Envision Peace and Harmony

"Peace, love and harmony" was the mantra of the 1960's flower children-those who dreamed of a world where there was no war or racial divide, where everyone lived together as brothers and sisters. John Lennon wrote his famous song "Imagine" about an idyllic world where there was no hatred and everyone lived in harmony.  It was during this era that the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his famous "I Have A Dream" speech and delivered it on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial:  “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood....”

Today, as I reflect on this era in which I grew up, and think about the present time in which we live, I realize that, even though much has changed, there is still much work to do.  The spirit of racism that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke against seems to have reared its ugly head in recent years to show that, with all our reforms, we had only put a band-aid on a wound that has festered since the 1960's.  

The spirit of war and aggression that the flower children sang against and protested about is still with us, stronger than ever it seems.  Acts of hatred and violence seem to be front page news more often than not. 

But we have hope, always, for a better world, the world of peace, love and harmony that was envisioned back then and continues to be our dream.  We can let this be our daily prayer, starting with today.

Today, in this moment, I breathe, visualize the color pink (the color of love from the heart) and connect with God's spirit, the true Spirit of Peace.  I see the world that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of and John Lennon sang about: a brotherhood and sisterhood of man....

You, you may say
I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one
I hope some day you'll join us
And the world will live as one.  

-John Lennon, "Imagine"