Day 263

After nine weeks in Texas, I returned to California on Tuesday. I’ll be in Nevada County until Tuesday, when I will head to Sonoma for the final leadership retreat that I am an assistant for. After the retreat ends, I will head back to Texas where my family will gather to share the holidays together at Molly’s ranch.

Before I left for Texas in September, I was having some difficulty with my knee (the one that the revision surgery was done on in August), and I had decided to get a second opinion on whether or not the knee is healing properly. Since I have been back in California, I have begun the process of getting a referral for the second opinion. I suspect I will have an appointment sometime in January. In the meantime, my friends Tina and Becky have graciously agreed to let me co-house with them. Their dogs, Kodo and Indie, and their cat, Stormy will have another housemate in Chandler, and I am grateful that she is welcome here too.

It is interesting to be in this state of wait and see again, when I actually thought the revision surgery I had in August would allow me to proceed with the Walk for Peace, literally. However, for the time being, that is not to be.

Today, I had the honor of having a woman share with me that she follows my blog, and that she is,”learning from me”.  After that exchange, I thought about the question on the 1Conversation for Peace card that I flipped over last night: “How do you cultivate a sense of Peace?”, and I felt my response.

I cultivate a sense of Peace through writing. When I have something weighing on my mind, I write about it. I let myself free write without editing, without formatting and without construct. And, you know, it is often in the writing that I find the clarity I need to feel Peaceful. When I want to say something to someone and I’m not sure how to say it, I write. I try different ways of putting my ideas together until I find exactly what I want to say.

When I began the Walk for Peace, I thought I would blog occasionally, and that it would be one way to document the experiences I was having. In fact, writing the blog has created a way for people to connect – to their own thoughts, experiences and feelings of Peace. It has also allowed me to connect with people I might not otherwise have known.

Tonight, I am clear about the need to cultivate a sense of Peace, and I am grateful for the words that let me connect to you on the Walk for Peace.