Peace from the inside out

The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people when they realize their relationship, their oneness, with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the centre of the universe dwells Wakan-Taka (The great Spirit), and thatthis centre is really everywhere, it is within each of us.

This is the real peace, and the others are but reflections of this. The second peace is that which is made between two individuals, and the third is that which is made between two nations. But above all you should understand that there can never peace between nations until there is first known that true peace, which is said is within our souls.

Black Elk- Oglala Sioux

Congruence means that who I am on the inside is reflected in my thoughts, words and actions. What does this mean when it comes to living peacefully? Sometimes these thoughts seem so very difficult to achieve yet I heard a real example of a daily change I can make in my own life which moves me further along the way to congruence. Two friends in my dream group were talking about creating space for drivers who are trying to merge in their lane.

There is the section of Crowchild Trail where several drivers drive along a right 'none' lane, and speed ahead of us in the 'proper' lane... then they pull into our lane when their none lane runs out. Being your basic, 'highly evolved' soul...I glare at those interlopers. I can allow, with certain distain, one car to pull in...and my frustration is so strong I would avoid that section of road at rush hour.

I continue to track my Journey to Peace, and while there are others who think of my work in Iraq, Sri Lanka, Columbia as examples of my peace work; in my real world my struggle is less grand and more practical. So wave at me in my car as I let you into my lane...oops...perhaps better to say I welcome you into the North headed traffic on Crowchild. Martha- remember to breathe deeply, relax your shoulders, relax and enjoy the music...and get where you are headed safely and peacefully.

Fall 2007

The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes from within our souls when we realize our relationship, our oneness, with the universe and all its powers, and when we realize that at the centre of the universe dwells Wakan-Tanka, and that this centre is really everywhere, it is within each of us. This is the real peace, and the others are but reflections of this. The second peace is that which is made between individuals, and the third is that which is made between nations. But above all you should understand that there can never be peace between nations until there is first known that true peace which is within our souls.



Black Elk
Oglala Sioux Holy Man 1863-1950

This past year has been mostly about the first peace- within for me. I spent three months with my mom as she journeyed through her last days of life. While we have child birth coaches, I think coaching support on the exit end of life is as significant as coaching support for entering this life.

My mom was not only a mom but my friend, a great story teller, rememberer of events, the one to gather the family together, the one to speak her mind, read 3-4 books a week, and watch the news and stay informed. Mom's final three months and final days reminded me of transitions in child birth. During transition in child birth, I remember announcing to the birthing room people that I was done. I was leaving. now. not going to have a baby. Everyone smiled knowingly, knowing the babe was ready to appear.

Transitions at the end of this life can have some interesting twists and turns. I have had the opportunity to attend several people's last moments, and so felt more comfortable supporting mom's last days. I wonder if the souls experience of life is a continuity with each life as just one chapter in an unending book.

As I hear my grandma's thoughts in a change room, wondering if I need another pair of navy blue slacks, I think we are all energy, sometimes in form, sometimes not. Perhaps that is what Black Elk means when he describes the first peace in our heart and soul when we realize our oneness with the universe and all its powers.

For about 6 months after my mom's passing from this life, I felt the 24/7 open heart feeling continue and it left me exposed and vulnerable. I am taking Qi Qong classes as I want to stay open hearted and at the same time less vulnerable. I am thrilled to be back in Calgary. Our 318 days of sunshine is a welcome change from 318 days of rain in Bradford.

I am happy to reconnect with my blog, with new access to it I can keep it more current. I look forward to your experience with the transitions of life, and peace within.

Martha

"We must be the change we wish to see in the world."

Gandhi's quote asks us to be the change we wish to see, and for me the change I wish to see is one of peace and harmony in relationships, community and in the world. Internally, my relationships with family and friends invites me to contribute to harmony and love between us.

When we think of harmony, in music it is not a single tone but a combination of intruments and voices, differences which create the beauty of the piece. Listening to 'In the Heart of the Moon', by Ali Farka Toure & Toumani Diabate, the instruments,the joyful laughter, the diversity of cultures...all come through. Likewise harmony in community and relationships is not about all sounding the same but often in impromptu creativity building on each other and growing into something new and unexpected.

Harmony is not only about the people in our communities we relate to, but harmony in the world as well. I have gathered this past summer with other Canadian peacemakers in a conference with Interaction (in Winnipeg) and in Calgary IPRA (International Peace Research Association) and i was struck with the level of commitment of people to move beyond the process focus of conflict resolution (negotiation, mediation, facilitation and consensus building) to engage in critical reflection about broader issues including Canada's peace and conflict resolution report card.

