Get Ready For an AMAZING Week in The Blogosphere ~ BLOG4PEACE 2021

Tweet it. Facebook it. Instagram it. Blog it. Social media it (!)

all day long with the rest of the world. 

Peace globes will fly over the Blogosphere and social media 

November 4-7, 2021

Our theme is "Courageous Peace in a Time of Great Change"

It's going to take courage to manifest peace in these times.

Tell us about it. If words are powerful...this matters.

Use this blank template to design your own peace globe. 

Then post on your blog and social media pages anytime NOV 4-7, 2021. 

MORE TEMPLATES HERE

How To Blog 4 Peace on NOV 4 and Everyday!

1.Choose any graphic at @blog4peace.com or use the one above.  Make your own peace globe by decorating the template or leave as is. There are thousands of examples HERE.  Don't have to time to make a graphic? There are also pre-made peace globes to use HERE

2. Send the peace globe to blog4peace@yahoo.com OR TAG Mimi Lenox on Facebook. Your globe will be collected and placed in the Official Peace Globe gallery @ blog4peace.com.

3. Post it anywhere online NOV 4 - Nov 7. 

Title your post or status "Dona nobis pacem" (Latin for Grant us peace) WRITE A POST about peace with our theme in mind to accompany your peace globe graphic. VISIT other bloggers and comment. It's a community event!

 Be inspiring. Be inspired. It's an amazing week in the Blogosphere!

You will find a whole page of FREE peace globe templates @ this link  

Lots of LINKS at the top of this page with information and graphics for inspiration. Visit blog4peace.com to see the thousands of peace globes that have gone before. From 214+ (and counting) countries/territories and all seven continents. This is our 16th year of peace blogging. You don't want to miss it! Let your blog be represented!

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Announcing Blog4Peace (BlogBlast For Peace) November 4 - 7, 2021

                

Welcome to the 16th year of peace blogging in the Blogosphere! 

Welcome peace bloggers! 

Welcome NEW peace bloggers!

When?

Thursday, Nov 4, - Sunday, Nov 7, 2021

*NOTE: We have expanded the date from one day to FOUR days of peace blogging this year. Choose a day to participate or blog peace all four days! This gives people a chance to really visit each other and see all the peace globes.

 How to Blog4Peace 

Bloggers and social media posters from all across the globe

will blog for peace

NOV 4 - 7th

Our 2021 theme is 

Courageous Peace in a Time of Great Change

Get Your Own Peace Globe HERE

No one on earth has been unaffected by the perpetual unfolding crisis of this global pandemic. We are still thriving and swimming and struggling a bit with its far-reaching effects. I believe it's always wise in a crisis to glean those nuggets of truth that rise to the surface and change us for the better. And despite our well-deserved grumblings and grief-stricken days, there have been transformations within each of us that perhaps only a scene of such epic proportions could produce. The fallout might rain down some fruit. 

Notice it. Harness it. Strengthen it. Loose it to the world.

Courage: the ability to do something that frightens one or

strength in the face of pain or grief

Courage: the choice and willingness to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation

         This is how I've felt since the pandemic began.

                         Can you relate?

          

Wire-walking on a smorgasbord of choices: Physical courage involves proceeding despite fear of physical harm. Social Courage. ...Moral Courage. ..Emotional Courage......Intellectual Courage..... ...Spiritual Courage. It's taken all seven forms of courage to walk this wire.  All of us were forced to dig deep - right down to our core - and pull from that bountiful bucketload of courage on a daily basis. Life has become a kaleidoscope of neon colors on steroids since early 2020! What a global ride we are on!  The things that really matter have been held to a light of specific and painstaking inspection. We are still in a mode of discernment across the world!  You became caregivers, educators, fierce protectors of self and family, armchair scientists, researchers, questioners, and truth-seekers. 

I contend that somewhere in that mix of human achievements is also a bounty of peace.

Peace that comes from simply doing what you have to do. Putting one foot in front of the other and doing the best you can. There's satisfaction in that. There's grace in that. And I don't mean finding peace at the end of the the tragic mess we're in, but peace in the midst of the mess we're in.

See that light?

It's in you.

Peace bloggers always know how to find it. It's been challenging the last two years to write about peace, but it's NEVER been more important. Your words have never been more powerful. Your words (!) oh, your words are truly inspiring and fabulous! The thousands of peace globes and posts you've created continue to alter the landscape of the hearts and minds of all who see them.

 Give it your attention and ride this out. I promise it will be the best peace blogging year we've ever had - even and especially NOW.

Courageous Peace in a Time of Great Change! 

