Peace Camp

Last month, Eric and I were invited to speak with a small group of high school girls at their Peace Camp. It was an overnight workshop of sorts wherein they discussed peace in themselves, peace in their relationships, and peace in their world. They also drew a picture of a peaceful world as they brainstormed what that would look like.

Their world included "loving lingo," a peace army that would give hugs, universal healthcare and citizenship, food distribution centers, lifelong learning that would entail studying and teaching what you truly loved, conflict resolution teams, renewable energy, nuclear disarmament, and all kinds of green initiatives. It was inspiring to hear their vision.

We spoke with them about what it means to us to have a peaceful marriage. We shared with them how we learned peaceful conflict resolution, how we pursue equality, how we remove un-peaceful distractions, how we navigate challenges, how we make no assumptions about "roles" but base the rhythm of our relationship on who we are, how we strive to respect and love each other unconditionally, how we are continually learning, etc. The answer to most of their questions was "Well, we talk about it. A lot." They wanted to know if our throats ever got dry from talking so much. Of course, they do. :)

Overall it was a great experience, and it made me thankful for peace on all scales. In other words, being truly at peace with your spouse is perhaps as important as nations being at peace with each other. A young woman who is inspired to make affordable solar panels so thin that you can roll out on the roof (and after meeting this girl, I'm sure she will invent such a thing) will be a part of creating peace on multiple levels. I believe in a deep and abiding peace found in Christ, therefore I believe "world peace" is not a trite concept. And it starts with letting the peace of Christ which transcends all understanding transform my understanding.