This current government has been given an F (failing) grade in a poll of Canadians and a look at the direction this government is taking betrays any of the positive leadership of our past. Kyoto is not longer the intention of this government. Harper did not speak out about the extreme violence of Middle East action in southern Lebannon, and finally, our government actively worked against human rights legislation for aboriginial communities. Is it enough for us to speak to each other concerning our dismay or does our critical reflection about our government's behaviour necessitate action?

Paulo Freire says that praxis means not just reflection but action. I have begun a writing campaign to make sure my government knows my disproval of their actions. I have written on behalf of Amnesty International for those whose human rights are being denied. It is time to call our leadership to account. The Green Party in England is strong and I intend to offer my support here in Canada. Canada has ridden on its positive reputation from World War II. Canada now appears to walk with Bush with simular neo conservative retoric. Canada needs to step up to the world political stage with a positive voice toward peace and harmony.

I have had an opportunity to travel in Argentina in July and I listened as two Argentinian economists separately described USA economic situation as simular to theirs before the economy collapsed. I am looking at the ethics of my investments, speaking with my community and my country; and now I am speaking with you.

I look forward to hearing your ideas on how we can be the change we wish to see in the world. What opportunities do you have in your life to live with congruence of belief and action?

In the past 6 months I have been in UK, Kenya, Congo, Rwanda, Argentina, USA and across Canada. I hear people speaking of a deepening saddness at the violence which fills the world's news. yet there is also a balance of hope, hope for a successful coming together of people in community in Congo, hope for economic recovery in Argentina, hope to be heard as David Suzuki and Stephen Lewis and others speak out about envirnoment, aids, debt forgiveness and aid.

I look forward to the hope we can bring to each other as we bring forth the change we wish to see in the world.

How to stay grounded as we also reach to social and political change?
This morning on my walk to the river with Abby (13 years old) and Woody (6 month old visitor for 6 weeks) both golden retrievers, we saw three Canadian gees supporting 4 young ducks (I did not know there were second hatchings after spring) ABever slapped its tail several times as Woody chased sticks. Then we could hear cracking of sticks up in the picnic area. Two men with their shopping carts (to collect bottles to claim the deposit of a few cents (info for you non canadian readers in congo, sri lanka, romania, argentina, columbia, where bottle collecting for money is not an option, not in uk either, come to think of it)...
anyway, back to these two men, they built a fire to roast hotdogs on a stick (at 6:30 am!) and then proceeded to play baseball in the ball diamond next to them. They had a couple of found tennis and baseballs and rocks and a nice sized stick to bat with...They were laughing and remembering childhood ball games. I thought about friendship and community as my dog companions and i walked home.

I had the opportunity to be with many communities this summer. my family as we all gathered to see my brother Mark's investiture as a judge. My friends in North Western Ontario as we shared great meals together, and my friend here in Calgary, reconnecting with food, walks, books, coffees, and always good times. I met up with friends and folks I had not seen in many years, at a class reunion. Surprisingly, we could stil recognize each other after so many years. Son Rob and i shared a wonderful family and community time at the wedding of Ximena and Martin in Rosario, Argentina. Life is beautiful!

We in North America do often focus on our individual lives, individual goals, and individual futures; yet that sense of community is what grounds us and reminds us of who we truely are.

I listen to my mom, who is in her later years, and it is relationships and adventures (trips with grand children, travels with family) which are the reflections of life that matter. I hope you are blessed with community to fill your heart and create great memories too!

I wish you joy, and harmony as we come in to fall.

Peacefully,

Martha

2006 update

Up date 2006

From Bradford

I have been enjoying teaching classes with Mount Royal College on the internet. What is unique about this experience is the opportunity to listen to each student as they respond to the material, exercises and reflections with material.

As each student interacts with concepts and materials, I have the opportunity to hear from students from around the globe. Sri Lanka, Japan, Germany, Canada, UK…all areas and people not otherwise accessible in week end courses in Calgary.

My research is going well with my PhD. I am focusing on Transformational Learning in Peace Studies: Reflection and Cooperative Learning Processes.

I am part of a teaching team with an Undergraduate course in Introduction to Conflict Resolution. What is exciting is the opportunity to work wit 85 students and work in a cooperative teaching group as well. At Mount Royal College with the ‘Pay It Forward’ group, Colombia and in Romania, I have had the opportunity of teaching and learning together with fellow instructors. It provides a meaningful process for reflection, unlike the more singular process of being a lone instructor in a course or training.

When you think about your work and reflection on learning, is it a systematized consideration or more of a hap hazard effort to reconcile with the things that keep us up a night? I have been reading about reflection, reflective practice, reflexivity… many names for similar practice.

