Peace is always with us

Yesterday afternoon I heard the Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh on KUNR radio. I met in the early 80's when he first came to this country, and loved him because he said when you meditate you can have a slight smile -- and there I was sitting with a bunch of very serious looking Buddhists who didn't quite like that at the time! He always called any children in the audience to come down front and sit next to him. Now he is 75. He is a Vietnamese monk who has written several books on "being peace" and hugely influenced the Buddhist community, as well as offering the gift of inner peace to many who otherwise would not have tried anything Buddhist. He was one of the key people in the Buddhist resistance in the Vietnam War before, they kicked him out of his country. He has a monastery in Vermont, Maple Forest; and a community in France called Plum Village. He spoke yesterday of "deep listening", and how valuable it is to listen deeply to another, without judgment. Such listening can create an opening. He said we need to find peace in ourselves first before we can find it with another. "If you fail with yourself, how can you succeed with another person?" Good question! He went through hellish experiences during the Vietnamese War, yet he says "peace is always with us to some extent." That's true. In meditation it is always there, waiting; even if you can't necessarily stay with that awareness.