Many of you have been Blogging for Peace with me for over a year and a half now. I have no doubts that our posts have had an effect on countless individuals in ways we may know or never know. I thank you for all you have done for peace.
Now, I’m going to ask you to take a step further. I am inviting you to take action.
As some of you may know, I’m launching a new website called RaisingCompassionateBoys.com. This is my effort to bring peace back to our schools where violence, bullying, and viral humiliations have run rampant.
So here is my challenge:
Watch the videos on RaisingCompassionateBoys.com about how to cultivate compassion in boys and ourselves.
Find a boy or group of boys to raise, mentor, befriend, coach, or teach. Some of you may have sons. Others might be youth leaders, coaches, counselors, aunts and uncles, neighbors, or teachers who interact with boys on a regular basis.
Practice cultivating compassion in this boy or these boys on a daily basis.
Role Model compassion for any boys in your presence.
I have no doubts that if a critical mass of adults take on this challenge of raising compassionate boys, we can change not only our schools, but also our society, the world, and the future.
I will start sending them out to all the bloggers who completed all 12 Peace Challenges in 2013 as soon as the lines at the post office calm down from Tax Day.
To help inspire the Bloggers for Peace (B4Peace), we will have a Monthly Peace Challenge. To participate, tag your post with B4Peace and make sure you copy your URL to the Linkz collection. Anyone who completes all twelve Monthly Peace Challenges in 2014 will receive a Free B4Peace T-shirt. Yes, I’ve decided to offer the second annual Bloggers for Peace T-shirt as a prize. I envision a day when we will all gather for a Bloggers for Peace Conference donning our various Bloggers for Peace T-shirts.
As cheesy as it sounds, one of my favorite songs is Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror.” For this month’s challenge, I want to combine this idea of changing ourselves to change the world with the Power of Intention. I challenge you to post a portrait of your ideal self–something that can remind you of the peaceful being you were born to be. Here are a few suggestions.
Post a photo, piece of art, video, song, poem, or story that expresses your true self. It doesn’t have to be on, by, or about you. It could be something like a scene from Gandhi that inspires you to be more peaceful and loving.
At Interchange Counseling Institute this weekend, we wrote “self-defining declarations” that consisted of declarative statements that were either true or optimistic (what we wished to be). This statement serves to define and remind us of who we truly want to be. I’ve posted mine below. Feel free to create your own.
Post a photo, story, or description of you when you were your best. This might be when you felt the most love and peace in your life, when you acted in a way that made you connect with others, when you felt awe or a connection with nature, God, the Universe, or humanity.
Post a photo, drawing, description of who you wish to become. This might be a future self or a role model. Make sure you give us the characteristics that you are trying to emulate.
Post anything that expresses you in your grandest form.
Don’t forget to link to at least one other B4Peace post and add your post to the Linkz collection. Here is how:
Copy your URL to the Linkz collection. You’ll find the link below. It’s the drunk blue frog smiling for peace. Click on it and follow directions.
Go visit this site to read and comment on other posts related to this Monthly Peace Challenge.
Kozo Hattori Self-Defining Statement:
Whenever possible I error on the side of love, especially when “disciplining” children.
I treat myself and others kindly even when we make mistakes.
I continue to embody, tend to, and live from the unconditional love, universal consciousness, and godliness that is my true nature.
I release all clinging to “I, Me, and Mine” that appears in the needs to be athletic, attractive, noticed, wanted, and special.
I continue to heal, so that I can heal others.
I follow my heart/direction in the present moment releasing all worries about outcomes, financial security, and what others will think.
I see God, Jesus, and Buddha in the eyes of everyone I meet and treat them accordingly.
I understand that everything that happens in my life is overflowing with the opportunity to awaken if I can embrace the moment without aversion or desire.
I reach out and touch others and myself as much as possible in the form of hugs, tenderness, and presence.
I act, serve, and love like the enlightened being that I was born to be.
T-SHIRTS:
The 2013 Bloggers for Peace T-shirts are being printed and due to arrive any day now. If you live in the USA, I will mail shirt to you. If you live overseas, I will contact you about shipping charges. You are going to love these shirts–the woman who took the order said, “Everyone is going to want one of these,” and she didn’t even know what Bloggers for Peace was. 🙂
“Remember, each one of us has the power to change the world. Just start thinking peace, and the message will spread quicker than you think.”~Yoko Ono
Over 550 people have liked Bloggers for Peace on WordPress and Facebook. People like what we are doing. Let’s keep it up. I realized last week that finding peace is the channel I have been searching for my entire life. My existence now has purpose, drive, and meaning. When I had a cushy job, I was counting the days until I could retire, but with this new undertaking, I don’t want to do anything else. I just want to bring peace. I know some of you feel the same way, and I thank you for everything you do.
To help inspire the Bloggers for Peace (B4Peace), we will have a Monthly Peace Challenge. To participate, tag your post with B4Peace and make sure you copy your URL to the Linkz collection. Anyone who completes all twelve Monthly Peace Challenges will receive a Free B4Peace T-shirt. Continue reading →
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