Peace |
PEACE will come when people live
In friendship, side by side,
And cherish understanding
More than hatred, greed and pride.
PEACE will come when people see
All people as the same,
And no one has to live in fear,
In ignorance, or shame.
PEACE will come when people
Who are needy can reach out
For shelter, food, or love,
And no one has to do without.
PEACE will come when people
Learn to listen and to care
About the rights and dignity
Of people everywhere.
PEACE will come when love and trust
And kindness know rebirth,
And on that day all people
Will rejoice in peace on earth.
~By Amanda Bradley~
This is a very beautiful poem. But, it's missing one little thing... Peace will come when we learn to deal with the bullies in our school playgrounds, our work places, our communities and all the other little places that they grow up and fester and gain power over others, till they errupt into major violence, and war or it's community equivalent is the only thing that will take them down.
If we could find them in the schools and heal them while they were young... only then would peace have a chance.
If we could learn to stand up to bullies in our homes, in our communities, in all the places that people gather, then we could disempower them, show their actions for what they are, and perhaps peace could have a chance.
If we could learn to speak up for ourselves, for those we see being put down and belittled, for the little slights that add up to large harms over time. If we could learn to encourage dreams, and the work that goes into making those dreams real, then perhaps peace might have a chance.
As long as we remain silent, as long as we allow others to be belittled, bullied, harrased and abused, as long as we keep to ourselves, fervently glad that it's them and not us, then peace will have no chance.
As long as we ignore or rationalize away the little things that would clue us in, if we were paying attention... then those things will come back to haunt us, and peace will have no chance.
As long as we wear our masks for public use, and treat the masks that others wear as though it were reality, then peace will have no chance.
The causes of crime, violence, war ... all are clearly visible in the nearest school yard, in that house down the street where the children are being abused and you do nothing, in our workplaces where co-workers are intimidated, and we say nothing, because it's not "us", it's not our business, and we can't afford to lose our jobs.
And as long we. we as individuals, as a people, as a community, as a country, allow, nay, even encourage the bullies to prosper by our silence... peace will have no chance.
My Personal Troll Story
Back to The Problem
