A special Thanksgiving blessing to those who seek peace

This is the time of year when peace takes center stage in many
conversations.

Among our traditional Thanksgiving wishes, we express our desire for peace
and harmony, both in the world and in our own lives.

“Peace on earth, good will toward men” is a common expression used at
Christmas.

But peace is a very fleeting thing. There are probably more people who can
count the number of wars going on around the world at any one time than
can tell you how to bring about peace.

My wife and I have recently joined up with the Peaceful Mind/Peaceful
World outreach series at Florida Atlantic University. This is part of the
FAU Peace Studies program, an effort we discovered late in the last school
year. We were able to take in a couple of lectures before the event closed.

But we were substantially impressed, so much so that we are signing on
earlier this year.

Workshops are facilitated by Barbara Schmidt and Adriana Faraldo of
Peaceful Mind/Peaceful Life. We already have tickets for the “Seeing
Beneath Life’s Experience: Living a Life of Gratitude” workshop Dec. 3.
And we are also scheduled to attend the Jan. 7 lecture by Jetsunma Palmo
entitled “Into the Heart of Life.”

Do I think our attendance at these events will bring world peace? Of course
not. That isn’t the point.

But if enough people do attend, and can spread the word about the glorious
nature of peace compared to the terrible waste of war, maybe the message
will begin to take hold.

The people involved in this program are significant. Barbara Schmidt,
along with her husband, Richard, are leading philanthropists with a world-

renowned reputation. In her own way, Jetsunma Palmo is also significant.
At age 20, she left her native England to pursue Buddhist training. In 1964,
she became one of the first western women to be ordained as a Tibetan
Buddhist nun. Because of her work – which included creating a nunnery –
she was given the rare title of Jetsunma – meaning “venerable master.”

My wife and I are already excited to attend a lecture Jan. 26 given by
Thomas Merton, whom we saw last year. A former Catholic monk, he uses
his experience to teach the benefits of meditation and childlike acceptance of
the divine mystery.

If you’d like to take part in this special program, visit www.fau.edu/peace
studies.