ME – A PEACEMAKER, NO WAY!

Well, I don’t have a very good experience of being a peacemaker mainly because I usually avoid conflicts. This has been a feedback for me since quite some time in my yearly appraisals that I need to learn to resolve conflicts among my team members because it is an important aspect of being a leader. So, as part of leading my team – I need to ensure that they can work well with each other. But I find it very difficult because I feel that being a peacemaker really drains my energy. I feel so exhausted if I have to deal with it. 

The only peacemaking I do is when my son gets into fights with other kids in the neighborhood that is the only time that I gladly step in to resolve a conflict. Only because it is fairly easy to resolve the conflicts among kids because they really do listen to you. I have dealt with adults who are probably much more immature than my 5-year-old son. 

There is one peacemaking that I am doing actively but reluctantly these days is between my husband and his parents. Yes, you read it right. I am the mediator between my husband and my in-laws for a lot of things. The situation is that my husband is away living in another city and I am living with our son and my in-laws since last almost 3 years now. Apparently, I have managed to build up a good rapport with my in-laws wherein my husband is not involved in the equation.

My husband is a bit of a free spirit. All of us know that he is quite careless about things. Losing his precious items and forgetting important events is very common with him. And a person like him is now staying alone in this Corona period. All of us are quite sure that he doesn’t take as many precautions as required. He might not be washing all the groceries and packages that he receives, he might not be immediately changing his clothes if he comes home from outside. 

On the other hand, my in-laws are practically paranoid about Corona. All the grocery items, veggies are washed thoroughly. Any electronic items or books that cannot be washed are kept at a corner of the house for a couple of days till we are sure that they are free of any virus. We are obviously not stepping out of the house at all. If we have to step out at all – only eyes are visible (preferred to be covered with specs). As soon as we step in, everything needs to be washed. 

Imagine the amount of conflict between my husband and my in-laws. Parents keep complaining that he is not paying enough attention to the Corona cleanliness and my husband has an attitude – “Jo hoga dekha jayega (We will deal with whatever happens), I cannot stop my life”. And I am stuck somewhere in between trying to pacify both sides. Multiple arguments on both sides totally exhaust me and now I have come to a situation where I tell both parties – “Please deal with each other directly, don’t talk to me about it”. 

“Tell him to take a bath as soon as he reaches home” My mother in law would tell me.

“Tell her I have taken bath thrice since morning” my husband would say that with a laugh on the other side. And I know for sure that he is not telling the truth. 

Well, I just hope Corona ends soon without affecting my family so that this conflict is over forever. 

Just got reminded of a meme I read recently – “Corona has divided this world in two groups. One group is extremely aware of Corona cleanliness and does everything possible to ensure that virus doesn’t enter their homes. Another group who take minimal precautions and believe that they would deal with it if it happens. And the funny part is that both the groups think that the other group is foolish” 

In my family, both the groups exist and I am living with the two groups. God, save me!

PEACEMAKER – PACEMAKER OF PERISHING RELATIONSHIP

A random thought popped up as I am vigorously stirring up ideas in my mind to write for this week’s topic – A Peacemaker. I found an allegorical resemblance between a Peacemaker and a Pacemaker.

What does a Pacemaker do? I will keep it quite simple. “A pacemaker is a small device that’s placed in the chest or abdomen to help control abnormal heartbeats. This device uses electrical pulses to prompt the heart to beat at a normal rate,” as Google defines it so.

When the heart beats slower than the normal rate i.e. 60 bpm, it pumps less oxygen in the body which as a consequence results in many complications fatigue, short breathiness being simple ones to surface first. Hence a pacemaker normalizes the way how the heart functions, read beats.

So what’s the similarity? Just as a pacemaker, an external instrument normalizing the heart functioning and thereby ensuring the health of the body that includes reviving life as well, a peacemaker, an external catalyst/influence helps redeem the limping and perishing relationships – be it on micro-level between friends/family or on a macro level between nations.

What quality a peacemaker must possess? Knowledge of facts and figures, excellent communication skills, and integrity are few qualities a diplomat mediating between organizations or governments require. But keeping this discussion to a micro-level of “You, Me, Ours, Us and We” all it takes is Empathy, Patience, and a still head on shoulders most importantly.

As my dear friend Rajnandini said in her write up (must read it, amazing work) a person with no peace dwelling in his own heart/mind can’t ensure tranquility around and among others. And the most interesting aspect of being a “Peacemaker” is that this crown is conferred upon a person by others and not a self-proclaimed title just like a pacemaker installed by doctors and not by the patient himself/herself.

