Friday, June 22, 2012

It Is Possible to Live in Peace




I sit in my study this afternoon.  On this late June day, the sun beats down, raising the island’s temperatures to 95+ degrees. The air is heavy with moisture. The heat is enervating. Irritability rises. Tempers flair.  The beach traffic is a snarl. Angry words and gestures fly as even the most mundane tasks become a challenge for people unaccustomed to waiting in line.  I’m thankful for this air-conditioned corner in my bedroom.  

As I browse through a newly acquired hymnal from the Unitarian Church in town, I find some words from Ghandi shaped into a responsive reading to be used in worship.  The Mahatma’s words reach into the heat and humidity and bring me to center:

If someone with courage and vision                                                   
Can rise to lead in nonviolent action,
The winter of despair can,
In the twinkling of an eye, be turned
Into the summer of hope.

It is possible to live in peace.

Nonviolence is not a garment to
Put on and off at will.  Its seat is in the
Heart, and it must be an inseparable 
Part of our being.

It is possible to live in peace.

Nonviolence, which is a quality of 
the heart, cannot come by an appeal
to the brain.  It is a plant of slow
growth, growing imperceptibly, but
surely.

It is possible to live in peace.                                                                       

If a single person achieves the highest
Kind of love it will be sufficient
To neutralize the hate of millions.

It is possible to live in peace.

If we are to reach real peace in this 
World, and if we are to carry on a 
Real war against war, we shall have
 to begin with the children.

It is possible to live in peace.

The future depends
 on what we do in the present.

It is possible to live in peace.

-Mohandas K. Ghandi 


Vicky Hanjian

No comments: