In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I wanted to share my own dream for our world.
My dream is simple. I have a dream that one day the people of the world will put a greater value on love and peace than on violence.
I have a dream that one day conflict resolution will begin and end with polite, reverent, respectful discussion instead of war, bombs, and physical violence. I dream that one day there will be no thought of going to war to settle a disagreement. War will be considered the domain of those barbaric ancestors who were controlled by fear, greed, anger and pride.
We teach our children not to hurt others, but we do not model this behavior at the highest level of our government. Instead, we invade, kill, and hurt others to get what we want, what we think we are entitled to, and we think this is acceptable behavior. So it does not matter what we say to our children if we cannot model it for them in the world. They step into a broken system.
How can we change the world? Is this even possible? I believe so.
We must see that we are all connected, that we are but pieces of a much greater Whole. Hurting anyone hurts the Whole.
We must ensure that every man, woman, and child on this earth has food, water, shelter, and clothing. No exceptions. This is possible now if only we would allow it.
We must elect leaders whose dominant values are compassion, love, and peace. When these leaders interact with the world, they will bring hope to their fellow man, not fear.
We must model love and peace to our children, and teach them respect for all people. Instead of investing in killing tools, we would invest in teaching men and women how to be loving parents. And we would raise the next generation with love and oneness in their hearts.
In the simplest of terms, we must plant seeds of love in the hearts of our children so that when they grow and take over the world, the harvest that is reaped will be peace.
It may take some generations. It will take some patience. Just as we tend to the garden even when it has not yet given us fruit or flower, we must continue to nurture, water, and trust that the day will come. We must be steadfast and work together, each tending to our part of the garden and helping others when they need help with theirs.
If we want peace, we can have peace.
This is my dream.
