The New Year is quickly approaching. As I think about what 2014 may bring for my life and the lives of those around me, I find myself continuing to ruminate on the ancient tidings of Christmas: Peace on Earth. Good will toward all. Could there be something here for the New Year?
I wonder if it’s possible for the world to experience peace and for people to demonstrate good will toward each other. We know that individuals are quite capable of the experience of peace. Even when it seems like a fleeting experience, most everyone can identify times in life where the experience was one of inner peace. Further, I suspect that we all have at least on occasion demonstrated as well as received expressions of good will. There’s a natural human capacity for both peace and good will. So, I wonder: what would happen if in 2014, we each decided to live at peace with those around us? Could we learn to demonstrate good will toward the people who came into our lives? We may not be able to change the behavior of others, but would we be willing makes these changes ourselves?
As I write, I hear the voice of skeptics in my mind. These voices ask questions like, “What difference can one person make?” and “It’s people with power who really make the world what it is! There’s not a thing we can do about it.”
I sometimes fall prey to skepticism about the difference I can make in the world. I’m just one person. Let’s be honest: to make any real change in the world is like trying to push an ocean of water uphill! Not only does such a task seem impossible for one person, but it seems inevitable that anyone who would try would just get all wet!
Yet, I’ve been thinking about a little town I know. Really, it’s a village in the rural Mid-West. Many towns around it have seriously declined. The other towns have been losing both people and businesses. Yet, this one town has seen an increase in new small businesses and a rise in the number of residents. Over the last few years, this town seems to have changed its inevitable future.
From what I know of the town, the changes happened when a new mayor was elected. An older woman – someone who looks very much like everyone’s grandmother – along with a couple of her friends were elected to the town council. They had a simple idea: if we work together, we can make our town a better place. They did little things that most people didn’t think would make any kind of difference at all. The encouraged a little art gallery in the area to put on a show of various works made by the youth in the high school. They encouraged the leaders of the migrant farm workers who lived near them to have a festival with food and dance in the village park. They identified some vendors to start a Saturday farmer’s market in the middle of town. The town government couldn’t really afford to do anything new. But they encouraged the villagers to come together and do things for the benefit of the community. They used their positions to do what they could to bring people together and create a sense of community in a town that could die out like so many other small Mid-Western towns. Other people liked what was happening and got involved. Projects began to take on more of a life of their own. In this little town, a sense of good became palpable.
While not all the town’s problems have been solved, what essentially happened was a little group of retirees decided to create a stronger sense of community in their town. They showed good will and invited others to do the same.
What can one person do? It’s not a fantasy to think that one person can make a difference in the world. Often times, it takes that first person to act in good will, and invite another, who encourages a third, and momentum begins.
As we enter 2014, imagine: what would it be like for there to be peace on earth and good will toward others. Then, begin to do it. You may not get it right every day. That’s okay. We learn in the doing and, yes, momentum will grow. It’s in this way that together we’ll give peace a chance to take root in our lives and the lives of those around us.
Happy New Year!