Read the latest edition of the Peacebuilders' Newsletter.
NEWSLETTER FOR SUSTAINABLE PEACEBUILDING
September 3, 2025 NUMBER 75
In these newsletters we invite contributions and ideas, suggestions, and possibilities for our efforts to educate others about addressing the pressing issues of the day with intelligence, compassion, and a commitment to the greater good of humanity and the earth, i.e., nonviolent conflict resolution, improved communication and cooperation, successful negotiation, and mediation. We also want readers to reflect and rethink their ideas, to consider forming their own discussion groups as we have in order to encourage the critical and creative thinking that can help individuals and communities move through obstacles and difficulties in more sustainable ways, i.e., with attention to the interconnected health of all peoples, their economies, and their environments.
William Timpson, Robert Meroney and Lloyd Thomas
Fort Collins Rotary Club
Sustainable Peacebuilding Fellowships at the Rotary Club of Fort Collins TACTICS FOR DEVELOPING AND MAINTAINING INNER PEACE Wednesday, September 3 from 1:15-2:15 Columbine Room at the Lincoln Center, Fort Collins Spread the word. Invite others to join us! |
Albert Einstein once wrote: “One cannot solve problems with the same consciousness that created them in the first place. “Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must become the change you wish to see in the world.” Clearly, if we are to be “peace builders” we must be peaceful within ourselves. What are some of the successful tactics we can use to develop and maintain our personal inner peace?
Inner peace can be defined as a state of permanent, contented tranquility in which you feel at ease with yourself, others, and the environment surrounding you. It can be described as being fully present and comfortable in your skin regardless of any chaos around you. What are some of the skills, practices and habits that create and strengthen such a state? Here are but a few… not in the order of importance:
- MANAGE YOUR BREATH PATTERNS. When you breathe in (inhale), you stimulate the “sympathetic nervous system.” That is the aspect of your nervous system that generates the stress response. When you breathe out (exhale), you stimulate your “parasympathetic nervous system.” That is the aspect of the nervous system that calms you down. If you want to be more energetic and active, hold your breath at the end of the inhale. If you want to be calm and relaxed, pause your breathing at the end of the exhale. If you maintain the same length time of both aspects of your breath pattern, you remain physiologically “balanced.” With practice you will soon notice you can rely on your breath to cultivate inner peace (calmness). “Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure.” …Oprah Winfrey
- PRACTICE MEDITATION. Meditation has been practiced for centuries as a method of calming the mind and attending to your internal experience. It is one of the best methods we have for achieving peace and calmness in our lives. As someone once said, “Meditation gives you a break from the noise of your thoughts.” Stopping your “monkey mind” cultivates equanimity and a very deep sense of peace.
- LIVE IN THE PRESENT MOMENT. Most often, the present moment is neither dangerous nor particularly “upsetting.” When your behavior is responding only to the reality of the current situation/circumstance, you will usually remain calm and balanced.
- AVOID NEGATIVE THINKING. The Peace Pilgrim once said, “If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought.” Negative thoughts stimulate “stress hormones” in your body (e.g. cortisol) and 85% of the reasons we seek medical treatments are stress related. Sometimes it's in our nature to dwell on negativity rather than positivity. However, choosing to dwell on negativity in your life, whether it's in the form of your thoughts or your habits, will disrupt your peace. Again, the Peace Pilgrim wrote, [With gratitude], “Think about all the good things of your life. Never think about your difficulties. Forget yourself, and concentrate on being of service as much as you can in this world, and then, having lost your lower self in a cause greater than yourself, you will find your higher self: your real self.”
- PRACTICE QUICK FORGIVENESS. When you forgive, it is not for the person/event that may have hurt you. It is for your sake that you let go of anger and resentment or the need for revenge/retribution. To keep those emotions inside for any length of time is self-destructive. “Living well is my best revenge you can be sure.” ---English poet, George Herbert
- AS YOU MOVE FORWARD IN LIFE, be certain that what you leave behind is better off than when you arrived. “Always leave your campsite better/cleaner than how you found it.” ---My father, Harry E. Thomas
- GET TO KNOW YOURSELF INSIDE AND OUT. Most of us are exclusively aware of only what is happening outside our skins. For centuries mystics have said that “enlightenment”… even “the kingdom of God,” is within. “When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who can live at peace with others.” ---Peace Pilgrim.
- LOVE YOURSELF. One aspect that disrupts our inner peace is the constant conflicts (even war) we have within ourselves. Practicing self-love integrates peace within your life. If you don’t love who you are, it is impossible to really love anyone else.We tend to treat everybody else in the same way we treat ourselves. Treat yourself as you would a loved child. After all, the “Golden Rule” is to love your neighbor [exactly] like you love yourself. If you fail to love yourself, who is going to? It is no one else’s responsibility.
- KEEP ON LEARNING. Everything in life moves. The only constant in your personal life is growth. In the world the only constant is change. If you quit learning and adapting, you become stagnant and often self-defeating. Learning to resolve perceived problems is the highest form of adaptation. “Inner peace is found by facing life squarely, solving its problems, and delving as far beneath its surface as possible to discover its verities and realities.” ---Peace Pilgrim
- REDEFINE SUCCESS. Success is any state with which you are content. Peace of mind is the greatest of all success in life. Genuine success is determined not by how much money/material things you have. Rather, it is determined by how happy and healthy you are. Pursue those values and successfully attaining them results in strengthening your inner peace.
- "When you live in a society full of competition, where you find yourself seeking only your own success, you may gain power and money, but you will end up losing what is most valuable in becoming human: to be in relationship, open to the other person. This is the vision of the peacemaker: to discover that every person is unique, whatever their disability, whatever their tribe, country, culture or religion." --- Jean Vanier (Vanier is the Frenchman who founded and, at age 93, continues to participate in the L'Arche worldwide community of homes where caretakers and adults with mental disabilities live together.)
"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." --- Albert Schweitzer
- SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE. When you’re burdened with acquiring and maintaining material things, you feel overwhelmed, inadequate, and imprisoned by your reactions to the externals of your life… and your inner peace becomes hidden from your consciousness. Actually, you can experience great freedom in the simplicity of living, and “the simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace.” ---Peace Pilgrim.
- GO OUTSIDE IN NATURE. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), exposure to nature has been linked to a host of benefits, including improved attention, lower stress, better mood, reduced risk of psychiatric disorders and even upticks in empathy. The natural world is usually silent and peaceful. In order to instill a sense of peace within, spend some time connecting with it. In your daily life, go walking outside, engage in activities like gardening, hiking, running, biking, strolling by water or swimming in it.
- Getting fresh air and letting the sun shine on your face can be a very beneficial experience and almost immediately improving of your attitude and mental health. “Spending time in nature is linked to both cognitive benefits and improvements in mood, mental health and emotional well-being (APA).
- ENJOY BEING ALIVE. Fall in love with the human race and realize you are a unique expression of it. Someone once said, You are a [unique] cell in the body of humanity.” As far as we know now, the life you have now is the only one you are going to have. Every human being is different from every other. There never has been, nor will there ever be, another person exactly like you are now. Inner peace is found by enjoying every aspect of your being alive. “We are all cells in the same body of humanity.” ---Peace Pilgrim
“If there is to be peace in the world,
There must be peace in the nations.
If there is to be peace in the nations,
There must be peace in the cities.
If there is to be peace in the cities,
There must be peace between neighbors.
If there is to be peace between neighbors,
There must be peace in the home.
If there is to be peace in the home,
There must be peace in the heart.” --- Lao Tzu