Yesterday’s events in Virginia, as well as all the preceding ones, caused me to think about peace as I was looking for a Thursday Door entry. These are the beautiful gates at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands, where the Peace Flame burns bright.
I keep wondering when did we become so intolerant of each other and so angry because of the twists and turns of life? When did we start living life like it was a video game and use social media to publicize atrocious behavior?
In years past, peace was when we were not at war with another country. Now, it seems like there is no peace because we are constantly in turmoil because of the war within ourselves.
We’re all different, life challenges us in many ways, but we still get to choose how to live and conduct ourselves. May we all just take a moment longer before we let anger over perceived injustices launch itself at our fellow humans.
Here’s to peace, understanding, and tolerance this Thursday. 💗
This post is linked to Norm Frampton’s Thursday Doors August 27, 2015.
NewEnglandGardenAndThread 
Beautifully said! Peace is needed so badly!
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Beautiful doors and thoughts, Judy.
janet
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These are beautiful, Judy!
I live south of Pittsburgh and every morning I click on to a local station to check the weather ( which they may or may not be right about ) and there are so many shootings and deaths reported each morning that it is amazing. This morning it was a pregnant woman and two teens shot, yesterday a 16 year old shot in a car, and at least 2 or 3 more shootings. How many were shot in Chicago last week ? The tragic shooting in VA. yesterday is just one of a steady stream…we talk about the war on terror but our city streets are full of terror and bloodshed. Seems to get worse each day 😦
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So true. It has become a real stab in the heart of civilization and community. I think as a society we need to reevaluate our priorities because who knew we’d have to take the safety of our children one hour at a time.
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I agree with you and Debra. I wonder if technology has made us dehumanize people and just regard them as blips on a screen. We can all get through the day without any human interaction; everything’s conducted anonymously behind that screen. And sadly, the day’s already here when home made bombs go off on our streets too. It seemed like a such a remote problem only a year ago.
Your photo of the Peace Palace gates is lovely. How fortunate you were to be able to see them – and the flame – in person!
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You are right, I don’t think we could have imagined that we would be in this situation in 2014 and the news would look like it does every evening.
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Beautiful doors and a lot to think about Judy. Thanks for both.
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Gorgeous doors Judy. I know what you mean about the constant violence within our cities. I’m getting to the point where I don’t want to hear the news – as mostly it’s bad! What a shame things are like this at present. Peace to us all ❤️❤️❤️❤️
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WOW!
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Lovely Judy, the picture and the post! I believe when we feel angry we need to stop and do the OPPOSITE of what we feel…give to the person we are angry at…the anger then melts away…
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I like that idea! 🙂
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Beautiful doors and even more beautiful words Judy.
Worst of all is that I really don’t know what it’s going to take to reverse this terrible trend. All we can do I guess is to control our own actions and emotions and try to be a positive influence on others.
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Hear, hear, Judy! And shame on the demagogues who stir things up.
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Beautiful.
Words, too.
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Beautiful doors and apposite words. Thank you. 🙂
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Pingback: Thursday Peace Doors | mybeautfulthings
Reblogged this on mybeautfulthings and commented:
Thank you for this beautiful piece, Judy.
Here’s to Peace….
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Beautiful thoughts, and the doors are lovely! Warm greetings from Montreal, Canada. 🙂
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Happy Thursday to you. 🙂 Montreal is on my bucket list. We visited Toronto when we lived in the Midwest but here we are just south of you and haven’t visited yet. 🙂 Thank you for stopping.
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Wow. Those gates are very ornate and lovely. I have long thought there is a huge disconnect between the ‘haves’ who gather in these lofty, pompous buildings making righteous treaties, agreements and such, but their efforts do little but enrich their pockets and perpetuate their political aristocracy. The positive impact on the truly needy is rarely felt and usually serves to keep the needy on a lifelong deoendancy tract.
Mental illness is the crux of so many of these killings. Hiw can parents, friends, teachers, co-workers not see what’s always noted in hindsight? Why are we not effecting policies to identify and help these individuals which ultimately keeps us safe?
We need more money and aid spent on mental illness and less on the global aristocrats who wine, dine and bloviate in settings like this.
These tragedies aren’t about gun control; they are about politicizing racial divides for politicians’ benefit and about mental illness that is pervasive without adequate attention to the problem.
Ugh. I have to step off this soap box. The politicians have so corrupted our bureaucracies and separation of powers, and been so successful at identity politics and creating stereotypical victims for election purposes that i fear we cannot right this. Our federal gov’t has become a stain on our country in so many ways.
