Walk for Peace

WALK FOR PEACE
It is 34 degrees and I am standing outside in Chester, VA with other people from all walks of life, awaiting the arrival of the Venerable Monks as they continue their Walk For Peace. This is just one stop for them on their 2,300 mile Journey from Ft. Worth, TX to Washington, DC. and I along with thousands of others are here to witness it..

This group aims to spread compassion, knowledge, and mindfulness in ways that can be supported by daily activities. Next to me, I hear a parent Googling “Mindfulness” in order to better explain it to their children who are holding flowers to give to the Monks. If you Google, Mindfulness by the way, the answer given is “the process of actively bringing awareness to the present moment, intentionally focusing on thoughts, sensations, and emotions without judgement” (check out our other articles to learn more about mindfulness and how we can support you in learning more about how to integrate it into your everyday life).

NOT EVERYONE GETS IN
Let me be clear here. According to some news reports, there were several thousand people there waiting to see the Monks. The room in which they were speaking has a capacity of around 200 from what we were told by a hotel staff member. I knew, looking at the crowd that I and my child who I brought with me were not getting in. So did the others around us, and we were okay with that. To be honest, hearing them speak would have been a bit of icing on the cake, but we were there to simply be a part of something. Something historical, something worth the cold, the discomfort, the planning, and worth showing up for.

On the way to the meeting spot, I was trying to educate my child on what we were doing and why it was so important to be there. The 30 minute car ride included education, existential conversations and culminated with a very appropriate ending statement, “There’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for”.

WE NEED THINGS TO BELIEVE IN, THINGS TO LIVE FOR
We need things in our lives that not only make for good stories, but things that we can touch, see, feel. We need a purpose. As a therapist, I ask people everyday what they live for, what makes them get out of bed, and what gives them purpose. For many, this question can be answered. Often, we can identify at least one thing in our lives that we live for, that we believe in (for those who can’t, don’t worry, we can make that a primary goal in our sessions). The harder question to answer, I find, is how often do you actually engage with these things? How often are you doing things related to what you live for? If the answer is “not very”, we discuss why. Why are you living a life where you are not actively engaged with things that bring you joy and purpose and most importantly, how can we change this?

LET’S PROBLEM-SOLVE TOGETHER
These questions are important and yes, answering them can make a huge difference in your life. Your therapist knows how to support you in answering them and is ready to have the hard conversations with you. Make no mistake, these can be hard conversations. The questions are big, different for each person, and take introspection. Also make no mistake, your life can improve exponentially if you can find the answers to them. We are ready when you are!




IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING
Lastly, if you are wondering, I did in fact, fall on the ice in front of multiple people. They let out a collective “ooooo” as I struggled to right myself, and yes, they helped me up. I have a big bruise on my hip and no, it is not shaped like anything remotely inspiring.