Today is Remembrance Day in Canada, and I am reminded of a poignant song that still brings me to tears by Buffy Sainte-Marie, Universal Soldier. A few years ago, I received a phone call from a local radio station wanting my opinion on the numerological significance of 11/11/11. I referred her back to my blog where I have for many years responded to similar questions. Perhaps this matter needs to be addressed once again.
Calendar dates don’t cause wars, nor do they cause peace, nor do they bring enlightenment or universal shifts of consciousness. War and peace are the result of decisions made by men and women. Enlightenment will occur once the decision to set aside darkness has been made and the light is allowed to take its place; change will occur when enough people agree on a new way of being. None of these changes will occur because a page on a calendar has been turned.
Every year, on a couple of special, silent, holy days and nights marked on our calendars, we agree to lay down our arms and call a temporary truce while we sing hymns of peace and good will for all. What date on the calendar tells us that it is time to agree to end the truce? Within a few short days we return to our battles. Whether military action, competition for business or feuds with family members, the result is the same: we have chosen to return to conflict rather than maintain peace.
Throughout history, enlightened men and women— Jesus, Mother Teresa, Ramana, Buddha, Gandhi, and countless others—have devoted their lives to sharing messages of love and peace with humanity. Yet, it appears that their messages have not been found important enough to be taken seriously. Is it not foolish to think that a date on a calendar can change what a living example of the truth cannot change?
A calendar date will not bring change. True change will come when we hold the heart-felt, conscious, sincere desire to experience something completely new, for peace, health, compassion, respect, abundance for all life on Earth. It is time for each one of us to look inside, gather our courage, and bravely make our way through the darkness toward the light, knowing that beyond it, lies the Love that is our true expression, the Love for which the world weeps.
