great luck and privilege to have been scheduled to lead a group of people to Chaco Canyon, on September 13. When asked, in response to the events of September 11, whether they wanted to continue with the trip there was a resounding 'Yes!', and so we gathered there, praying and communing with 'The Forces' for wisdom, guidance, and courage. I have never felt so held by Life as I did during those days...and never felt so deeply surrendered to the Unknown, and for this experience I am grateful. It has taught me more about transformation, about peace, about being with Life without controlling it, and about meeting Life's tremendous challenges than anything I have ever experienced. I wish that I could say that I continue to experience this peace daily. I don't. But I can say that I remember it daily, I practice returning to it daily, and I trust in the truth of that experience daily. In the memory of that surrender comes peace. I pray daily that I may have the courage to act from that peace...and to live in a way that promotes it.
I trust that as each of us reaches toward our courage, both to face our own initiations and the powerful initiation that our country is undergoing, we will know how to respond, how to care for ourselves and our families, and how to call upon our society and our selves to act in accord with our values and deepest hopes for peace, and healing. This is my answer to September 11, and the events that have followed it. Turn toward the Self, practice Faith, Trust in The Great Mystery, and Pray for Inner Peace. Only from there will we know 'right action.'
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