In the eyes of an Angel

For Spirituality Night awhile ago I led(or attempted to lead) a somewhat prayerful discussion about the obstacles to peace in our community and world and how we can overcome them. One of my community members mentioned something about taking the time to acknowledge neighbors or the street, people at work etc. that she typically ignores. I thought, in our neighborhood that can go one of two ways.. New York is a great city, but because there is so much going on around you, a lot of people keep to themselves. When I went to Fairfield for alumni weekend, and took a stroll around campus, I was taken back by the smiles I got and the conversations I was able to have with strangers. One of my favorite things about studying abroad was striking up conversation with other travelers, and I feel like I would do that if I was still living in NJ and visiting New York for the night or weekend.. which leads me to believe that being friendly is some kind of a coping mechanism I use when I'm in unfamilar situations..bizarre, but regardless, I wish I wasn't so afraid of the reactions of the other party. I think that a lot of the time fear, mostly of failure or embarassment, keeps me from doing some really decent things... it's kind of a shame when I think about it.

Anyway, so I was on the train this afternoon and this little boy, he could not have been more than two years old, was in his stroller facing me. We made eye contact and I smiled at him. He had the biggest grin on his face in response. We played this smiling game like it was peep-a-boo for a few stops, I couldn't stop laughing. Smiles are so powerful. It made me think that babies are so innocent, they're not used to disappointment or rejection, they have every reason in the world to be carefree and friendly. So many times I have met amazing people, heard great stories, and benefited from stepping outside of my comfort zone. I think it's about time I get over my fears and be myself in this neighborhood and this city. The more I'm out there, the more I realize that this whole peace thing is a lot more complicated than I thought it would be. Well, the solution seems simple, but to actually carry it out is the difficult part. I'm going to make an effort from here on out to bid a good morning to passersby, fellow commuters, etc.. I suppose that will be a start. I also have these two postcards that I challenged my housemates to use in some way to start promoting peace with (at the end of spirituality night). I have yet to figure out how I can use them to do any good. Hopefully something will come to me.