“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

We say we want world peace. We despair about lost lives in the Middle East, about rioting in our cities, about shootings in our neighborhoods. When I find myself getting fearful, angry, and sorrowful about the state of the world, I ask myself if I have peace in my house? Peace in my heart? If I cannot be peaceful in my own small world, how can I be expecting it of the world at large? If I cannot refrain from putting my finger up at the driver in front of me, of reacting with disdain to the people around me, of losing my temper with my toddler or my puppy, how can I expect everyone else to do so much better?
I start with myself.