Reflection also described as reflexivity, involves individual reflection of new or different ways of considering something. “Reflection is the process of critically assessing the content, process or premise of our efforts to interpret and give meaning to an experience.”[1] This refers to the work of Jürgen Habermas, German philosopher well known for his work with critical theory.

For example: One might be reflecting on the suitability of a job. The content reflection looks at the details of salary, hours, and such. A reflection on process might include how one has made decisions about work in the past, has that worked well? Might there be a different way to work through the process of decision making? The third focus of critical reflection is on the premise. There is a difference between problem solving and ‘problem posing’.
In fact one would reflect on whether a job is needed; or renewed focus on studies is the priority. Or perhaps whether it is better to spend less, than to focus on needing more money?

Reflection looks at past patterns and future focus as new learning is integrated with previous experience and beliefs that have been held in an uncontested view in our lives. Learning is often triggered with those teachable moments in our lives when new, different or challenging concepts and views invite reflection.

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
Socrates- Greek Philosopher 470- 399 BC



“And how is education supposed to make me feel smarter? Besides, every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain. Remember when I took that home winemaking course, and I forgot how to drive?”
Homer Simpson

Whether Homer or Socrates describes your reflective process, I look forward to hearing your process and learning. I am also interested in hearing any thoughts you have on cooperative learning. A major method of instruction here in the UK is lecture. Research describes 16-18 minutes of concentration before the mind wanders, ‘Do I have the right change to do the laundry?’ ‘I must remember to call so and so.’

Cooperative learning provides process of engagement with diverse experience and active participation with theory and practice. Central to the theme of conflict resolution training is an emphasis on context. One would not walk into a community of Blackfoot, Romanians, or Sri Lankan Buddhists all with the same off the shelf material. Cooperative learning builds on participant’s knowledge and experience and honours the diversity of background, ethnicity and experience within a group.

These are all things that I am considering in my research. I welcome any dialogue with you who read this blog.

Set aside June 7-10th for a conference in Winnipeg. Conflict Resolution Network Canada. I will be presenting in two sessions working with trauma and resilience with traumatized communities. I am also doing a session on Whether Peace Education is succeeding in doing what we are trying to accomplish. Here is the conference link:

http://www.crnetwork.ca/conference/index.asp

This is the only group where I maintain a membership; with their excellent source of books, updates, research sources and truly fine people!

I have been negligent in keeping up my blog so I can imagine a few of you no longer check in. I will be more consistent in keeping this site updates. It promises to be interesting as I will travel to Calgary in March, Great Lakes Region and be in Rwanda and DRC Congo for election monitoring and I hope to see the mountain gorillas as well. In May I shall stay put in the UK as we complete our teaching. June will see the conference in Winnipeg. July will be exciting with two weeks in Argentina at the end of the month.

It seems my lads have caught the global travel interest as Michael spend much of his educational time in Kenya, Rob has been in Morocco, Spain, Norway, Europe. And now Ross is about to head out for a two year contract flying in Cameroon.

As I sit here writing this, four PhD students share this office space; JuJin is from Korea, Jai is from Japan, Tunde is from Nigeria and Mari is from Croatia…

I look forward to hearing from all of you. My email is marthamcmanus@hotmail.com




[1] Mezirow, Jack (1991) Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, p.104.

Cheers!

Wind in the sails and moving forward!

Thank you to those of you who wrote about 'becalmed' experiences. It is an uncomfortable state for a sailor, but provides valuable time for reflection.

It is an interesting experience for a practitioner, working with people in conflict for so many years, to now be a part of the academic community who use language like "problematizing the hegemonic discourse of modernity".
I must confess that when someone first said I was pragmatic, I wanted to deny it, not totally sure of what was meant. It can feel a bit like the discomfort of having a leg on either side of a fence as I live each day between the practitioners and academic worlds. Perhaps better than the fence is the bridge, allowing two way traffic and communication.

As I write this I am also given the opportunity of bridging communities. My CKUA radio station plays online and it is 3 am in Alberta. I am emailing to a colleague in Sri Lanka who is working with children in a peer mediation program I am involved with, and I am messangering with a colleague and friend in Romania. We are both celebrating our friend Romeo Crow Chief (who was in Romania with me) who has had a big birthday.

It is November 11th and so the white and red poppies show a rememberance of those who gave their lives, both in war and work toward peace. I wish to honour all those who gave their lives...as I strive for a world where differences are resolved without war.

I will honour those who died in human violence, and I also think of the loss of life daily due to malnutrition and starvation. Whether driving across the Canadian praires and seeing the reaches of wheat and soybean fields, or going from Colombo to Batti and seeing the rice fields; I am struck with the world's capasity to feed all living beings.