My experience: Being the eldest one in my family I often had my siblings pouring in their heart to me. Be it their differences with friends or partners or any other relationship /relative. And every grieving soul wants to be heard first without being judged. So I don’t interrupt in between. And after having heard to them I resort to my favorite line “let me talk to them” because I believe that every aspect has a second version of facts/perception. Once the other side of the coin is exposed (not in a negative sense) I make sure that the relevant points – concerns/worries/viewpoints are conveyed in a nonhurtful manner. Taming of ego is a big job of a Peacemaker. Unless the ego of a person is trapped, tamed, and shown an exit, peace refuses to make an entry and hence the relationships suffer a slow agonizing death. Peacemaker or not (I don’t know how my loved one sees me), I follow a simple formula – “you are right but the other person is not wrong either. Talk, Listen, and Solve TOGETHER”. I have numerous incidents in my life but can’t (actually don’t want to) specify or single out any incident -confidentiality clause.

“Peace needs Pace” – slower we act or react to identify or resolve the issues corroding our relationships or body, death is writing on the wall. Think about it.

“The one who has peace among his own mind, body, and spirit; who enjoys unity among his whole-being can only be a peacemaker. He is a person whose body follows his mind which decides to execute what is right and just according to the yearning of his spirit.”

(Provided the yearning of one’s spirit is centered around God, the Almighty)

A PEACEMAKER

A peacemaker’s life isn’t easy. Nah. It never is. Yet, a peacemaker is always the solution. Someone who could sing harmony in a room of conflict or who could stand and deliver a statesman in the Gaza strip – that, of course, is beyond our means. We all search for a peacemaker never realising ‘peace comes from within’. And this is a phrase we have heard since our teens. A peacemaker needn’t necessarily be a middle man or someone who connects estranged hands. You and I can be peacemakers too. Anyone who tries and succeeds in conquering one’s own conflict and controls lust is also a peacemaker.

But more often than not we need a peacemaker to help us reap value of that hidden peace within us. Like James and Jenny needed one to help solve their inner conflicts and hate for each other. Jenny and James are part of a five-sibling family brought up by a single mother. Their mother, Lima, lost her husband when her youngest was two days old. James and Jenny are just five years apart neither is the oldest or the youngest. 

Her five kids were Lima’s only family. She was their mother and their father. It was obvious that they were all affectionate and caring for each other, but James and Jenny were special. They shared a strange and sweet connection. Both looked out for each other. They were partners in crime – like sharing stolen fried fish from the kitchen or running away with jelly gums from a shop. They were each other’s protector when required. Jenny would often take blame for James’ ‘mischiefs’ and when James found out Jenny had committed some wrongdoing, he would hurry to clean it up.

Things though aren’t the same any more. 26 years have passed and James and Jenny haven’t spoken in the last 4 years. No, the right sentence is ‘they don’t talk to each other’. Their connection of childhood is now a tale for the memory. James got married and has two kids. Jenny the same. But Jenny is also divorced or as she calls it ‘free from a meaningless relationship.’

Her husband was a middle-class man with a government job. They lived happily for six years but it was at the start of the final five that things turned sour. An 11-year marriage eventually ended in a court room. Now, Jenny’s husband was a friend of James. They had worked together in the same company for some time in the past. Jenny loathed her brother for not telling her about the affair.

But James had always tried to save the marriage. Was he aware of any affair? He didn’t think he knew of any such thing. To him his friend was a ‘just man’. But Jenny scorned at him for that too. “You sided with him when I needed you most,” she once shouted at her brother. James now felt Jenny was too dominating and stubborn. He married two years after his younger sister. And for a year, he had rented a room in Jenny’s house where she earlier lived with her husband. Her two kids are her only company now.

James left the house after a year with his sister’s marriage in disarray. He never tried to reconcile his sister’s failing marriage. “She’s too stubborn. Always wants a ‘yes man’,” he would tell his wife Cathy whenever they talked about Jenny and the divorce. During that year in Jenny’s house, he would often hear Jenny and Selaman (Jenny’s husband) arguing through the night. Selaman came late night on most days and he was drunk. But he wasn’t a regular drunkard when James had first met him. A fine young man with so much talent the world could be at his feet.

They bonded well and Selaman confided in James, his best friend. Even after his divorce Selaman and James remained friends. His sister’s husband spent after office hours at the pub. He didn’t want to go home that early. Curious, James once asked “why?” Selman told him there was no love at home. Jenny would shout at him over silly things. They argued more than talking. The kids weren’t allowed to meet if he came home late. This was when the marriage was still living – slowly cracking but still remediable. 

