Finding the Truth Inside Yourself

[BanzaiBonnie]

On the heels of Rick's wonderful post and the exciting introduction of his book, I must share this with you. I have such hope and excitement for us all. Indeed for the whole world. And never as much as hope as when I wrote this letter to my 12 year old grandson. This was my blog post today:

http://edgeofthevillage.wordpress.com/


My grandson graciously granted my request to publish this personal letter to him, on this blog. In the letter to him, I shared my thoughts after we went to an EMDR session with a counselor. He also allowed me to be in the room while the counseling was taking place. Our reason for going was to help him find ways to stay more focused in school. Last year there were some issues with him being disruptive in class and that pattern was showing up right away this year. His teachers were asking that he begin taking Ritilan this year. He does not want to take Ritilan because he feels, that while it does help him be calm, it has an affect on his personality.

September 29, 2011 Victor, Last night was amazing. I am so pleased to know the outstanding young man you are becoming. You have a strong core of willingness to sacrifice yourself for the highest and best good of all. And the important realization that at the very center of your being, the most important thing to you, is to bring peace to this world. You got that last night, didn’t you. And it was made clear by you, looking inside of yourself. You found yourself, the truth inside of you. It’s not anything someone else told you. You found it yourself and that’s the best kind of truth, the one that’s in line with who you are.

I’m wondering if you see that you have a choice how you play out your life in this world? One way of serving your country and the world is in the military. You said your ultimate goal would be as a peacemaker. You told us about standing up for a friend who was being picked on and I can see that you want to stand up against cruelty and make sure life is safe for those who are not strong.

I know you love the cool uniforms and the idea and excitement of being in an elite force like the Navy Seals. You are a thrill seeker. You enjoy very high stimulation activities, but there are choices to be made and other ways of seeking adventure and excitement. This world is open to you for exploring and having new and different experiences. You have so many choices. It is my hope you will be open to all the choices available to you.

Do you know, that I know someone who is a Navy Seal? I can tell you about that some other time if you’re interested.

When I heard you express your feelings about wanting a wife and child someday and to have a good life for you and them, I felt my heart open and all the love I have for you just poured out. What you shared was from your heart.

I have great hope for everyone everywhere because that’s what every other person on the planet wants deep inside. If you ask anyone what they want deep down, it’s to live a good life in their own way. To have a choice in how they live and they mostly want peace. They desire to live in the best way they can without interference from others.

Humans have tried for thousands of years to bring peace to the planet. Mostly, by forcing others to behave and “be peaceful” and I haven’t seen that work well yet. That is from the outside, when true peace can only come from the inside. You’ll probably learn that in your meditation practice. If we only practice for war, what do you think we’ll get? What if we practice for peace?

I believe we are programmed to cooperate and live peacefully with others. The brain science I’m studying now tells us that. And I full believe that will happen someday. Someday, peace will break out and spread all over this planet. What a great thing that will be.

But when someone comes to us and says, “you must behave the way I tell you”, well, how does that feel? Do you want to cooperate with someone holding you hostage? And I mean either physically, emotionally or mentally. Or do you want to escape their control? How does that feel? Do you want to cooperate with someone who is trying to MAKE you behave or does it actually make you feel rebellious and you want to fight them?

It’s a very human response to not want to bow to the pressure of another person’s will. We have a deep need to be who we are, to express who we are in our own way. We are individuals. But we are part of the whole of humanity too. And I honor your deep desire to serve humanity. It’s what I’m here for too. First, to take care of my family and make sure they have what they need to live a good life. It’s why I want to see you have good tools and honorable allies. Then, to bring the gift of who I am to the rest of humanity, because they are my family too.

I love you beyond measure Victor. You have a very special place in my heart. Your name can mean more than being the victor in battle. That may be the past speaking. It might be your past experiences on the planet showing you something about yourself. Learn from it. Honor it. But also realize there may be a future way to be victorious. You could be someone who helps bring real and lasting peace into this world. We will all win with that.

Love you, Grandma Bonnie