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The Peace Palace and the Peace Flame are surreal. I think you are right about more money to help support those struggling with mental illness, but I’m guessing their lobby isn’t as big as some of the others. Sorry for the snarky comment, but I really wonder how government would function if the lobbyists all went home and found real jobs. I have several friends who are hunters, but I do wonder why we have to sell guns that are intended for the military. Oh well, that’s a whole other soap box. 🙂
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I know. I should stay off my box; my rants never get anything changed. Every issue we can think of – guns, abortion, immigration – is really about finding a workable balance, and that is what’s disappeared from our polarized globe. Everyone clings to an extreme view because the few willing to discuss and compromise are eaten alive.
I never thought I’d say this but i believe I am watching our country and the globe become two lifestyles – the Political elite who make their careers off the taxpayers’ backs and all the rest of us.
Now back to our regular programming where you and I are nurtured by nature and blogging buddies 😀
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Now THESE are gorgeous! Best yet in your series, I think. Love, love, love.
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So very true, Judy. I’m so saddened by all the violence and intolerance which is so often in the news lately. The world could be a truly wonderful place if we could all learn to live and let live. The gates are so beautiful.
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The gates are beautiful, and the idea of peace would be too, if only there wasn’t so much turmoil right now. Some evenings I purposely don’t watch the news. There are 20 minutes of death and destruction, 7 minutes of pharmaceutical and car ads, and then 3 minutes coverage of a positive event. I want it reversed – 5 minutes of the bad stuff, 7 minutes for mental health ads, and 25 minutes of good things done by good people. Dreaming, I know. 🙂
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I am a personal friend of MyBeautifulThings, I am an ex-pat, and I have lived in Vermont for over 50 years. Love this piece and am now a follower. Write on Judy.
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I am in debt to MyBeautifulThings for the reblog. 🙂 I’m glad I have found a new blogging friend in the green mountains of Vermont. If one of us runs out of maple syrup we can share. 🙂
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The doors are beautiful but the topic is even more touching. The state we are in is just frightening. Someone mentioned to the news yesterday that they were going to the movies — but became very fearful as they walked into the theater — fear that someone would come in and shoot them. I’m not nearly as afraid of terrorists as I am of every day people.
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I think the terrorists are probably just watching us with amazement and figure we’ll do more damage to ourselves than they can do. I’m a positive person who thinks the glass is half full, but this is a sad state of affairs we’re in right now.
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Well said.
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I’m not sure that human beings and our behavior has really changed that much. We are a pretty savage species. Our history if full of violence, cruelty, genocide, mass murder. Civilization is just a very thin veneer.
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Well…there is that.
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Beautiful intricacy in these gates. I love the idea of a Peace Palace. I agree with you, there seems to be no peace, love or enough kindness to convert the anger and hatred out there, but we mustn’t ever give up hope. ❤
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Hope gets us out of bed in the morning doesn’t it? 🙂
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Indeed it does. 🙂
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Beautiful one! How come I didn’t see this door? I checked my pictures – and I must have seen it! Perhaps I was so fascinated by the benches in front!
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Maybe they were open the day you were there? We were there on a Sunday, and they were closed. 🙂
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Beautiful gate doors and sentiment.
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Very true indeed, Judy.
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I hope your sentiments endure way beyond Thursday Judy. It’s a very troubled world we live in. Have a super weekend.
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Beautiful post. I wish guns were much harder to access. It seems like every psycho has one.
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The topic of guns is certainly a hot button right now. I understand hunters who kill for meat but don’t understand the need for trophies to hang on the wall. I kind of understand the person who ‘thinks’ s/he can protect their home from invasion but not when they chase someone down the road. What I really don’t understand though is the need for automatic rifles except by the military, and I certainly don’t understand the current trend of walking up and just shooting someone for no reason. We need help to resolve the gun situation that is for sure.
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Beautiful gates and splendid words Judy.
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Your featured doors and thoughts are both meaningful and beautiful. It is poignant to remember all the years in 60’s and 70’s songs like, “Blowin’in the Wind” and “Peace Train” really meant something to my soul. I yearned for our future, where the children I had in the 80’s would really Know Peace. Sad how we have continually taken steps forward only to have events with ignorant people set us back in strides.
I loved the ornate and intricate gates, Judy.
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You just said what a lot of people are feeling today. 🙂
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These days the news does give us reason to reflect, doesn’t it. I’m hoping for more peaceful, tolerant times.
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