Yesterday morning I enjoyed a leisurely morning with three of my grandgirls in the heart of our town in what is called Friendship Square—overflowing on Saturdays with the hustle and bustle of our Farmers’ Market.
There’s a water fountain in the middle where people make wishes and toss pennies. My daughter handed a penny to each of the girls but when she handed one to me, I was caught off guard. As I tried to think of a meaningful wish, I said, “You know, I think all my wishes have come true.” That’s when I remembered about my post earlier this week, so I wished for more peace in the world and tossed my penny into the water.
Praying for peace on earth, and true lasting peace and joy in all of man kinds souls
When I read this post and think about all those moms and their children caught in the cross fires of daily war and violence, it brings a feeling of deep sadness and helplessness which is the cost to innocent people when peace and human rights are denied. Just like the end of WWII, we all thought that that peace must be put in place so that future generations would never suffer such ravages again. 65 years later, it is like those hard lessons have been lost and once again, peace seems very fragile or non-existent in a large part of the world. Are there enough pennies and prayers to change things this go around?
As a traveller to many war torn countries over the years, I know first hand what Peace is and isn’t. As a teacher in Kashmir India, in the Himalayan Mountains, I lived in a beautiful, peaceful valley that was believed to be the original “Shangri La” . Not anymore, it has been totally destroyed by warring factions and is unsafe to even visit. When I lived in Sri lanka, a more peaceful gentle place couldn’t be imagined. alas no longer peaceful or safe there either. And so I could go through a litany of places I visited or lived and ,almost without exception, they are are in the midst of war or political upheaval. Light candles for peace and try to donate to organizations that do relief work.