Own Your Peace
Peace cannot be bought, it is owned.
Somewhere along the way, we have been made to believe that we must keep the peace.
Keep everyone happy.
Avoid the difficult conversation.
Stay quiet rather than upset someone.
Give in rather than create conflict.
But peace does not mean silence at all costs.
And together with peace must always come love - love for our fellow humans and love for ourselves.
It is a love that brings patience, compassion and understanding. And perhaps most importantly, it is a love that we are willing to extend to everyone involved in the situation - including ourselves.
The peace we are seeking is not simply the absence of conflict.
It is a deep-seated knowing that we are okay. We are safe. We are enough.
Peace arrives as we begin to let go of the limitations we place upon ourselves in order to be accepted, to be safe, to belong, to be here.
It is not a peace that I demand from you.
It is a peace I own.
A peace that lives within me.
A peace that guides me.
A peace that allows me to respond rather than react.
A peace that allows me to honour myself without needing to diminish you.
When I own my peace, I no longer need you to behave a certain way for me to feel okay.
And this is where something powerful begins to shift.
You are not here to limit yourself.
You are not here to under-sell yourself so that others can feel comfortable around you.
You are not here to make yourself smaller in order to be accepted.
You are on a path to discover your greatness.
And perhaps becoming the peace you seek means learning to hold both truths at once:
I can love you without abandoning myself.
I can understand you without denying myself.
I can choose peace without choosing silence.
I can honour you while still honouring me.
Peace cannot be bought.
It is owned.
And it begins within you.
Become the peace you seek.
