“All who have meant good work with their whole hearts have done good work, although they may die before they have the time to sign it. Every heart that has beat strong and cheerfully has left a hopeful impulse behind it in the world, and bettered the tradition of mankind.”-Robert Louis Stevenson

On May 25, 1986, 5-1/2 million people joined hands in a 4,124-mile-long line from New York to Los Angeles. For fifteen minutes they held hands and sang “Hands Across America” in Hands Across America, an event to raise money for America’s poor and homeless. The event was the brainchild of Ken Kragen, founder of USA For Africa, and a New York public relations executive named Geoff Nightingale.” –from the website www.80s.com I have a clear memory of being there, standing outside of a hotel following the wedding of friends. The bride and groom joined us as well in their gown and tux and together we became part of history and the shared strength that comes from common purpose. This gracefully aging hippie had been part of other marches, rallies and protests on issues ranging from civil rights, to environmental concerns, to ending wars, to the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment-focused on  gender based salary discrepancy) which was defeated largely because there were folks who thought it meant having unisex bathrooms! I recall the quote attributed to Mother Teresa who when asked if she would come to an anti-war rally, sagely responded:  “I was once asked why I don’t participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I’ll be there.” I feel that way as well. While anger is a normal human emotion that sometimes is a catalyst for positive action, it flames out of control far too easily. I would much rather be in the presence of devoted peace activists who not only take it to the streets as a collective, but who daily LIVE their  peace. I am blessed to have been born to parents who, in addition to raising my sister and me, holding down full time and part time jobs, were also passionate volunteers. My dad offered his time as a firefighter (not sure how he did it, since he had asthma), at our synagogue running a Sunday morning breakfast gathering for pre-teens and teens, as well as showing up for minyans (a quorum of 10 needed to say certain prayers) when someone died. He also worked with a girl in our neighborhood who, if memory serves, had polio and he did what was called ‘patterning’ back then. My mother was a Girl Scout cookie mom, a hospital volunteer and a swim team volunteer, handing out ribbons and timing races. Ours was a ‘helping hand’ house, which meant that we had a sign in the front window indicating that it was a safe place to come if a child was being followed or if there was an emergency. What I didn’t know until much later, in the last few years of my mother’s life, was that its inception in our community was because of a crime against a child in our town.  Their role modeling contributed to my enthusiasm with offering time and energy to organizations like Gilda’s Club, Rubye’s Kids, Gift of Life Donor Program and Enchanted Makeovers. When I was in high school, I worked at our local recycling center, bundling newspapers and smashing glass in bins.  Such a great energetic release that was! Each time, I have felt deeply that I have received so much more than I could ever have given. My son Adam has worked with Habitat For Humanity and helped clean up the Wissahickon Creek when in high school himself. These days, he helps out whenever he can, in informal ways. In our home, we re-use/re-cycle so as to reduce the carbon footprint. I do my best to buy organic products, and items that are minimally packaged. I combine trips and carpool when I can. If I travel to New York City (which is about 2 hours away), I take the train rather than add to the traffic jam. I purchase products that are cruelty free (not tested on animals) whenever possible. My growing edge is working on non-polluting thoughts about myself and about others whose choices negatively impact on the world. It is so easy to be loving and embracing of people who we think are ‘one of us’, whose values, beliefs and actions mirror our own and reflexively rejecting of those we see as being polar opposites. “How can they not think the way I do?” the ego whines and wails. On the surface, I may seem rather Zen; non-judgmental and oozing all kinds of loving and peaceful vibes. A few years ago at my job as a social worker in a psychiatric hospital, one of co-workers said “You’re so patient. You’re like Mother Teresa.”  My laughing response was “Honey, I’m no Mother Teresa and I would bet there were some days when Mother Teresa was no Mother Teresa.” In addition to being a nun and an icon, she was also a business woman with staff to supervise and people to feed, clothe and house. My own peace of mind is tested daily when I encounter less than satisfactory responses to what I put out there into the world. I disturb my own peace with my critical monkey mind chatter that tells me it is because I am either ‘not enough or too much’ of whatever it takes to glean success in the form that I think it  ‘should’ be.  At the moment, I am thinking how I can possibly get everything accomplished that is on my gotta-get-it-done list. You know you have one of those too. Mine is comprised of the ‘normal people things’ like cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, bill paying and errand running on top of work stuff, which in my case means article deadlines, event planning , promoting and teaching, book writing, radio show organizing, since I am launching a program, interviews, seeing clients and attending meetings. I was reading an article yesterday written by. Deepak Chopra in Origin Magazine (Jan/Feb 2013). He was speaking about New Years’ Resolutions and why they are often so difficult to maintain. It isn’t because we are weak willed or lack motivation.  It is because we “try to make sweeping changes in every area of life, all at once.” and he adds that “the brain area that governs our willpower (the prefrontal cortex) is like a muscle that is quickly exhausted when asked to perform high intensity tasks such as making many changes at the same time.”  He advises that we focus on one or two adaptations at a time. The same is true for our day to day activities. My brain literally feels as if it is frozen, like a stifled sneeze, caught in mid exhale and snuffled back in when I attempt to majorly multi-task. I am aware of my sensors going out there in all directions, rather than paying attention to one or two things at a time, giving them my best and then moving on. Even as I am typing this article, I am listening to my favorite music station (WXPN 88.5 in Philadelphia www.xpn.org streamed on line), fingers tapping at the pace of the music, noticing out of the corner of my eye, the laundry waiting to be folded, thinking about the 1 pm radio interview I have scheduled, the workshop I am teaching on Sunday for which I need to gather materials and oh yes, my commitment to myself to go to the gym for my regular ‘playout’. I notice that when I am self -loving, I am better able to be ‘other loving’, whether that ‘other is another human being, an animal, a plant or the entire planet. It is when I am being the most self -disparaging that what I send out into the collective isn’t clean and genuine. You can tell when communication with others is tainted by anger or anxiety, rather than painted with a brush dipped in the paint of pure intention and love. Today my desire is to be an artist, joining hands and hearts around the world, even with paint splashed on my hands, in my hair and on my clothes. Together we will create a masterpiece worthy of our shared artistic inclinations. ]]>