What has your courage looked like in your life during the past two years? What does it look like now? I'm asking because you need to understand that those of us paying attention SEE your character shining through with every choice you've made and continue to make. My opinion on your personal choice doesn't matter. I've seen stress, illness and death knock on doors in my neighborhood.... only to be met with that one neon-colored beautiful word - COURAGE. 

That's what matters.

How can we take this extraordinary fortitude and weave it back into the ordinary, if and when our pre-pandemic lives ever return? What attributes and/or personal growth have you noticed about yourself that you want to carry with you through the remainder of your days as we deal with an ever-growing chasm of dissent and division? 

It's going to take COURAGE. It's going to take CONSISTENCY. It's going to take CONVICTION. It's going to take COMPASSION.

And where does peace fit into this equation? I contend that peace is a natural consequence of walking through grace....even when you think that grace looks like pain. If you made it through this far, peace IS a consequence. Keep holding on to that and don't let go.

When the world looks back at your life during this time of great change, what will they see? What will your story be?

It's going to take courage to manifest peace in these times.

That's my challenge.

Let's go. It's a launch!

See the thousands of peace globes from 214+ countries and territories flying in the Official Gallery @ blog4peace.com

HOW TO LINKS: 

How To Get Your Peace Globe  FREE Peace Globe Templates  How To Put Your Peace Globe on Facebook   Get Your Own Peace Globe

Join us for BlogBlast For Peace Nov 4-7 Like Our Facebook Page ~ Peace Store How To Get Your Own Peace Globe"

© Mimi Lenox  All rights reserved    Blog4Peace™ BlogBlast4Peace™ Blog For Peace ™ BlogBlast for Peace ™

Peace globe #1

Use this blank template to make your own peace globe

Use in your sidebars and pages

Our motto: If words are powerful...this matters.

Dona nobis pacem ~ Grant us peace

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Expansion

I've been thinking a lot about time lately. How much we have. How much we don't have. How much we lose doing stupid stuff. And how much we gain when we remember that worrying about time only robs us of time. 

I don't want TIME to slow down for me. I want to expand my awareness to such a degree that every freakin' second matters. 


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Photo: Pixabay

Pre-Pandemic Plot Twists

Before the pandemic I did some crazy mirror shopping (no, my legs are not shaped like that......much) and took a lot of pictures of myself taking pictures of myself. All true bloggers know this affliction. I wish I had paid more attention to what the outdoor crystal ball was trying to tell me. It was just before I landed in my own personal mini-pandemic-before-the-pandemic (vile, it was, so vile) and then the whole planet got sick. You've heard of mini strokes? I had a mini-pandemic-before-the-pandemic. Global virus? Pffffft! Please. I dealt with a whole slew of severely malfunctioning people before the first cough coughed. I called it The Plague of Severely Malfunctioning People. It's the underlying cause for all the rest of the plagues in the Holy Bible and on planet Earth as we speak.  People! 

Did I mention people? (not any of you, mind you) Just people. It gave me PPSS (Pre-Pandemic-Stress-Syndrome) and THEN I came down with PPSD (Post-Pandemic-Stress-Disorder) for which there is no cure!  Why? Because people. 

I'm so tired of people. Aren't you tired of people? 

 Still...... I could have used a warning: "Hey Lady! Your reality is about to be distorted!" 

And it was.

 In so many ways.  You can relate, yes?

But adversity makes for good plot-building and great midnight reading. My writing is beginning to gush out of me like a well in the middle of the Sahara AND in the middle of the night. A whole new chapter (maybe a whole new series!) has been practically writing itself in Bloggingham Tales. 

Coming to a bookstore near you...

If you need me, I'll just be here untwisting my legs (no, I haven't had the Covid vaccination yet....that's next week....my legs are fine!...sort of...stop looking, will ya?) If all goes well at the neurologist - who just wants to look at my pencil brain for a minute or two and ask me a few nosy nerdy questions like 'what day is it' and why are you up at 2am writing a blog post? and tap on my temple to see if anybody's home - we'll get that nasty little jab and be done with it. I know. I know... Some of you are hoping it will change my personality back to whatever-NORMAL-is. Pfffftttt!!! A wise man once said to me, "Who wants normal?"  I bought chicken soup and a new box of Tylenol today just for the lobotomy-inducing-vaccine occasion. You're all invited to the after party. Fun times, no? 

Call for a good whine

I'd better write all this turmoil down. Pre and post. 

She's going to want to know why my legs are twisted. 

It's a long story.

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It's Been a Minute

Hello again from the blog that took a pause. 

Writing has been personal for me since the pandemic began last year. It's been a bit like the ancient days of unlocking the mystical teenage diary and scribbling in screams instead of peace, love, and blue jeans. 

Words come in spurts and fits. No cohesion or unity. 

