Notes from the Counselor on Peace
These notes on Peace were written at a time of relative peace in the world.
Dr. McKenney was born on September 15th, 1924. Her parents had met because of the Great War WWI. Her father was a cavalryman who was caught in a gas attack in 1917. Her mother was helping in a hospital for the returning wounded.
In a way it was anything but peace that leads to her existence in the world.
Shortly after her parents married their house was burned down because they had a mixed marriage. One was protestant and the other Catholic. Not a terribly peaceful beginning.
As a child she did have somewhat of a protected existence as her parents worked hard and were prosperous during times that others suffer through, like the Great Depression.
As a teenager she saw her brothers go off to war in Europe. One was a rifleman and the other served in some kind of logistics. Once she was old enough she worked as a candy striper in a hospital in Boston.
Toward the end of the war in Europe she married a seaman who was preparing to go to the war in Asia. It was one of those spur of the moment decisions that many young folks made back then.
She saw family involved in the Korean War though it was just the in-laws.
When her children began to graduate high school; there they went off to serve the nation during the Vietnam War. Her three oldest boys joined the services and her daughter married a military man and was off to the Pacific with him. (It was really bad duty as they ended up stationed in Hawaii)
Just as the young boys were getting there lives together along comes 9-11. Almost immediately one of these sons is sent to Afghanistan. He’s back now but her youngest son is over there now. She also has a grandson there and her daughter-in-law is in Iraq.
No, she hasn’t seen much peace in her eighty-two years. But, she believes it is possible.
These are the notes of Dr. Muriel R. McKenney, the Counselor, on Peace:
“As the holidays approach this year, it seems that peace is uppermost in our minds. Not only here in America, but all over the world people are yearning for a spirit of love and peace.
We are tired of turning on the news only to hear put-downs, squabbling, and fighting that we see accelerating into violence and murders.
We fear for the future as long as war is considered the legitimate way to solve problems in the world. We fear for the future as long as it is acceptable to use the terrifying weapons man has devised in order to destroy one another.
The root of our problems seems to be in our belief system. How can we have peace when we believe it is acceptable to destroy one another?
A wise apostle once said, “Perfect love casts out fear.” As usual love IS the answer. Everyone wants and needs to love and be loved. Isn’t that why a gift has so much meaning and brings so much pleasure?
We each have our own perception of reality which becomes our belief system. And everyone perceives the same thing in a different way, their own individual way based on their personality, experiences and former input of information.
We each live in our own internal world and everyone’s reality or belief system is as different as their fingerprints or DNA. Once we have decided on our perception of reality that then becomes our inner map or our belief system.
We tend to be very resistant to changing our beliefs. The firmer the mindset, the harder it is to change. And we also have an awesome ability to deceive ourselves rather than experience the discomfort that change entails.
When someone’s beliefs differ from ours, we may feel threatened and get on the defensive. We may express differing degrees of fear, such as, anxiety, suspicion, distrust, and envy. We may feel levels of rage or anger such as resentment, bitterness, competitiveness, or pride.
Individuals as well as nations react in this manner. It is difficult to admit being wrong, or even to compromise. However, the degree of difficulty depends upon the individual situation.
Albert Einstein once observed that, “we shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive.”
For starters, there is a wonderful song that goes, “Let There Be Peace ON Earth, And Let It Begin With Me.” (Miller)”
Thus end the notes of The Counselor.
In many ways, the Counselor has through her own actions brought peace to many people. Her work in Literacy Volunteers brought comfort to troubled young men who because they could not read had little hope.
Her counseling work brought hope and peace to many people who had given up and thought that there was no hope for them.
Her work with young people through the years gave them solace and peace of mind. She provided them one adult who believed they could succeed.
As much as anyone can work for peace she did through her acts of caring.
