Making Peace with Ourselves
Theme for Week Two
Nobody can bring you peace but yourself.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Our focus for this week will be making peace with ourselves. Lest we think this is self-indulgent, as Thomas Merton has written, “We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves.” We cannot offer others what we do not have ourselves.
On the surface it may seem obvious that we all want to be at peace with ourselves. Yet, in yesterday’s reflection, Audrey Scanlan reminds us that seeking a deeper peace within ourselves requires honest, soul-searching self-reflection. It is a road less traveled. So much so that Audrey, a person who takes practicing peace seriously, concludes her reflection with the unexpected words, “It was, perhaps, the first time that I had ever practiced making peace with myself.”
We will structure our emphasis this week on making peace with ourselves by focusing on the Living Compass Model of Well-Being and its four points: heart, soul, strength, and mind. Each quadrant will be the focus for one day’s reflection, and we will invite you to model Audrey Scanlan’s practice of honest self-reflection by pausing each day to reflect on what it means to be more at peace in different dimensions of your life.
Making It Personal: What are your thoughts about the quote from Emerson: “Nobody can bring you peace but yourself”? Do you see a connection between the practice of honest self-examination and reflection, and making peace with yourself? As we begin our focus on making peace with ourselves, take a moment to rate your own sense of inner peace. On a scale of 1–10, where 1 represents deep inner conflict and 10 complete inner peace, what number represents your current sense of being at peace with yourself?