THE OPPOSITE OF WAR

THE OPPOSITE OF WAR

A couple of days ago Art and I were watching one of the many news reports about relief efforts in the areas affected by the tsunamis. There was a young man on the screen, a marine who had been a warrior in Iraq earlier, and now was involved in the gigantic task of helping the disaster victims.

All my life, I suppose like most people, I have believed that the opposite of war is peace. It seems like a logical assumption. War means disruption. Peace means tranquility. But somehow, seeing this young man on the screen made me realize that simply attaining peace – the absence of war – is not nearly enough. The true opposite of war is exactly what this marine – and thousands of others like him – are doing. It is reaching out to help.

How do you “strive for peace”? How can you be an architect of something, which is only the absence of something else? It reminds me of the addicts who try to achieve sobriety simply by abstaining from their drug of choice. As anyone who has studied the matter will tell you, most are doomed to failure. Many alcoholics have a name for such sobriety. They call it a “dry drunk”. If you take away the addiction, you have to replace it with something else. That’s why AA works so well. They replace the addiction with spirituality. Or to put it another way, they replace the addiction to drugs (or sex, or alcohol) with an addiction to spiritual support. One of the addictions is negative. One of the addictions is positive.

So it seems to me that if we want to create a peaceful environment anywhere – in the Middle East, in sub-Saharan Africa, in Northern Ireland, or in our own homes – it is not enough to establish a cease-fire. As my eighth-grade math teacher used to say, “That’s a necessary condition, but not sufficient”. We need to replace violence with compassion, animosity with kindness, desperation with hope, and we need to reach out to one another in a very active way.

The roots of war run deep, and can usually be traced back to poverty, suffering, ignorance, disease, and lastly, a tyrant’s lust for power. In most cases I believe if you can reach out to your neighbor and help them to overcome the first four conditions, the last will automatically take care of itself. People who are well nourished, healthy, and educated do not suffer fools gladly.

The catastrophe of the tsunamis is so awful that it is impossible to put a bright face on it. But there may be a very tiny silver lining at the farthest edges of this enormous black cloud; that it will be an object lesson in how we can overlook our differences and focus in on our common humanity. We can reach out in compassion. That’s the opposite of war.

© 2005, Robin Munson

PEACE

PEACE

It is December 26th. There is a hush over our house. My husband is asleep, and our cat, Henry, is curled up at the foot of the bed.

I have just made a brief tour of the wreckage that was Christmas Day, 2004. There are bits of raffia scattered all over the kitchen counter and strewn throughout the house. Pieces of red and green wrapping paper and bits of shiny ribbon no bigger than a thumbnail are distributed everywhere. Our coffee table is littered with melted-down candles of every size and description, and there are rings of purple on the blond wood from last night’s wine glasses. Unwrapped gifts are now placed haphazardly under our tree, which has dried out quite a bit since we first brought it home. We ourselves are happily worn-out and sloppy. I think we probably both gained a pound or two from all the holiday candy, cakes and cookies, which were showered down upon us like manna from heaven.

Outside, I can hear the world moving on. There are trucks and cars already out on the freeway shushing along, although the sun is barely up on this Sunday morning. I wonder where can they possibly be going. But then, I realize that there are people whose lives don’t go on hold just because of the holidays – hospital workers, convenience store clerks, news anchors, the people who magically appear to take your order when you’re just too blown out to cook breakfast.

Today I will slowly regain my equilibrium. At a leisurely pace, I will sweep, vacuum and scrub the floors, wipe the counters, put away the wrapping paper, discard the used candles, clean the glass rings from the coffee table, change the sheets, change the kitty litter, water the Christmas tree and all the other dried-out houseplants, and do the laundry which has been completely neglected for the past week.

It feels as though I’ve been on a merry-go-round for the past month and a half. Time to slow down, breathe, put away the party hats, and get ready for the coming new year. It feels very good, returning to normal, after all the hoopla.

Yesterday my Christmas prayer was for peace. For now, in this house, at least, my prayer has been answered.

© 2004, Robin Munson

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Dear Friends,

I am posting the lyric to one of my songs which I think is in keeping with the season. It was inspired by a comment made by Norman Rockwell towards the end of his life. He was responding to the criticism of his work as being unrealistic and too idyllic. (I paraphrased his answer).

This is my Christmas card to you. I wish you the happiest holiday. May God (or whoever runs the Universe) grant us all peace in the coming year.

Dona Nobis Pacem — Robin

LIKE I SEE IT/ROCKWELL

HE WAS A YOUNG MAN FROM NEW ENGLAND

AND HE HAD AN EYE FOR LIFE

AND HE MADE SUCH PRETTY PICTURES OF IT ALL

AND THE PICTURES TOLD A STORY, AN AMERICANA DREAM

AND HIS WORDS WERE PLAIN AND SIMPLE

WHEN THEY ASKED HIM WHAT IT MEANS

(HE SAID). . .

I PAINT IT LIKE I SEE IT

LIKE I WANT THE WORLD TO BE

CAUSE I CAN’T ACCEPT THIS DARKNESS

THAT’S BEEN PLACED IN FRONT OF ME

OH YES I WANT IT, SO I PAINT IT

AND I PRAY THAT SOME SWEET DAY

THE WORLD WILL BE MORE BEAUTIFUL

AND I CAN PUT THIS BRUSH AWAY.

AND HE HELD A MAGIC MIRROR UP

SO THAT ALL OF US COULD SEE

THE SIDE OF US THE HEADLINES WOULDN’T SHOW

THE MOTHER AND THE BABY, THE FATHER AND THE SON

AND HE TOLD WHAT HE BELIEVED IN

WHEN ALL WAS SAID AND DONE

(HE SAID). . .

I PAINT IT LIKE I SEE IT

LIKE I WANT THE WORLD TO BE

CAUSE I CAN’T ACCEPT THIS DARKNESS

THAT’S BEEN PLACED IN FRONT OF ME

OH YES I WANT IT, SO I PAINT IT

AND I PRAY THAT SOME SWEET DAY

THE WORLD WILL BE MORE BEAUTIFUL

AND I CAN PUT THIS BRUSH AWAY.

OH, WE CHOOSE THE LIFE WE’RE LIVING

WE SAIL THE COURSE WE SET

AND I BELIEVE THE BEST CAN HAPPEN

CAUSE IN THE END, WE MAKE THE LIFE WE GET

AND NOW I SING THIS SONG FOR CHILDREN

AND FOR CHILDREN WHO’VE GROWN OLD

AND CHILDREN ARE SO FRAGILE

THAT THEY BELIEVE THE THINGS THEY’RE TOLD

(THAT’S WHY I). . .

SING IT LIKE I HEAR IT

LIKE I WANT THE WORLD TO BE

AND I WON’T ACCEPT THIS DARKNESS

THAT’S BEEN PLACED IN FRONT OF ME

OH, YES I WANT IT, SO I SING IT

AND I PRAY THAT SOME SWEET DAY

THE WORLD WILL BE MORE BEAUTIFUL

AND I CAN PUT THIS SONG AWAY

THE WORLD WILL BE MORE BEAUTIFUL

AND I CAN PUT THIS SONG AWAY.

© 2004, Art and Robin’s Music