Today the marriage is a thing of the past. Jenny’s kids often visit the house. But she doesn’t. James does the same when he takes his family over. Usually, he returns back home after dropping them. One day, Jenny’s son dragged him to the house. Jenny forced a sweet on his mouth that day. Their eyes had lighted with tears (no this isn’t a melodrama). But that was it. The relationship looked beyond repair.

But he missed his little sister. You bet, she did too. They both found a good communicator in Cathy (James’s wife). Every time she visited Jenny, James would warn her: “don’t get into any argument just hear and nod. Please do not react she will get angry.” He thought Jenny was still stubborn. 

Cathy once asked Jenny “why don’t you reconcile with James?” “Why should I,” Jenny had said. “He is the big brother he should.” James thought something similar – She’s younger, she should first. This fight wasn’t just for Selaman but for things beyond it. Jenny thought her brother knew about an affair. That he knew Selaman drank before the wedding and above all James knew that he wasn’t the right man for her. But he didn’t…

James knew more. He knew why Selaman drank. He knew why Jenny hated her ex-husband and he knew why they separated. But he wished he never knew Selaman. Perhaps Jenny shouldn’t have married Selaman. A broken marriage then wouldn’t have resulted in a strained brother-sister relationship.

Neither were willing to stretch the hand of reconciliation. They needed a peacemaker. What they didn’t know was the peacemaker was already at work. Cathy didn’t want her husband to regret a friendship, regret one decision and live with a broken relationship with his dear sister. She didn’t want her children deprived of their aunt’s love ,- an aunt, who made the best kheer (rice pudding). She would often call Jenny and ask about her childhood memories with James.

At bed, James would often discuss Jenny and the happy times the siblings shared growing up – something that seemed a distant memory now. Both James and Jenny regretted not talking to each other. But neither would take the first step. Cathy knew she couldn’t force nor could she intervene. Time is a healer. No one realised when phone conversations with Jenny became group conversations with James and Jenny. Sometimes the kids would join. Of course, their other siblings did too. 

One day, Cathy was at Jenny’s place and suddenly the phone rang. Ohh, Jenny’s phone it was. The caller name said ‘mischief’. Cathy recognised the number, Jenny did too. That was the first call James had made to Jenny in four years and 23 days. Cathy remembers it well. James hadn’t called to apologise to his little sister. The call was on Jenny’s phone because Cathy’s number was unreachable. 

That was the first step, Cathy believes. She notes down “No one forced, yet it happened.” Cathy is writing a book sitting in a coffee shop. Her friend asks “why ‘mischief’?” Because James was always mischievous. “So were you the peacemaker, then,” her friend continued. Cathy said ‘no!’ “I was just the person both needed to realise their importance in each other’s life.”

Just then James called her to remind she had to reach his office in an hour with the children. They were going home to celebrate Jenny’s 36th birthday. She bid her friend goodbye and got into the cab. As she shut the door, a thought hit her mind. Cathy takes out a diary and writes “A Peacemaker.” 

(Author: Joseph Biswas)

THE PEACEMAKER IN MY LIFE

Every time I am angry with someone, I prefer not to talk with the person concerned. It’s easy and gives you time to re-think. Also, instead of engaging in endless arguments, it’s better to give your mind some peace. Time acts as a healer and things gradually normalize. 

Yes, silence often works as a great peacemaker, but not always. Some situations require peacemakers who work as a catalyst to make the sour talks sweeter. And the moment I think of peacemaker, my cousin sister Kuljeet’s name immediately pops up into my mind. Whenever I am angry with anyone, I let her know and she has the perfect logic which works each time. Lending an ear to your problems and solving them is so easy for her. I often yell at my kids when they fight, which is the easiest thing to do, but I also remember the way Kuljeet used to handle her sons when they used to quarrel. She used to talk to them individually, then together, and sought out the differences. With both the sons crying and shouting simultaneously, I wish I could calm them down the way she used to do. 

A few years back, I was having some real issues and was frequently quarreling with my husband. I immediately told Kuljeet and she was all ready to calm me down and listen to my woes. She made me understand where I was at fault. I worked upon those things and everything became perfect.

I have been in many circumstances where conflicting views result in a feud and I always found it difficult to be a peacemaker there and preferred to escape from the situation. After all, who wants to be a punching bag?

Not everyone can be a peacemaker and blessed are those who can be one, because without them it won’t be possible to heal the relations!

BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS

Ever imagined a world without conflict, division, war, hatred and strife – where peace, tranquility and harmony reign over every heart and soul? Utopian fantasy, some would say!

Rightly so, considering the quantum of chaos and discord all around – deep inside the mind, in the family, at the workplace, in social structures and in the world at large – peace seems to be as elusive as the silver lining beneath the dark cumulo-nimbus clouds that augurs hope but then slips into oblivion.

