These days, the best tool in my mediations is a smile. Thank God a party told me – about three hours into the mediation – “You haven’t smiled since we started.” I could imagine that my face was as tense as possible trying hard to bring settlement. What message was I sending? With that comment, I turned inward, said a prayer, and let go of my own needs. I smiled, loved, brought compassion and dignity. IT helped. a lot. I’m not saying the case would not have been resolved anyway – I am saying that my smile, et al, initiated a peace that made a huge impact on the process and outcome. I thank God I listened cuz God speaks to us through others and loving one another is emulating Christ and putting Him right smack in the center of it all!

“Peace begins with a smile. Smile five times a day at someone you don’t really want to smile at; do it for peace. Let us radiate the peace of God and so light His light and extinguish in the world and in the hearts of all men all hatred and love for power (and I would add, fear)
Today, if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other-that man, that woman, that child is my brother or my sister.

Mother Theresa