Somehow, I had the date of the Blogblast for Peace wrong in my head, so I'm among the last to blog for peace today.
I am such an amateur blogger (even after two years) I couldn't even figure out how to get my own Peace Globe from http://mimiwrites.blogspot.com/p/peace-globe-templates.html but I have the best of intentions.
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When I was little, a long time ago, I thought we had peace. Everyone talked about "the war" being over, and "the war" sounded so dreadfully awful I was sure there could never be another one.
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I was wrong.
I can't begin to explain it. I know Canada didn't deliberately start a war with another country (invade the US, perhaps?) but, as things turned out, (click the link to see how) we found our troops being deployed as active participants and many of them coming back in flag-draped coffins.
We now have a prime minister (I do not dignify him with a capital P or M) who is buying armaments and fighter planes, who has discontinued the gun registry, and is building prisons for his war on crime (at a time when our crime level is lower than ever before, but he's after "criminals" who have the audacity to be poor and helpless). He is a warmonger. I don't know when we ever had one of those in power before.
In North America, we're turning the clocks back tonight, so I'm pretty sure I'll be up earlier than usual tomorrow. If I am, I am going to go to church. At my church, we greet one another every Sunday by saying, "Peace be with you" to which the reply is: "And also with you."
Peace be with you... and also with you, and you, and you, and you...
(And no, this YouTube video is not the title of this post.)
15 comments:
I love your post, Kay, and as a Canuck, share your discouragement at living under a right-wing government. So un-Canadian. Sigh. I'm waiting for Justin Trudeau to be old enough to run for office, or Craig Kielberger.........the Old Boys Club wont get my vote, ever.
Peace be to you and yours, to all of you and yours.......and may the young create for us a better world than the one we are handing to them.
And peace be with you, Kay. Thanks for this heartfelt post. I never realised you live under a right-wing government. Have a peaceful day and enjoy the extra hour in your day! Blessings Jo
It is sad that the world still moves in the direction of war-mongering instead of peace-brokering... Still.
I wonder when things will change.
I live in the United States and I know what it is like to live under the war wing of the right wing...Too many have died fighting wars that haven't brought peace....I enjoyed your blog immensely.
A thought provoking post with strong feelings!! War is an unpleasant and obscene word!! May peace prevail on this earth and much peace be with you!!
Have a great Sunday!!
Cheers!!
I'm sorry to read this. You're sounding like the U.S. right now. I love my country, but I disagree with some of our policies. Gun ownership is one area.
"People say "I want peace."
If you remove I (ego),
and your want (desire),
you are left with peace."
- Satya Sai Baba
Greetings from Toronto, Canada.
Gisela.
Kay girl you touched me and I want to thank you. I don't hear a lot from civilians .. My husband had been in the military for 26 years. He was deployed many times for UN duty .. 6 months at a time .. he was gone 2/3's our our marriage.
The last 'active" deployed was immediately after the cease fire with the first Gulf War .. he was in communications, and supported the combat engineers who were there to destroy land mines and munitions.. they flew in at noon to Kuwait and it looked like midnight with the oil well fires .. he saw things that no one can imagine but another Vet .. eventually PTSD from those horrific sights surfaced and he was medically discharged .. our life is hard to described because spouses of these Vets, from what ever 'conflict" they had to witness, are never the same either.
I'm sorry I am rambling here but reading your post meant a lot, thank you : )
Thank you also for the humour on my toast crumbs : )you made me giggle and that was good : )
Joy
A very thoughtful post, Kay. Canadian events don't often make international news, so I haven't really been in the know. Some of the things you mention sure are disturbing. I also did not know about Blogblast for Peace... missed it entirely. Ah well, next year. Peace be with you and yours.
[In case you have an interest, I've updated my flower post, added one image to show the fruit of the tree you liked, as well as all the names.]
Politics and peace don't usually mix, do they? Thanks for participating.
Don't like warmongers too, not a bit!
But I do like the Canadian flag and its maple leaf!
God bless you!
Cezar
Sad to read that Canada is being contaminated by the right wing virus that infects the US.
I do the same thing with the tea party, I refuse to dignify it with caps.
Kay - I absolutely agree with you and here in the UK we have had two successive governments who think that the way to win elections is by going to war. I work with young soldiers and it breaks my heart that I am sending them back to their units and heading for Afghan xxx
"This was Canada, after all, the next best thing to the United Nations or maybe Switzerland. Canada was a country of which I could be proud." Spot on!
I have travelled around the world many times and have always found people respond well to Australians. Only two national groups are more welcome in almost every spot in the world - Canadians and Swedes. Both nations are important for international development projects and both play a major role in peace programmes.
Australia MIGHT come third.
...and to you, Kay.
I was saddened to read your post...I have always thought of Canada as a peaceful, abstaining from war, nation. To hear they are now sending troops in kind of makes me think, 'what hope for the world, if Candada is at war?'
And that leaves me with heaviness.
But that is counteracted by the peaceful nature of Canadians such as yourself.
And that replenishes me with hope.
[your peace post will soon be linked into the patchwork peace quilt on my blog 'Peace Bloggers Unite' ]
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