And then I lock it back down again with my little gold key.

But perhaps that is perfection in a pandemic world.

The ride has been jolting, hasn't it? Instead of a roller-coaster it's been more like sudden stops and emergency braking for deaths and miracles all in the span of a day - except the day never ends.

 Emotional whiplash. Physical inertia.

 Soul-searching salvation.

Yes, that too.

I won't say that I now see that light at the end of the tunnel - it's such a tired phrase. 

The Light has always been there. We tend to forget that the light made its way through the darkness to the end before we even entered the tunnel. We're not supposed to reach for and steal its strength: we're supposed to find our own along the way. I see remaining slivers of illumination cascading from crevices in the tunnel wall. That is what I reach for. They stop me in my tracks - reminding me that the end game is never the peace we seek at the conclusion of our journey. It's all the places and spaces we've seen on the road that matter as much. 

It's how much light of our own we left in the tunnel. 

How much peace we leave for others determines how much peace we find.

That's why the Light at the end is so brilliant.

I hope you and your loved ones are doing well. 

Let me hear from you. I want to know how you're doing. 

Much love from Bloggingham

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ~ A Legacy of Wisdom

Today we celebrate the incredible life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Most of us think of him as a warrior for social justice.  And he was.  But roots in his character and associations suggest that at the heart of all he was, he was first and foremost - a peacemaker. 

In 1964 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end racial discrimination and segregation through the avenues of civil disobedience and other non-violent means. He was also awarded the Catholic Pacem in Terris Award (Peace on Earth).  It is awarded "to honor a person for their achievements in peace and justice, not only in their country but in the world."

Four years after his work for social justice began in the streets of Montgomery, forcing social issues to the forefront and into the American and international psyche, he began to focus his energies on stopping the Vietnam War and ending poverty. He started a process of shifting, re-sifting, toppling norms and ideologies long held by establishments at odds with anything resembling human dignity and justice. These monumental shifts in the soul of our nation and the world are largely attributed to his courage and his voice.

Oh, but there was more to the man.

I was reminded today that he was inspired by the writings and teachings of another such activist.

When Dr. King visited India in 1959, he came away with a profound respect and understanding of the non-violent teachings of Mahatma Gandhi.

He later reflected, "Since being in India, I am more convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and human dignity. In a real sense, Mahatma Gandhi embodied in his life certain universal principles that are inherent in the moral structure of the universe, and these principles are as inescapable as the law of gravitation."

He knew how to connect spiritual laws with scientific laws, science with morality, spoken words with unspoken fire, and generations of spiritual evolution into threads of commonalities within all cultures and religions while steadfastly holding to his own. Intrinsic ideas and truths became actions and deeds.

It is always the intrinsic that matters the most.

What I admire and appreciate about Martin Luther King, more than the amazing dream speech, more than his courage, more than his learned theological spirit, and even more than his political and social causes of injustice and equality, was his ability to intellectually intertwine all of those attributes and aspirations into powerful common sense purpose.  The sum of all those parts made his greatness.

Sometimes we focus on a few shining moments of publicity and grandeur so long that we forget what made him great in the first place. He knew who he was. He stayed in his lane. That was his true genius.

Dr. King surrounded himself with learned men, intimate and scholarly mentors, often controversial, books and a love of words, prayers, and a burning desire to pour out what was inside of him in letters and essays to the rest of us, even from a Birmingham Jail.

Because he honored the wisdom of others, to his credit, we not only find a profoundly cerebral giant among men, we find humility.

We mostly remember a speech, a bullet, a march, a statue, a remarkable iconic individual - and all those things are to be remembered, mourned, and revered about the man - but what lay underneath is more important to me, because without that brilliant, questioning, analytical ability to connect the dots and eloquently espouse them into one cohesive truth the whole world could understand, there wouldn't have been a march, a speech, or a movement.

The rest of his legacy would have been impossible to achieve and he would have become not a shining human light upon a hill of ugly darkness or a seeker of truth in Gandhi's shadow, but just another speech maker, noise maker, rabble-rouser and activist marching down roads at the whim of every wind with no direction and no clear path. No leader can lead walking blindly around corners of pivotal change and unrest, and take others with him, unless he already knows what lies ahead.

So today I celebrate Martin the man. The thinker. The preacher. The spirit. The leader.

And a man who understood who he was, where he'd been and where he was going.

This is one of my favorite quotes by Dr. King:

"All I'm saying is simply this, that all life is interrelated, that somehow we're caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. You can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality." - Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr.

How I long for a time when the leaders we see before us in the world today, humble themselves before voices of wisdom gone by.  

May we find ourselves worthy of his fine example. 

Edited and reprinted from a previous version of Mimi Writes

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