Peace Begins by Being Presents
Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift. That's why we call it the present. -Eleanor Roosevelt
On Saturday, September 18, 2021 the WFWP Northern California had their third Global Women’s Peace Network zoom program in the Women as Leaders series. Gerlyn Quilates served as the MC and brought spirit and energy to the program. Monika Kellett, a member of the GWPN planning team, gave us an overview of WFWP and GWPN, a project of WFWP.
In honor of the International Day of Peace, Maree Gauper read a poem by Langston Hughes entitled “I Dream a World.” The guest speaker for the program was Myrna Lapres, WFWP member, relationship/family coach and presenter. The title was “Peace Begins With Me & My Family.”
Sharing from her personal experience, she explained that when we begin with the desire to grow and change, becoming more present to ourselves and others and practice being authentic and real in our relationships, we create compassion, empathy, connection and belonging in our relationships. Myrna emphasized that it is important to begin with our family and close friends, as those are the ones we have the most impact on.
She said, “I believe in the ripple effect. When we create pockets of goodness and love within our close relationships, we naturally impact others around beyond our family and friends…we are being peacemakers—building a better community.”
After guiding everyone through an exercise of looking at the masks that we wear in order to cope and hide our own pain, everyone went into breakout rooms to discuss what they realized about themselves and their relationships.
When everyone gathered back together, Gerlyn asked a few participants to share. One participant mentioned that she was reminded of the importance of taking time each day to be present to herself and connect with her own willingness to change. Another said, "We talked about mindfulness in our breakout room. I realize that when I can tune into my authentic self, I can be more open to God and trust my intuition." A third person said that they were reminded that they want to enjoy the moment, especially when spending time with a friend over a cup of coffee or tea.
A recording of the event is available here: https://youtu.be/LCfI4DJObBI
The meeting closed with announcements on the upcoming event in November and a new monthly series "Self-Care Isn't Selfish—Heal Yourself, Your Family, the World" beginning on Saturday, October 16. https://www.wfwp.us/events