Current reading:

John Paul Lederach (2005) The Moral Imagination
Linda Tuhiwai Smith (2001) Decolonizing Methodologies
Jack Mezirow(1991) Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning
James Frey(2003) a million little pieces

What are you reading?
What are you reflecting on?

I look forward to hearing from you.

m.m.mcmanus@bradford.ac.uk
or marthamcmanus@hotmail.com

Take Care,

Martha

If you are an able letter writer, please email me and i will forward you the details as human rights organizations persist in demands that the rape of a 14 year old Sri Lankan girl is delt with in the courts.

Long time away

Can you love or respect the people and assist their/our inquiry without imposition of your will
Can you intervene in the most vital matters and yield to events taking their course
Can you attain deep knowing and know you do not understand
Conceive, give birth and nourish without retaining ownership
Trust action without knowing outcome
Guide by being guided
Exercise stewardship without control…

(Interpretation of words attributed to Lao Tzu, c 550bc)


I have been remiss on writing my blog for a while now. I apologize for that. I will update things now and be a bit more regular in monthly contributions (or even more frequent writing.)

These past few months I have been in Canada, USA, Spain, and UK, and I have had the opportunity to work with city of Calgary officers and staff, Blackfoot mediators, and some family mediation in my work.

I am now here at the University of Bradford enrolled in a direct PhD program. Yesterday a friend gave me a word for how I feel, becalmed. This is a nautical term for sailing ships with no wind at sea.

Perhaps becalmed is the right time for mending nets and such, yet I am challenged by the stillness. I race up the pole to the crows nest looking for wind, or search the innards of the ship for paddle, motor, engine room…relaxing into the stillness is the challenge.

Sure, meditation, walking, reading, good food and good sleep all help; and so I am doing better than only keeping my head above water. I write about this because those of you who know me know me to be a raging optimist. This sadness, aloneness and becalming in new to me. What is interesting as I have shared this with others is how many others are feeling the same thing. How are you feeling, dear blog reader?

When a ship is going down, rats leave it (I do not know if this is true but in keeping with nautical metaphors at least!) and as well, all the animals seemed to feel the coming tsunami (and earth’s crust shifting) and responded by heading in land. Perhaps some humans also feel the earth’s shifts as mother Earth is going through hard times? (Hey, I am the year of the rat so perhaps that helps?)

The Earth is erupting around and whether it is the feeling of pain when Baghdad was bombed, or Earth’s internal turmoil; like Obi Wan Kenobi in Star Wars who feels the destruction of Alderan (planet), I feel it.

I have some questions for fellow peace builders about our work, (education vs. training) (theory and practice), and will share more of my research with you in the future. For now?

Becalmed,

Martha

June Blog

The unpredictable gifts of jet lag are not having a clue what time it is, or caring. I began my 2,000 kilometer drive to visit my mom going through Medicine Hat, Swift Current and Moose Jaw. By Moose Jaw it was past midnight and I thought it might be wise to stop as the deer were beginning to appear at the side of the road.

The Northern lights lit the sky from East to West with fuchsia, green, red, purples… all shooting in wild exclamation and subtle waves. Cassiopeia sat in full repose atop it all. It became impossible to miss out on this wild and spectacular light show so I eventually passed on a Motel 6 for a gravel road east of Moose Jaw with sleeping bag (always with safety kit for blizzard survival) in a field.

Canada, north lights, loons calling, spring run off with floods in a town called High River. (Might think the name would give a clue…? I am just saying…)

Monkeys on the roof and monitors moving along the road way…unfamiliar to North Americans…I expect my Sri Lankan blog readers will find North Lights as foreign to them.

And now, still June, I am writing this from Madrid. Ximena is in Nice, France at meetings with Cafod, Caritas and many relief organizations. Martin is at work and I will write my blog thoughts before heading to the pool. I am here in Europe for a Hindu wedding between Jai (whose family are coming from India) and Aya (her family are Japanese). (Ximena, Jai and Aya are all friends from Bradford days.)

Within a month’s time I have been providing training in peer mediation in Sri Lanka, and teaching officers with the city of Calgary in dealing with challenging situations and facilitating an online course in Conflict Resolution reaching across several continents. I do not know if anyone out there is still following along with that is blog now that I have left Sri Lanka, but if so I will keep you updated on this journey of peacemaking across the land.

If you have an interest in participating in piloting the online courses, email me at marthamcmanus(at)hotmail.com. Sorry. I can not figure out this Spanish key board. ¿Quien puede ayudar me?

Adios!