A world that was groaning and moaning in the aftermath of two World Wars has been spared of a third one till date, thanks to the astute role of  the United Nations which deserves a fair share of credit for achieving the purpose of its inception to a great extent. However, the world has not been completely rid of wars and conflicts. We still have heart wrenching graphic images and stories of strife-torn countries, broken families and lost lives.

What we need to understand is that as long as there are disparities and divisions, there will be conflict. And, such credentials will continue to be companions of the world as long as it exists.

Taking an example, close to home – think of sibling rivalry. Why does it happen? It happens when one child ‘perceives’ his/ her sibling/s as being loved or attended to more than self. In case such a perception is real, the rivalry stays on along the years and continues into adulthood and may be the cause of deep-rooted enmity between/ among siblings. If such a perception is faulty, then parental intervention helps dissipate the apprehension and restore peace.

This is true for every other spectrum and all relationships that we can think of.

Ronald Reagan said, “Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.”

So then, if differences create strife and differences cannot be completely gotten rid of, can peace be ever attained?

Peace is an internal construct. It is not an external construct that needs to be attained by certain means. We cannot attain peace by doing or not doing certain things. It is purely a gift of the Spirit of God to man. But, our actions sure play important parts in helping to retain or renounce peace in our lives and in that of others.

The story is told of a man who was in the quest of peace. He quit his job and started on his hunt for peace. Each morning he left home and wandered far and near to catch hold of peace which he could then spread everywhere. But, each evening he returned home disillusioned and got into drunken brawls with his wife. The rapidly depleting resources soon brought them to a point of mounting debts and starvation until one day the young wife, moments before breathing her last sighed, “Ah! Peace at last!” But before she could explain what this peace was, to her husband, she drifted off into the other world, leaving him alone to continue his quest for peace.

And so go on the stories of many men who wander off to attain peace and in the process drift even farther from it, while all the time it is very much within them.

With conflict continuing to reign massively in the world, each one of us can be peacemakers in the roles that we play. But, so as to be peacemakers we must first have peace within us. Without our own internal peace, all our efforts in peace-making no matter how sincere they may seem, would end up being fruitless. Peace within, would create the desire to see peace restored everywhere.

Calming down heated arguments and signing peace pledges may give us the satisfaction of playing significant roles in restoring peace, but these are simple indications of the soul within that has been designed for retaining and yearning for peace.

More than being a virtuous act, it is indeed a blessing to be a peacemaker. The Bible says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”

Even as we strive to be peacemakers, let us first receive the gift of peace from God.

TRUST AND DISCOVER

“Your talent is God’s gift to you.

What you do with it is your gift back to God”

It becomes harder to believe, as you constantly grew-up hearing, “you’re good for nothing” and your emotions compel you to believe – “you are scum”.

        My career scores are average!

I have no idea about art and music!

I’m not good looking!

I’m not good in sports!

I don’t know how to pen thoughts!

Even a bull is better than me…

Somewhat this was my journey from “tween to twenty”…

Until you get a turning-point in life you can’t discover the new road and can’t experience how well you can drive!

After getting to the turning point, I met many new people in life. Some were better than me… some were just like me… some were not better than me.

It was the evening of 12th February 2015. I was in a malady and so was my friend with hers. As she shared her situation, I tried to encourage her though it was quite tough then. Our chat ended with a note from her – “okay… I will… You are really a champ dear… I know you are not in a good state but still you are encouraging me… thanks.”

As you comfort others in affliction, God will comfort you through!

It’s tough but POSSIBLE. Be courageous and know that God is with you when you walk through the valleys of death and the high seas of life.

I love to inspire people with morning messages mostly from the Bible. But I didn’t know that, I could even write!

It was 10th January 2016. I meet the Candles man “Chiradeep Patra”. While on our way back from church, he asked me, ‘what do you love to do?’ One of my replies was, ‘I love to share my life with people and love to inspire them with good morning quotes as most of them are away from me.’ Immediately he offered me to write for Candles Online. Though it was a good offer, it was like jumping into the river without the knowledge of swimming. I just prayed, took courage and said, “let me give it a try” and I wrote my first article – “How Good Is Our Mask Of Pretence?” Now inspiring people through writing has become a part of my life. I feel ungrateful to my Highness without doing the part of this heavenly task daily.

You might not have a bag of talents but trust me, “He has fearfully and wonderfully made you in your mother’s womb and has ordained your days. He has assigned you with a purpose. Trust him just as you are, take the courage and be passionate to invest your hidden talents for the heavenly cause.” (The Bible)